7 min de leitura16 June 2026

CV for Chef or Kitchen Porter in Ireland 2026

Ireland's hospitality sector is booming in 2026 — the reduced VAT rate (9% from July 2026) means restaurants, hotels, and contract caterers are expanding and hiring at pace. Chefs earn between €24,000 and €40,000 depending on level, while kitchen porters start at €22,000–€28,000 with shift premiums. Aramark, Compass Group, Dalata Hotels, and the Doyle Collection are permanently recruiting. The challenge: hospitality employers use ATS systems that filter for HACCP certification, specific kitchen terminology, and availability for unsociable hours. If your CV does not tick these boxes in the first 6 seconds, you do not get called. This guide covers the exact format that works.

What does a chef or kitchen porter earn in Ireland in 2026?

Kitchen salaries in Ireland vary significantly by role and employer. Contract caterers (Aramark, Compass) pay slightly less than hotel groups but offer more predictable hours. Fine dining commands a premium. According to the Restaurant Association of Ireland 2026 data:

Kitchen porter: €22,000–€28,000/year (€14.15–€16/hr)
Commis chef: €24,000–€30,000/year
Chef de partie (CDP): €30,000–€36,000/year
Sous chef: €36,000–€42,000/year
Head chef: €40,000–€55,000/year (hotel groups pay top of range)
Executive chef: €55,000–€70,000/year (5-star hotels, large contract catering sites)
Shift premiums: evenings +10–15%, weekends +15–20%, bank holidays double time

Key employers: Aramark Ireland (corporate and healthcare catering), Compass Group Ireland, Dalata Hotel Group (Clayton, Maldron), Doyle Collection, Grafton Hotel Group, Press Up Entertainment, and independent restaurants across Dublin, Cork, and Galway.

What CV format do Irish hospitality employers expect?

Large hospitality groups (Aramark, Compass, Dalata) use Workday or Oracle Taleo. Smaller restaurants accept CVs by email or in person. Either way, front-load HACCP and availability:

Length: 1–2 pages. Kitchen porter CVs should be one page; chef CVs can extend to two.
Sections (in order): Contact details → HACCP and certifications → Personal statement → Work experience → Skills/cuisine types → Education
Availability statement: "Available for evenings, weekends, split shifts, and bank holidays" — put this in your personal statement or a dedicated line. Hospitality managers filter on this.
Cuisine types: List specific cuisines you have worked with (Irish, Italian, Asian fusion, patisserie). This helps ATS matching for specialist roles.
No photo, no PPS number — standard Irish format.

How to describe kitchen experience on an Irish CV

Irish hospitality employers want to see covers served, kitchen brigade level, and food safety compliance. Here is the difference between a weak and strong CV entry:

Before (weak): "Worked as cook in restaurant." After (strong): "Chef de partie (grill section) at 120-cover brasserie, responsible for mise en place, service execution, and section close-down. Managed 2 commis chefs during service. Maintained 5-star FSAI audit rating across 3 consecutive inspections."

Before (weak): "Kitchen porter duties." After (strong): "Kitchen porter at 200-cover hotel restaurant (Clayton Hotel Dublin), managing pot wash, deep clean rotation, and goods-in delivery checks. Trained in allergen awareness and waste segregation. Promoted to breakfast prep within 4 months."

Use Irish hospitality vocabulary: "covers", "brigade", "mise en place", "section", "pass", "goods-in", "FSAI audit", "allergen matrix". These are the terms ATS and hiring chefs scan for.

Example CV for chef in Ireland — Chef CV generated by MeuCV — HACCP and brigade terms

Which certifications do Irish kitchens require?

HACCP is non-negotiable for every kitchen role in Ireland — from kitchen porter to head chef. The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) mandates food safety training for all food handlers:

HACCP Level 1 (food handler) — minimum requirement for kitchen porters and entry-level roles. Half-day course, €50–€80.
HACCP Level 2 (food safety management) — required for chefs and anyone supervising food preparation. 1-day course, €80–€120.
Manual Handling — required for roles involving heavy lifting (pot wash, goods-in, deliveries).
Allergen Awareness — increasingly mandatory. Irish law requires all food businesses to manage 14 allergens. A short online course (€30) shows compliance.
Barista training — valuable addition for roles in hotel breakfast service or café kitchens.
First Aid (occupational) — preferred for senior kitchen roles and required by some hotel groups.

Place HACCP certification at the top of your CV. It is the single most-searched keyword in Irish hospitality recruitment. Without it visible, ATS systems rank you lower.

5 errors that get your kitchen CV rejected in Ireland

Missing HACCP certification — even if you have it, if it is buried at the bottom of page 2, the recruiter will not find it. Place it at the top.
Not stating availability — if your CV does not explicitly say you can work evenings and weekends, hospitality managers assume you cannot. State it clearly.
Using non-Irish job titles — "cozinheiro" or "cook" is less precise than "chef de partie" or "commis chef". Use the brigade hierarchy terms Irish kitchens use.
No mention of covers or kitchen size — Irish chefs want to know scale. A 30-cover café is different from a 300-cover banqueting kitchen. Quantify every role.
Including PPS number or personal photos — standard Irish data protection rule. Never include these.

Your next step: build your kitchen CV today

Ireland's restaurants and hotels cannot fill kitchen roles fast enough. If you have HACCP training and cooking experience, the opportunity is real. Your CV needs to speak the language of Irish kitchen hiring — brigade roles, cover counts, food safety compliance, and shift availability.

MeuCV builds chef and kitchen porter CVs for the Irish market — HACCP front and centre, proper brigade terminology, availability stated clearly, and ATS-friendly formatting. Takes 5 minutes. Costs €5.99 — less than a flat white.

Create my chef CV →