The kitchen of a restaurant or hotel should only use commercial equipment to keep things clean, smooth, and functional. The equipment used in a commercial kitchen is quite different from what people use in the traditional kitchen. So, people need to be careful in selecting the best commercial kitchen equipment for their hotel or restaurant.
Types of Commercial Kitchen Equipment:
The professional kitchen equipment belongs to different categories like:
- Heating: Microwaves and ovens.
- Cleaning: Dishwasher and sink
- Cooking: Woks and charcoal grills
- Cooling: Refrigerators
How to Choose Best Commercial Kitchen Equipment:
The restaurant owners need to set their minds on premium quality commercial kitchen equipment. They should keep in mind that such equipment is a one-time investment.
Inferior quality cooking tools may result in spoilt food. For example, a defective sandwich-maker will result in the waiters serving burnt sandwiches to the customer. Hence, inferior quality or defective kitchen equipment will tarnish the reputation of the restaurant.
So, the stakeholders of a restaurant should keep a few factors in mind while choosing the best commercial kitchen equipment. Such factors will help them maintain the reputation of the company. The factors are as follows:
- Cuisine: The cuisine of the restaurant plays a vital role in the choice of equipment. There is no logic behind buying equipment to prepare Chinese cuisine for a restaurant that serves Continental cuisine.
- Reputation: It is an excellent idea to do quick market research before investing in commercial kitchen equipment. The heating tools of a particular brand may serve commercial requirements better than others. The internet comes in handy in this. People may either check online for commercial kitchen equipment with the maximum number of positive customer reviews. Alternatively, they may also seek the opinion of people working in other hotels. Reputed brands will not want to compromise their reputation by selling defective equipment to the customer. Hence, they will be cautious about the quality of the product.
- Budget: Commercial kitchen equipment is a one-time investment. It should be branded. So, it is a good idea to prepare a budget before shopping for such equipment. They also need to adhere to the budget.
- Overcrowding: The chefs of a commercial kitchen need space to move around. They also need some extra space to store food. Some food reacts adversely with others. To make commercial cooking a hassle-free experience, people should not overcrowd the kitchen with professional cooking equipment. The design of the kitchen plays a vital role in the arrangement of the equipment.
- Appearance: A common marketing strategy is “Looking good is more important than being good.” The appearance of the commercial kitchen equipment should testify to this statement. Stainless steel has an eternal appeal. So, customers find stainless steel cutlery impressive. Many restaurants invest in such equipment with an attractive appearance.
- Cleanliness: People should choose commercial kitchen equipment that is easy-to-clean. Otherwise, the culinary experience loses its charm. It will be a frightening experience if a customer finds roasted cockroaches in a signature dish. Such unhygienic practices are the output of complex equipment that is difficult to clean. The cleaning factor should decide the choice of an article.
- Suitable equipment: One that is suitable for domestic kitchens are never suitable for the commercial cookhouse. The simple reason for it is that more food is cooked and stored in a commercial kitchen. Hence, more utensils are washed there too. The refrigerator of a commercial kitchen should have more storage capacity.
Ovens and microwaves should be able to heat more quantities of food. So, the specifications of them need to be thoroughly checked to confirm whether it is suitable for a commercial kitchen. The customers need to check the tools thoroughly before buying it.
- Warranty: The customers should check the warranty of the tools that they are buying. Premium quality commercial kitchen tools are bound to be expensive. So, they need to have a warranty. Otherwise, the restaurant authorities will face a challenge if they need to get it repaired soon after buying them.
- Prioritizing: The customers need to prioritize among the products for commercial kitchen tools. Some tools are required immediately, while others may be bought later. So, they may invest in a few premium quality tools at a time rather than buying many inferior quality products together.
- Energy Efficient: The customers should ensure that they are buying energy-efficient tools for their commercial cookhouses. Hotels and restaurants already need to pay a high electricity bill. So, they do not need any tools which will add to the bill.
- Quality: The tools should be of premium quality. The customers should check them thoroughly against defects before they invest in it. It is pointless to buy a piece of tools only to find that it is broken or damaged.
- Payment Scheme: It is imperative to get flexible payment schemes. As mentioned earlier, professional tools will be expensive. So, the payment scheme needs to be flexible. It may get a bit difficult to make a one-time payment for such costly tools.
- Overheating: Many pieces of tools like microwaves and ovens get overheated. Overheating may damage it. So, customers should check the specifications thoroughly. It is better to buy a tool that is guaranteed against overheating.
- Durable: It is expected that all professional cookhouses will use the pieces of tools. So, the tools need to be durable. While the staff will not manhandle the tools, a restaurant is expected to cater to millions of customers per day. So, the tools need to be durable. It is a major difference between a tool for a domestic household and a commercial cookhouse. Domestic households have fewer people for whom cooking needs to be done. Parties are rarely organized. So, a lesser durable tool will work fine for domestic cookhouses. However, the tools for a professional cookhouse needs to be significantly more durable.
Conclusion: Professional staff insists on premium quality tools. The tools need some maintenance and gentle handling. However, these tools will serve better in the long run.