Chef Role - Restaurant Management System

Overview

The Chef role is designed for kitchen staff who manage the restaurant’s food menu. Chefs can create, update, and delete menu items, manage their professional profiles, and have access to a dedicated dashboard.

Chef access is controlled through the RoleMiddleware, which validates chef credentials before granting access to menu management features.

Role-Based Access Control

Chef routes are protected by middleware that ensures only authenticated chefs can access menu management:

// routes/chef.php - Line 6
Route::middleware(['auth', 'role:chef'])->prefix('chef')->group(function () {
    // Chef-specific routes
    Route::get('/profile', [ChefController::class, 'showProfile']);
    Route::get('/menu', [ChefController::class, 'cheffoodmenu']);
    Route::post('/menu', [ChefController::class, 'uploadfoodchef']);
});

Shared Admin Panel Access

Chefs also have access to the unified admin panel for food management:

// routes/web.php - Lines 77-79
Route::middleware('role:admin,chef')->group(function () {
    Route::resource('foods', AdminFoodController::class)->names('foods');
});

Chef Dashboard

Chefs have access to the shared admin dashboard where they can see system statistics and navigate to menu management:

// routes/web.php - Line 60
Route::get('/dashboard', [AdminDashboardController::class, 'index'])->name('dashboard');

Dashboard Route:

GET /admin/dashboard

View Menu

Browse all food items with categories and pricing.

Create Items

Add new dishes with images, ingredients, and nutritional info.

Update Items

Modify existing menu items, prices, and descriptions.

Delete Items

Remove discontinued items from the menu.

// routes/chef.php - Lines 14-18
Route::get('/menu', [ChefController::class, 'cheffoodmenu'])->name('chef.menu');
Route::post('/menu', [ChefController::class, 'uploadfoodchef'])->name('chef.menu.store');
Route::get('/menu/{id}/edit', [ChefController::class, 'chefupdateview'])->name('chef.menu.edit');
Route::post('/menu/{id}', [ChefController::class, 'updatechef'])->name('chef.menu.update');
Route::delete('/menu/{id}', [ChefController::class, 'chefdeletemenu'])->name('chef.menu.delete');

Navigate to Menu Section

Access the menu management page at /chef/menu.

Fill Item Details

Provide title, price, description, ingredients, proteins, calories, portion size, and category.

Upload Image

Add an appetizing photo of the dish (JPG, PNG, JPEG, or GIF, max 2MB).

Submit Form

The system validates and saves the menu item to the database.

// app/Http/Controllers/ChefController.php - Lines 38-43
public function uploadfoodchef(Request $request)
{
    $food = new Food();
    $this->saveFood($food, $request);
    return redirect()->route('cheffoodmenu')->with('success', 'Menú agregado correctamente.');
}

All menu items are validated before being saved:

// app/Http/Controllers/ChefController.php - Lines 52-76
protected function saveFood(Food $food, Request $request)
{
    $validated = $request->validate([
        'title' => 'required|string|max:255',
        'price' => 'required|numeric',
        'description' => 'required|string',
        'ingredients' => 'nullable|string',
        'proteins' => 'nullable|string',
        'calories' => 'nullable|integer',
        'size' => 'nullable|string',
        'category_id' => 'nullable|exists:categories,id',
        'image' => 'nullable|image|mimes:jpg,png,jpeg,gif|max:2048',
    ]);

    $food->fill($validated);

    if ($request->hasFile('image')) {
        $image = $request->file('image');
        $imageName = time() . '.' . $image->getClientOriginalExtension();
        $image->move(public_path('foodimage'), $imageName);
        $food->image = $imageName;
    }

    $food->save();
}

// app/Http/Controllers/ChefController.php - Lines 31-36
public function updatechef(Request $request, $id)
{
    $food = Food::findOrFail($id);
    $this->saveFood($food, $request);
    return redirect()->route('cheffoodmenu')->with('success', 'Menú actualizado correctamente.');
}

// app/Http/Controllers/ChefController.php - Lines 45-49
public function chefdeletemenu($id)
{
    Food::findOrFail($id)->delete();
    return redirect()->back()->with('success', 'Menú eliminado correctamente.');
}

Chef Profile Management

Chefs can create and manage their professional profiles with specialties and work areas.

Profile Routes

// routes/chef.php - Lines 9-11
Route::get('/profile', [ChefController::class, 'showProfile'])->name('chef.profile');
Route::post('/profile', [ChefController::class, 'storeProfile'])->name('chef.profile.store');
Route::post('/profile/update', [ChefController::class, 'updateProfile'])->name('chef.profile.update');

Viewing Profile

// app/Http/Controllers/ChefController.php - Lines 82-91
public function showProfile()
{
    $user = Auth::user();
    if ($user->usertype !== 'chef') {
        return redirect()->route('home')
            ->with('error', 'No tienes permiso para acceder a esta página.');
    }

    $chefProfile = $user->chef;
    return view('chef.chefprofile', compact('chefProfile'));
}

Creating Chef Profile

Access Profile Page

Navigate to /chef/profile to view or create your profile.

Enter Professional Details

Provide first name, last name, specialty, description, and work area.

Select Work Area

Choose from: preparacion, cocinar, servir, almacenamiento, lavar, or pedidos.

Upload Photo

Add a professional photo (JPEG, PNG, JPG, or GIF, max 2MB).

Save Profile

The profile is linked to your user account automatically.

