To hire cooks and kitchen staff, match the channel to the role: an on-demand app or agency for a shift that is short this weekend, and Instagram and Facebook ads for permanent prep cooks, line cooks and dishwashers, with pay and hours in the first line and a quick pre-screen so the chef only talks to people who can work your schedule. This guide is for employers, such as restaurants, hotels, caterers and canteens, and not for people looking for a cooking job. As of October 2026.
The market in numbers
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics counts about 2.7 million cook jobs in 2025 and expects 7 % growth through 2035, "much faster than average", with roughly 393,200 openings a year. Median pay was $17.62 an hour. Restaurants employ the most cooks, about 1.42 million at a median of $17.98, followed by fast food (640,500, $14.85) and institutions and cafeterias (454,000, $18.01). No formal education is typically required, and most cooks learn on the job.
Two facts shape the search. First, kitchens run early mornings, late evenings, weekends and holidays, so hours are often the deciding factor, not pay alone. Second, turnover is high. Hospitality analyses that cite BLS JOLTS data put annual turnover in accommodation and food services at about 65 % in 2025, a figure from secondary sources and an estimate. OysterLink, a hospitality job platform, puts the cost of replacing one restaurant worker at $5,864, also an estimate. Even if your number is lower, a hire who stays six months is worth more than one who fills the schedule for a week.
Not every kitchen role is the same search
"Kitchen staff" covers jobs with different candidates, different channels and different questions. Treat them separately:
| Role | Where to look | What to check first |
|---|---|---|
| Dishwasher, kitchen porter | Instagram and Facebook feed, referrals, on-demand apps | hours, commute, start date |
| Prep cook | feed ads, culinary schools, referrals | early-morning availability, knife skills, food safety training |
| Line cook | feed ads, referrals from other kitchens, job boards | station experience, evening and weekend hours, trial shift |
| Sous chef, chef de cuisine | network, specialist recruiters, targeted outreach | menu style, team lead experience, pay expectation |
The jobs where social media ads help most are the volume roles: dishwashers, prep cooks and line cooks. People in those roles rarely read job boards daily, but they check their phone on every break. Senior chefs are a network and outreach search, and a different article.
Where cooks are, and what Meta lets you target
- Job ads are a special ad category. According to Meta's rules, employment ads in the US and several other regions have limited targeting: the age range is fixed, gender cannot be selected, location targeting works by radius instead of postal code and lookalike audiences are unavailable. Check the current rules in Meta's Business Help Centre and do not build your plan around demographic targeting.
- You target through the message. "Prep cook, mornings only, Monday to Friday, $[amount] an hour" finds the right people better than any audience setting. A radius around the kitchen does the rest.
- Applying must take a minute on a phone. A lead form or a WhatsApp link beats a form that asks for a CV. See frontline recruiting by phone and WhatsApp, not email.
An ad that works: a worked example
Answer what, when, where and how much in the first three lines, and be honest about the shift. A template with placeholders, not a real posting:
Line cook, dinner service (3 pm to 11 pm, Wednesday to Sunday)
$[amount] an hour plus tips pooled, staff meal every shift, schedule posted two weeks ahead. Open kitchen, 8-person team, 10 minutes from [neighbourhood]. Apply in 60 seconds from your phone, no resume needed.
Use a real photo of your kitchen or your pass, not stock imagery, and test two or three lead lines such as pay, schedule and team. New hires dislike surprises, so name the unglamorous parts too, such as Saturday nights or a hot line. Replace the creative every two to three weeks.
Pre-screening: five questions before a chef spends time
A chef in the middle of service cannot answer 40 messages. A talent agent can ask five questions at once, at any hour, via WhatsApp, phone or web, and give you a short list of who fits.
Keep every question job-related. Food handler card rules differ by state and county, so ask whether the applicant holds one or can get one before day one, and let a person verify documents. For permanent roles, a paid trial shift tells you more than any interview. This is not legal advice.
