line cook

noun

plural line cooks

: a cook who typically works at one station (such as the grill or fryer) or prepares one kind of food (such as sauces, meat, or salads) on a line (see line entry 1 sense 15) in a restaurant kitchen

… every night during tomato season the restaurant has one line cook solely dedicated to preparing the salads.

—Bob Townsend

Line cooks have perfected a system of throwing down eggs, cheese, then meats—bacon, sausage, ham, steak—while thinly sliced potatoes brown on the side.

—Bill Addison et al.

… the line cooks are cleaning and organizing, furiously wiping down their stations, stashing towels, and sharpening their knives, preparing for the action just ahead—which is what line cooks do when there's nothing to do, like on-deck batters and their ritualistic practice swings.

—Dan Barber

Word History

First Known Use

1965, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for line cook

• kinderhook
• meadowbrook
• overlook
• overtook
• pocketbook
• storybook
• tillamook
• undertook
• betook
• casebook
• chapbook
• checkbook