№01The Pass
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Kitchen calls and slang: what chefs actually say on the pass

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The words you hear in a working restaurant kitchen during service, and what each one means for the person hearing it. These are UK kitchen usage, with the American versions noted where they differ.

Heard
I've got it. The answer to any call from the pass, so whoever's running it knows the order landed. "Yes, chef" does the same job.
Check on
A new ticket is coming in. The pass reads it out and each section answers "heard".
All day
The total of one item across every ticket on the board. "Three fillets all day" means three in total, not three more.
Away
Start the next course for a table. "Table six, mains away" means fire table six's mains now, because the starters are going out.
Fire
Start cooking it now. Same job as "away"; you hear it more in American kitchens.
Service, please / Hands
A plate is ready on the pass and needs taking to the table now. Plates that sit under the lights die there.
How long?
The pass asking a section how many minutes until a dish is ready. Answer in minutes, not "nearly".
Walking in
The plate is on its way to the pass now. Any reheating, saucing or garnish elsewhere should be ready to meet it.
On the fly
Needed immediately, ahead of everything else, usually to replace a dropped or sent-back plate.
Re-fire
Cook it again from scratch, because the first one went wrong or came back.
86 (eighty-six)
Gone, finished, off the menu for tonight. "86 the sea bass" means none left, so front of house stops selling it.
Behind
I'm behind you. Said every time you pass behind someone, so they don't step back into you.
Hot behind
I'm behind you with something hot: a pan, a tray, a pot of stock. Don't turn round.
Sharp
I'm carrying a knife. Point down, blade back, and say it.
Corner
Coming round a blind corner. Stops collisions at the walk-in door and the pass.
Mise en place (mise)
Everything prepped and in its place before service: chopped, portioned, sauces made. "How's your mise?" means "are you ready?"
The pass
The counter where finished plates are checked, wiped and sent. Whoever runs it controls the pace of the night.
Ticket / check
The order printed from the till for one table. It sits on the rail at the pass until the table's last course goes.
In the weeds
Overloaded and falling behind. Someone in the weeds needs help or fewer tickets, not a lecture.
Covers
Diners. "We did 140 covers" means 140 people ate, however many tables that was.
Section
Your station on the line: grill, fish, sauce, garnish, larder, pastry. "Who's on your section?"
Chef de partie (CDP)
The chef running a section. Above them sit the sous chef and head chef; below them, the demi chef de partie and commis.
Commis
A junior chef learning a section under a chef de partie.
KP
Kitchen porter: washes up and keeps the kitchen running. The kitchen stops without them.
Walk-in
The walk-in fridge or freezer. "It's in the walk-in" sends you to the cold room, not the reach-in under the bench.
Family meal / staff food
The meal cooked for the team before service. Often where young chefs first get to cook something of their own.
Sweep / clean down
Clearing and cleaning your section, usually at the end of service, so it's ready for the morning.

Why the calls exist

A kitchen in service is loud, hot, crowded and full of knives. The calls keep the information short and say it once. Every call gets an answer, so the pass knows it was heard. And they keep people safe in narrow spaces, which is why "behind", "hot" and "sharp" get said every single time, even when it feels obvious.

CHEF NOTEIf you want to run your home kitchen like a section, "heard" and "behind" are the two worth bringing home. More on how a restaurant kitchen is organised is in What is the pass?.

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