The importance of kitchen organisation in a busy restaurant can mean the difference between success and failure. Significant numbers of diners aren’t afraid to complain about long waits for their meals, which can ruin your reputation if they vent on social media.
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Studies show 20% of all negative feedback online for restaurants relates to slow service, while two-thirds of face-to-face complaints to staff in restaurants, potentially leading to a loss of tips, are related to long waits. One bad experience can lead to negative reviews, either online or verbally to family and friends, driving away future customers.
Around one-fifth of diners who’ve had a bad experience say they can’t wait for the end of the night and the bill. This isn’t the way anyone wants to run their restaurant, so keeping your commercial kitchen in order is imperative to the business’s future success.
Research published by Fresh KDS, based on a poll of diners, reveals 52% believe the maximum waiting time to get served should be 30 minutes.
Commercial kitchen storage
The key to effective kitchen operations is having the right equipment on hand, from cookers and specialised appliances to cutting boards, cutlery and of course, kitchen storage space.
Work faster and produce higher quality results when you have a functioning kitchen system and a clear organisational plan, including keeping supplies and ingredients easily accessible and well-stocked. An efficient system for storing and labelling ingredients and prepared foods will reduce the amount of waste you generate and minimise the risks of spoilage.
The most common challenges commercial kitchens face in storage management include limited space, cross-contamination risks and inefficient inventory management.
Commercial kitchens often have a compact design which has to make the most of every available inch of space. Storage solutions, such as racks, shelves, cabinets and food storage containers can help organise utensils, equipment and ingredients, improving accessibility and reducing clutter.
The ingredients used most often in the kitchen should be placed at the front of walk-in and dry storage facilities. Ingredients should be placed in airtight food storage containers to prevent moisture from spoiling them. An ingredient bin is ideal for bulk storage of sugar, flour and grains.
Stackable clear plastic containers, in various sizes, are ideal as a space saving storage solution for your kitchen, as this enables you to take advantage of vertical space as well as floor space.
Improve health and safety
Hygienic storage solutions enhance health and safety compliance by ensuring proper sanitation, food rotation and adherence to regulations like Food Standards Agency legislation.
As the UK version of the US Food and Drug Administration agency, the FSA is an independent department of the UK government that oversees food hygiene and safety in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. It liaises with local authorities to enforce food safety laws; inspects meat plants to ensure compliance with legal standards; provides food safety advice relating to “best before” and “use by” dates; and advises on food hygiene at events.
Solent Plastics kitchen storage solutions
We have a range of industrial storage solutions for kitchens to meet your every need.
Our 140-litre mobile heavy-duty ingredient dispensing bin is supplied with a clear, sloping, shatterproof Perspex lid. Moulded from 100% food grade polyethylene; the snag-free, hygienic design is easy to clean and can withstand a temperature range of between -30°C and +80°C. With a load capacity of 70kg, it’s an ideal mobile storage solution for kitchens, bakeries, hospitality, catering, dry goods and food processing.
The 15-litre ventilated Euro plastic catering stacking container, with ventilated sides and base, is ideal for all catering applications. These specially sourced, stackable, food grade trays are a fantastic price and quality. They can be used as trays to dry foods such as meats, pasta and fruit, with the durable HDPE material offering chemical resistant storage.
Suitable for a wide temperature range of between -40°C and +75°C, these containers are ideal for freezing foods and dishwashers. The food grade tote will stack nicely with all standard European crates, offering easy palletisation with Euro size boxes from other manufacturers. It provides airflow essential in cooling, proofing and temperature regulation processes.
Exclusive to Solent Plastics, our 78-litre heavy-duty colour-coded attached lid containers are available in five colours. Ideal for occasions when colour-coded storage is required, they are manufactured from virgin Polypropylene. With an excellent load capacity of 35kg per container and 140kg stacked capacity, they are suitable for use in a temperature range of -20°C to +70°C and feature an improved lid design with lock-in points to assist with stable stacking. A ribbed area on the ends and lid allows for labels and barcodes, while the base is lightly ribbed for extra strength. They are stackable when full and nestable when empty.
Buy your Gastronorn food grade containers from Solent Plastics at a fraction of the price of catering suppliers and fulfil the industry standard for food storage. They are ideal for storing ingredients, serving, freezer storage, sauces and stocks. Made from food grade BPA-free plastic, they are certified for contact with food under the regulations UE 200/2014 and UE 10/2011.
Stackable, and dishwasher/microwave proof, and with a huge temperature range of between -40°C and +100°C, they have a permanent wipe clean label, making them ideal for storing items in line with food standards - supplied with four changeable colour coded tags for the base and lid in blue, red, green and yellow.
Complete with a litre fill line for use with liquids, they are transparent so the contents can be identified easily. They come in standard Gastronorm sizing and are suitable for ingredients storage, fridges, freezers, soups, sauces, pizza toppings, serving, cakes, etc., making them ideal for every commercial kitchen.
Benefits of effective storage solutions
Organised storage reduces the time spent searching for items, streamlining preparation workflows and minimising errors. Early year implementation of storage upgrades plays a key role in annual success, as it establishes operational efficiency, reducing employee stress during peak periods and setting the tone for a productive year.