In order for a kitchen to function with maximum efficiency it needs to have been designed with purpose and care. You cannot simply fill a large room with kitchen equipment and expect it to function as a commercial kitchen. Everything, from the placement of the kitchen equipment, to the shape and structure of the room itself, plays a role in how efficiently the kitchen can operate. When designing a small commercial kitchen, you need to consider a range of different variables.
A kitchen that is well designed will naturally and automatically lend itself well to safe and efficient operation. Ergonomics is the study of efficiency in people; when we refer to the ergonomics of a commercial kitchen we are referring to the efficiency with which those working in the kitchen are able to operate. In order to ensure that the kitchen you design is as ergonomic as possible you will need to take the time beforehand to think about what you want to achieve and how you can best go about achieving it.
The Food
There a number of different scenarios in which you might find yourself needing to design a kitchen. In some cases, you will already have a comprehensive knowledge of the food that is going to be served, and sometimes the people who will prepare it. Other times you will be working blind, trying to design a kitchen to be used by an unknown chef who will be producing an unspecified variety of cuisine.
Trying to plan an ergonomic kitchen with no knowledge of what food will be prepared there is exceedingly difficult, in fact it is essentially luck! The key to efficiency in the kitchen is planning, only by knowing what needs to be done will you be able to devise a strategy to accomplish it as effectively as possible.
Equipment and Furniture
Once you know what food you are going to be preparing, and the equipment that will be required to prepare it, you can start to measure up the space you have and begin looking at equipment at Culinary Depot. Remember, not only will you need the equipment necessary to prepare the food, you will also need to refrigerate and store that food, in some cases you will also need to display it appropriately. Whatever the ultimate fate of your food, it, and you, will benefit from a well designed kitchen.
In addition to the ergonomics you will also of course have to make sure that your kitchen is capable of meeting all the relevant environmental and health & safety requirements. Kitchens that are producing a large volume of food which needs to be refrigerated will benefit form a walk-in freezer. You will also want to give your guests the best possible experience; to this end you should check out furniture from Apex.
The Space
Once you have a good idea of the kind of equipment you will need and the kind of food that you will be preparing, you can then begin to look at the different ways that you can make use of the space that you have. The more carefully that you plan things, the easier it will be to avoid problems, and solve any that do slip through the net.
Designing a commercial kitchen isn’t exactly rocket science, but it is an endeavor which is fraught with difficulty for those that don’t prepare.
