Running a commercial kitchen is challenging enough. The standard obstacles can become even more overwhelming when a commercial kitchen is short on space. This also represents an opportunity, though, as reimagining a kitchen can help with productivity, labor, and staff retention. Sometimes, all it takes is a little creativity and the right foodservice equipment.
In a compact kitchen, maximizing every square inch is of paramount importance. The tight quarters can place undue strain on kitchen staff, who often find themselves navigating around one another while juggling multiple tasks such as food preparation and plating. Enhancing efficiency and streamlining operations becomes imperative in such constrained spaces.
Ineffectiveness in a small kitchen can give rise to bottlenecks, resulting in prolonged ticket times and, ultimately, customer dissatisfaction. To avert these issues, a multifaceted strategy is required. Firstly, staff training should emphasize optimal work practices to ensure each team member operates efficiently. Secondly, utilizing versatile equipment capable of serving multiple functions can significantly contribute to resolving these challenges.
Creative workarounds are essential for making a small kitchen run smoothly. For example, wall storage is valuable because it provides space vertically, which can often be overlooked. Hooks, shelves, and hanging bins can help alleviate the problem of limited floor storage space. Also, consider using checklists that utilize the area effectively. This also helps with continuity in the creation of each dish.
Automation holds a distinct advantage as it enables orders to be processed seamlessly, allowing the staff to allocate their efforts towards other non-automated facets of the business, such as providing exceptional customer service.
Another solution for smaller commercial kitchens is using ventless foodservice equipment. Since they don't need ductwork to operate safely, ventless equipment can be placed anywhere in the kitchen where there's space, all without sacrificing quality or safety.
With TurboChef ovens, cooking menu choices such as pizza, baked salmon, baked chicken, or desserts are easily achieved in one unit. From high-speed impingement ovens, rapid cook ovens, and high-speed conveyor ovens, there's a TurboChef ventless oven for every restaurant, bar, hotel, school, and hospitality venue.
The best way to find the ventless TurboChef for your business? Try their easy-to-use product selector tool. By answering a few easy questions, operators can find out if the three different cooking options and automated features of the Plexor oven fit the bill or another oven will work better for them.
Beverages have a high profit margin and can often be the defining factor for an establishment's profitability. So, even in compact spaces, having the right beverage machine can increase sales and enhance the customer experience.
With Concordia and Synesso machines, delivering a superior coffee experience without investing in cumbersome equipment is a win-win. Using minimal counter space, both brands make serving coffee-based drinks seem more manageable and fun.
For businesses with a designated barista, having a Synesso espresso machine in a resort, coffee shop, or bookstore can deliver precision pulls that staff can customize. And establishments such as schools, hospitals, bakeries, or convenience stores can use the Concordia automatic espresso machines to make it simple for anyone to serve a tasty coffee-based drink. There are even Concordia models where customers can serve and process payment themselves.