The catering department may look small, but the crew's morale and health depend directly on this team's work.
Chief Cook — daily duties
- Planning and cooking the daily menu (including cultural/religious considerations, as required by MLC 2006).
- Ensuring galley hygiene and food safety.
- Tracking provision stocks and preparing the order list before port calls.
Steward / Messman — daily duties
- Serving meals and keeping the mess room in order.
- Cleaning cabins and common areas.
- Supporting laundry and stores work.
A typical day
An early-starting kitchen/service routine built around breakfast, lunch and dinner. Port days add receiving provisions.
How to reach this rank
Can start with culinary training (vocational school or a certificate programme) plus basic maritime training; for steward, basic STCW certificates are usually enough.
To see where the catering department fits on board, check out "Shipboard Hierarchy 6: The Catering Department and Other Roles".
