Top 75 Food Service Chef and Restaurant Associations

The states are organized into organizations under the umbrella of the National Association of Restaurants.  Most are management and consumer oriented, although many of them do have job banks on their websites.  The chefs associations are more employee oriented, but any of these associations can probably provide good information on where to find employment opportunities, even if they do not themselves provide listings.

State Restaurant and Hospitality Industry Organizations

1. Alabama Restaurant Association  
2. Arizona Restaurant Association  
3. Arkansas Restaurant Association 
4. California Restaurant Association
5. Colorado Restaurant Association
6. Connecticut Restaurant Association  
7. Delaware Restaurant Association      
8. Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington DC                                                                                                        
9. Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association
10. Georgia Restaurant Association
11. Hawaii Restaurant Association
12. Idaho Lodging and Restaurant Association
13. Illinois Restaurant Association
14. Indiana Restaurant Association
15. Iowa Restaurant Association
16. Kentucky Restaurant Association
17. Louisiana Restaurant Association
18. Maine Restaurant Association
19. Restaurant Association of Maryland
20. Massachusetts Restaurant Association
21. Michigan Restaurant Association
22. Hospitality Minnesota
23. Mississippi Restaurant Association
24. Missouri Restaurant Association
25. Montana Restaurant Association                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                
26. Nebraska Restaurant Association                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       
27. Nevada Restaurant Association
28. New Hampshire Lodging and Restaurant Association
29. New Jersey Restaurant Association
30. New Mexico Restaurant Association
31. New York State Restaurant Association
32. North Carolina Restaurant and Lodging Association
33. North Dakota Hospitality Association
34. Ohio Restaurant Association
35. Oklahoma Restaurant Association
36. Oregon Restaurant Association
37. Pennsylvania Restaurant Association
38. Rhode Island Hospitality Association
39. Hospitality Association of South Carolina
40. Tennessee Hospitality Association
41. Texas Restaurant Association
42. Utah Restaurant Association
43. Virginia Hospitality and Travel Association
44. Washington Restaurant Association
45. West Virginia Hospitality and Travel Association
46. Wisconsin Restaurant Association
47. Wyoming Lodging and Restaurant Association

Chef, Cook and Food Service Organizations

1. American Culinary Federation was founded in 1929 and is the largest organization for professional chefs and cooks in North America.  There are 230 chapters at the state, regional and city level.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         
2. American Dietetic Association is for professionals in the dietetic and nutrition fields.                                                                                                                                       
3. American Personal and Private Chef Association has a training and certification program.
4. American Sommelier Association provides education and certification for its members as well as sponsoring occasional competitions.
5. Asian Chefs Association is a San Francisco based organization that encompasses professionals working in every form of Asian cuisine.
6. Association for Healthcare Food Service is for professionals who provide services in facilities with in-house food service.
7. California Capitol Chefs is a regional organization for Sacramento, the state capital, and environs.
8. Chicago Chefs Inc. is an organization that dates back to 1925, predating the American Culinary Federation by four years.  
9. Colorado Chefs Association has an apprenticeship program operated in conjunction with the U.S. Department of Labor and the American Culinary Federation.
10. Green Restaurant Association is dedicated to sustainable food service management.
11. High Sierra Chefs Association has a membership that works in the casinos, hotels and resorts in the Reno area and surrounding Lake Tahoe.
12. International Food Service Executives Association is comprised of professionals working at a variety of positions in all types of hospitality and institutional facilities.
13. National Association of Catering Executives  has forty six chapters around the country. They offer education programs and certification.
14. National Association of College and University Food Services was founded in Michigan and now has six regions across the country.
15. National Restaurant Association  is the major national organization, claiming all of the state organizations as affiliates.
16. New York Metro Personal Chefs is a regional organization serving all of the New York City Burroughs, Westchester and Putnam Counties, Fairfield County Connecticut and Northern New Jersey.  A golden networking opportunity for personal chefs in the area.
17. Orange Empire Chefs and Cooks Association is for cooking professionals in the Southern California Orange County area.
18. Professional Chefs Association offers certification training and exams.
19. Research Chefs Association  is an organization for professionals who are engaged in “the blending of culinary arts and the science of food.”
20. Restaurant Facility Management Association  is focused primarily on the large chain restaurant business sector.
21. School Nutrition Association works to support policies that further quality nutrition in schools. 
22. Society for Food Service Management includes members who work as consultants in the industry.
23. The Texas Chefs Association has fifteen chapters within the state comprising an active organization.  They also have a job bank on their website.
24. United States Personal Chefs Association provides insurance, certification and recognition for its members. 
25. Washington State Chefs Association dates back to 1923, when it was founded as the Seattle Culinary Association.
26. Women Chefs and Restauranteurs was established in 1993 and since then has grown to an organization with national membership of over 2,000 industry professionals.
27. World Association of Chefs Societies was founded in 1928 in the Sorbonne. 
28. World Master Chefs Society has 25 branches around the globe.