Specialties of the Culinary arts

The saute chef prepares sauted foods and the sauces for the kitchen. This is likely the most technically demanding and most skilled position in the kitchen. This is an essential skillset for any cook, either at home or professionally.

The fish chef prepares fish and seafood, to include the butchery and other accompaniments such as the sauces, and often the same chef is responsible for both saucier and poissonier stations. This is a highly skilled position and the chef chosen as the poissonier has well developed culinary skillsets and experience.

The roast chef prepares all roasted food items, the jus, and sauces for the meal items prepared at this station.

The grill chef does exactly that...grills foods. Often the Grillardin and rotisseur are combined into one area with the same chef at the same time because often the foods are similar enough that in all but the largest kitchens with the largest size brigades, this is most efficient.

The fry chef prepares all of the fried foods and is often combined with the rotisseur and grillardin positions.

The vegetable chef prepares cooked appetizers, amuse bouche, and may also prepare starches (such as pasta, rice, potatoes, etcetera). However sometimes additional responsibilities such as egg , soups, and vegetables may be combined with this position.

Also known as the roundsman because this chef works where needed in the kitchen. The tournant is a chef that has sufficient experience and skillsets to be able to move from one role to another and be successful. An effective tournant is often a generalist or has mastered several brigade specialties.

The pantry chef prepares cold foods such salad, cold appetizers, pâte, terrines, etc. garde-manger is the French word that literally means pantry in English.

The butcher...butchers. Prepares cuts of animals (sometimes fish) and may also prepare  breading for meat, poultry (and fowl), and fish (including seafood).

The pastry chef is the undisputed leader of the bakery, is usually the most skilled and well versed member of the bakery team, and is responsible for baked goods such as cakes, pastry, dessert, and all of the staff such as the confiseur, boulanger, glacier, and décorateur. 

Think confection (sweet) perfection. The confiseur makes the sweet treats of a bakery. Petit fours, candy, and similar items are the responsibility of this position. The confiseur is a highly skilled position where appearance and technical presentation are as essential to the eye as the flavor and texture are to the palate.

This cook is the bread baker. The French name for a bakery is boulangerie. the boulanger prepares bread products and doughs that aren't sweetened or are savory in nature.

The cook who filled this role prepared refrigerated or frozen desserts (think glacier). Iced cream, gelee, mousse, gelato, etc. comes to mind when considering the types of desserts  the glacier would be responsible for.

The decorator, which is the English translation of the French word décorateur (masculine) or décoratrice (feminine). However, in Escoffier's brigade system the masculine is used likely because in the time of Escoffier much of the workforce was male.

The expediter provides leadership and direction to the brigade. The primary role of the expediter is to be the point of communication between the dining room brigade and kitchen brigade. The aboyeur manages and coordinates between the various station chefs so meals for guests at each table receive their meals together, and to perform quality control because the aboyeur is usually the last brigade member to see the meal before being served. Generally speaking, whomever is leading the kitchen is the aboyeur. The expediter must communicate expectations clearly, concisely, and such that the brigade functions efficiently and effectively. Much of the time the aboyeur has effectively operated all stations of the bridade that are necessary to execute the executive chef's menu.

The cook who prepares the meal for the staff is the communard. Many restaurants feed their staff for free, or at reduced prices, but often for those restaurants who provide a meal or something to eat it is often from a menu. For the communard this meal many times is referred to as the family meal because many restaurateurs view their staff members as part of the family, or quite literally are the family in a family run restaurant. Personally, it has been my experience that a well fed and happy staff is a productive and reliable staff who genuinely want the restaurant to succeed.

The apprentice is a cook who is being trained in the responsibilities of a specialty in the brigade. The commis may or may not have mastered another brigade specialty but has not mastered the specialty to which they are serving as the commis.