// app/Http/Controllers/ChefController.php - Lines 93-101
public function storeProfile(Request $request)
{
    $chef = new Chef();
    $this->saveChefProfile($chef, $request);
    $chef->user_id = Auth::id();
    $chef->save();

    return redirect()->route('chef.profile')->with('success', 'Perfil creado con éxito.');
}

Profile Validation

// app/Http/Controllers/ChefController.php - Lines 117-138
protected function saveChefProfile(Chef $chef, Request $request)
{
    $validated = $request->validate([
        'first_name' => 'required|string|max:255',
        'last_name' => 'required|string|max:255',
        'specialty' => 'required|string|max:255',
        'description' => 'nullable|string',
        'area' => 'required|in:preparacion,cocinar,servir,almacenamiento,lavar,pedidos',
        'image' => 'nullable|image|mimes:jpeg,png,jpg,gif|max:2048',
    ]);

    $chef->fill($validated);

    if ($request->hasFile('image')) {
        $image = $request->file('image');
        $imageName = time() . '.' . $image->getClientOriginalExtension();
        $image->move(public_path('chefimage'), $imageName);
        $chef->image = $imageName;
    }

    $chef->save();
}

Work Areas

Chefs can specify their primary work area:

preparacion - Food preparation and mise en place
cocinar - Main cooking and dish assembly
servir - Plating and serving
almacenamiento - Storage and inventory management
lavar - Cleaning and sanitation
pedidos - Order management and coordination

Updating Profile

// app/Http/Controllers/ChefController.php - Lines 103-114
public function updateProfile(Request $request)
{
    $chef = Auth::user()->chef;

    if (!$chef) {
        return redirect()->route('chef.profile')
            ->with('error', 'No tienes un perfil de chef para editar.');
    }

    $this->saveChefProfile($chef, $request);

    return redirect()->route('chef.profile')->with('success', 'Perfil actualizado con éxito.');
}

Available Permissions

Menu Management

Full CRUD operations on food menu items

Profile Management

Create and update personal chef profile

Category Access

View and assign food categories

Dashboard Access

View system statistics and metrics

Chef Workflows

Review Current Menu

Navigate to /chef/menu to see all available dishes.

Check Inventory

Verify ingredient availability for all menu items.

Update Availability

Remove items that cannot be prepared due to missing ingredients.

Add Specials

Create new menu items for daily specials or seasonal dishes.

Update Prices

Modify pricing based on ingredient costs or management direction.

New Dish Creation Workflow

Recipe Development

Create and test the new dish in the kitchen.

Calculate Nutrition

Determine calories, proteins, and portion size.

Photography

Take a high-quality photo of the finished dish.

Menu Entry

Add the dish to the system with all details and pricing.

Category Assignment

Assign appropriate category (appetizer, main course, dessert, etc.).

Each menu item includes the following information:

Field	Type	Required	Description
title	string	Yes	Name of the dish
price	numeric	Yes	Price in local currency
description	string	Yes	Detailed description of the dish
ingredients	string	No	List of main ingredients
proteins	string	No	Protein content information
calories	integer	No	Caloric content per serving
size	string	No	Portion size description
category_id	integer	No	Foreign key to categories table
image	file	No	Photo of the dish (max 2MB)

API Examples

POST /chef/menu
Content-Type: multipart/form-data

title=Grilled Salmon
price=24.99
description=Fresh Atlantic salmon with herbs
ingredients=Salmon, herbs, olive oil, lemon
proteins=45g
calories=350
size=8oz
category_id=3
image=@salmon.jpg

POST /chef/menu/5
Content-Type: application/json

{
  "title": "Grilled Salmon (Updated)",
  "price": 26.99,
  "description": "Fresh Atlantic salmon with seasonal herbs"
}

DELETE /chef/menu/5

Security Features

All chef routes are protected by the auth and role:chef middleware, ensuring only authenticated chefs can manage menu items.

User Type Validation

The system checks the user’s usertype field to ensure they have chef privileges:

if ($user->usertype !== 'chef') {
    return redirect()->route('home')
        ->with('error', 'No tienes permiso para acceder a esta página.');
}

Image Upload Security

Images are validated for type and size:

Allowed formats: JPG, PNG, JPEG, GIF
Maximum size: 2048 KB (2MB)
Storage location: public/foodimage/ and public/chefimage/

Get Started

Core Features

User Roles

Guides

​Overview

​Role-Based Access Control

​Shared Admin Panel Access

​Chef Dashboard

​Menu Management

View Menu

Create Items

Update Items

Delete Items

​Menu Routes

​Creating Menu Items

​Menu Item Validation

​Updating Menu Items

​Deleting Menu Items

​Chef Profile Management

​Profile Routes

​Viewing Profile

​Creating Chef Profile

​Profile Validation

​Work Areas

​Updating Profile

​Available Permissions

Menu Management

Profile Management

Category Access

Dashboard Access

​Chef Workflows

​Daily Menu Update Workflow

​New Dish Creation Workflow

​Menu Item Structure

​API Examples

​Create Menu Item

​Update Menu Item

​Delete Menu Item

​Security Features

​User Type Validation

​Image Upload Security

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Overview

Role-Based Access Control

Shared Admin Panel Access

Chef Dashboard

Menu Management

Menu Routes

Creating Menu Items

Menu Item Validation

Updating Menu Items

Deleting Menu Items

Chef Profile Management

Profile Routes

Viewing Profile

Creating Chef Profile

Profile Validation

Work Areas

Updating Profile

Available Permissions

Chef Workflows

Daily Menu Update Workflow

New Dish Creation Workflow

Menu Item Structure

API Examples

Create Menu Item

Update Menu Item

Delete Menu Item

Security Features

User Type Validation

Image Upload Security