SOME chefs employed by local restaurants command salaries as high as 300,000 yuan a year.

An executive with a Shanghai specialty restaurant in the downtown area said it pays that much to hire its head chef from a Hong Kong restaurant. Combined with the salaries paid to other chefs employed from Shanghai, the restaurant¡¯s chef salaries account for 15-18 percent of its kitchen cost.

Other restaurants like the Phoenix Court, the Harbor City Restaurant and the West Lake Spring restaurant also pay chefs handsomely. According to a spokesperson of the Shenzhen Catering Industry Society, 300,000 yuan a year is not unusual in the industry. He added that Cantonese-food chefs command the highest salaries: 30,000 yuan a month. Right behind are Sichuan cuisine chefs who get a salary from 15,000 to 20,000 yuan a month.

A chef could earn more if he or she can cook more than one region's dishes, the spokesperson added.

Although chef payment accounts for 10 to 12 percent of restaurant cost, many restaurant owners said it was worthwhile.

"Customers come to your restaurant to taste their favorite dishes. A restaurant's reputation is based on the special dishes it has. And the dishes are from the chefs," a restaurant owner explained.  

Editor: Wings