Starting a food business is a great way to increase your income and have more control over how you spend your time. These days, starting a restaurant is easier than ever before with the availability of inexpensive equipment. In this blog post, we’ll go over some of the basic starting items for starting up a restaurant from scratch.
Kitchen Equipment
Restaurant kitchen equipment is different from house equipment. First of all, restaurant equipment is built to last longer. You can expect any piece of restaurant equipment you purchase to be able to stand up under high volume use for many years. That’s why it’s important that you choose your kitchen equipment carefully and buy the best quality items possible like available here https://www.internationalcatering.com.au/.
In order to run a high-quality restaurant, you will need the following items:
- Commercial oven. These are built better and last longer than residential ovens. Once you decide what kind of cooking method works best for your concept (gas vs electric), select an oven that is right for the job.
- Refrigeration unit. You will need a commercial refrigerator and freezer in order to keep all of your ingredients fresh and ready for use when they’re needed by the kitchen staff during service hours.
- Sink/utility sink. A restaurant can’t run without water, so you’ll need one utility sink dedicated just for cleaning dishes versus using the bathroom sinks or the kitchen prep sink.
- Dishwasher. Although you can wash dishes by hand, a commercial dish machine uses high pressure and cleaning chemicals to get your restaurant’s dishes clean.
- Counters and Cutting Surfaces. These are essential for food preparation. You’ll need them to chop vegetables, slice meats, or prepare any other type of raw material before it can be cooked and served.
- Mixers. The need of mixers depend on your concept. If you are serving mostly baked goods, for example, a mixer will not be necessary. But if you plan to serve lots of pasta or handmade pizza doughs, mixers become more important.
- Food Processor. Similar to mixers in terms of what foods they can prepare but different because food processors have an even greater variety of specialty uses.
- Food Warmers/Holders. These are also known as “bain-maries” or chafing dishes, and they keep your food warm until it is ready to be served. Some bain maries even come with their own heating elements inside the unit so that you don’t need another stand alone heat source on the counter or in the kitchen.
- Food slicer/dicer (optional, based on your concept). Slicers and dicers make it easy to chop meat into thin strips for stir-fry dishes or cubed meats for soups and stews. They are another specialty item that is not necessary but will help you to prepare food quickly and efficiently.
- Griddle (optional, based on your concept). Skillets are a staple in many kitchens but if you’re looking for one piece of equipment that can do double duty as both a skillet and grill surface, consider getting a griddle instead. They generally come with ridges so they can be used to cook eggs or other items that need to be cooked in a flat pan.
- Soup Kettle (optional). If you want to get started with an inexpensive option for making soups, consider purchasing a soup kettle instead of getting separate stock pot and steam table pans. A soup kettle is basically both types of equipment combined into one so it saves space in your kitchen.
Front of house equipment
This is the part where you will accept your guests’ money. If you are planning to go the traditional route and serve customers at your restaurant, you will need some sort of point-of-sales (POS) system in order to track sales, take orders, and process credit cards. There are many different POS systems on the market today so consider which one would be best for your concept before you purchase.
Tabletop supplies such as flatware, plates and glasses will obviously be necessary too so you should take the time to select these items carefully in order to get a cohesive look for your restaurant that is also functional and easy to clean after use.
Other essential pieces of equipment include a cash drawer, tip jar or container, menu and a safe.
This list is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to what you will need in order to run a successful food business that produces quality restaurants for customers’ dining pleasure. So, take your time and do some research before making any purchasing decisions that you may regret later down the road.