Staffing app, agency or your own pipeline?
| Route | Speed | Cost | Who owns the contact |
|---|---|---|---|
| On-demand staffing app | hours to days | hourly markup or platform fee | the platform |
| Staffing agency | days | markup on every hour, or a fee per placement | the agency |
| Job board | weeks | per post or per click | the board |
| Social media ads with pre-screening | days to launch | ad spend plus a platform or tool fee | you, if the tool stores applicants in your pool |
A kitchen with a hole this Friday needs an app or an agency. A kitchen that will lose another cook in March needs a pool. The two are not alternatives, but only one of them gets cheaper each time you use it.
Sprad Social Recruiting for hospitality employers
Sprad Social Recruiting runs job ads on Instagram and Facebook, where nurses, tradespeople, drivers and other frontline workers spend time every day. An AI talent agent pre-screens every applicant via WhatsApp, phone or web. Every applicant lands in the employer's own talent pool, so the relationships stay with the employer instead of a platform. Pricing is ad spend plus 10 %, from a €1,000 budget that can be split across roles.
For a restaurant group, that means the line cook who could not start in June is still in your talent pool when a new location opens in the autumn. More on recruiting in hospitality.
Budget example
Sprad charges ad budget plus 10 %, from a €1,000 budget that you can split across roles, with three months recommended. Prices are in euros. The figures are plain arithmetic, not a promise of applicants:
| Example | Ad budget (3 months) | 10 % fee | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| One restaurant, one line cook | €1,000 | €100 | €1,100 |
| One kitchen, three roles (line, prep, dish) | €3,000 | €300 | €3,300 |
| New opening, five roles | €6,000 | €600 | €6,600 |
How many applications this yields depends on region, ad and pay. For orientation, the Boostpoint 2026 benchmark of 891 Meta campaigns puts the median at $13.88 per application across roles, a US figure and no forecast for your kitchen. Divide your budget by your own cost per qualified applicant to estimate how many conversations to plan for.
Where to adjust: cities
Kitchen work is local and the way home after a late close matters. Run ads in a radius around the site. These are starting points, not measurements:
- New York and Chicago: dense restaurant markets with strong competition for line cooks. Lead with schedule predictability and pay.
- Austin and Nashville: fast-growing dining scenes. Stress the team and growth, since cooks have many options.
- Orlando and Las Vegas: hotels and resorts hire in volume. Name shifts and the staff meal.
- London and Manchester (UK): state the hourly rate and the rota clearly, and mention sponsorship only if you offer it.
Hiring cooks with Sprad
Sprad runs your kitchen job ads on Instagram and Facebook, where cooks spend their breaks. The Talent Agent pre-screens every applicant by WhatsApp, phone or web, and everyone lands in your own talent pool, so the next opening starts with people you already reached. You pay ad spend plus 10 %, from a €1,000 budget. See how Sprad Social Recruiting works.
Frequently asked questions
How do I hire kitchen staff fast?
Use an on-demand app or agency for the immediate gap, and run Instagram and Facebook ads with pay and hours in the first line for permanent roles. Pre-screen by WhatsApp or phone so the chef only meets people who fit the schedule.
Where can I find cooks?
Through referrals, culinary schools, job boards, staffing apps and agencies, and on Facebook and Instagram, where cooks who are not actively searching spend their breaks.
What does it cost to hire a cook?
It depends on region, role and channel. Apps and agencies add a markup, boards charge per post or click. With Sprad you pay ad budget plus 10 %, so a €1,000 budget costs €1,100. Compare cost per qualified applicant, not cost per click.
Should I do a trial shift?
For permanent kitchen roles, yes, and pay for it. It shows speed, hygiene and fit with the team better than an interview, and it protects both sides.
Is this about finding a cooking job?
No. This guide is for employers who need to hire cooks and kitchen staff. Job seekers are better served by a job board or the employer's career page.
Jürgen Ulbrich
Jürgen Ulbrich has more than a decade of experience in developing and leading high-performing teams and companies. As an expert in employee referral programs as well as feedback and performance processes, Jürgen has helped over 100 organizations optimize their talent acquisition and development strategies.
