Top Tips for People Learning to Use Commercial Kitchen Equipment for the First Time

Learning to use commercial kitchen equipment for the first time is a nerve-wracking experience. Many people walk in thinking it is going to be like the cooker they have at home, but when they see all the knobs, dials, and settings they go to pieces.

If you are training to use kitchen equipment, here are some top tips to make sure you take in as much as you possibly can.

Listen to the Trainer

It seems like an obvious one, but not for the reason you think. Yes, you need to listen to them if you are going to learn how to use the equipment. What people forget is every catering company has a different procedure and a different system for using commercial machinery. If you get this wrong, it could land you in hot water with both your peers and the management team.

Get Used to the Speed

You will have to get used to a certain way of working. Someone who uses commercial equipment will have to be able to produce food in a certain period. Consistent timing is everything in catering because the waiters need to be able to manage their time effectively, otherwise guests could be waiting twenty minutes before they receive their next meal.

Hard Staff Members

Catering is a high-pressure industry. You have to have a thick skin no matter where you are in the process. When you train, you will make mistakes, but you have to be willing to accept the fact senior staff members will be harsh on you. The waiters will especially have a problem with failure because they rely on topping their wages up with tips.

If you cannot find the right button on a commercial grill, the extra time lost could mean they do not get a tip.

Leave Your Ego at the Door

You might think you are the most technical person in the world and nothing can touch you. With this sort of attitude, you’re setting yourself up for disaster. Leave your ego at the door and listen to what people with more experience than you are trying to tell you.

Focus on Your Job

Most of the time, you are going to be working in an environment where you are close to people. It can get tempting to start talking about what you did at the weekend or what you were doing last night. Cut out the small talk. You are in a work area that relies heavily on good timing and getting things right the first time every time.

Reduce the number of mistakes you make whilst training by focusing on the job at hand. If you are working on the commercial coffee machines, you do not want to press the wrong button because you were trying to talk to a friend standing next to you.

Overall, remember not to be too harsh on yourself. You are a trainee and many of these machines can take some getting used to. Most trainees do not realise how complex some of these machines are until they confront them for the first time.

What are the Responsibilities of a Professional Caterer?

A professional caterer has to take control of more than just preparing and serving the food. They have to be able to coordinate and create a certain ambience. There is more to commercial catering than turning up with a few meals.

In this article, we are going to reveal the responsibilities a caterer will have whenever they pick up a job. As you will see, commercial caterers need to have the right skills in multiple areas.

Event Coordination

You have to conform to the event you are working at. This means you have to time everything perfectly. When the guests are ready to sit down for their meal, you have to have everything on the table. This will require liaising with the event’s manager to make sure you can get things ready.

You will also need to have the right equipment at the venue. It could include commercial coffee machines or hot plates to keep food warm.

Preparing Food

The food preparation is the responsibility of the catering company. They will need to take the menus from the customer and prepare everything to a tee. As a caterer, it is your job to make sure you do it as efficiently as possible. This means you will need to concentrate on reducing wastage and profit loss.

As part of your food preparation, you will need to come up with a way of storing the food until it arrives at the venue and is ready to serve. Customers want fresh, hot food that iswell presented.

Setting the Venue

Believe it or not, caterers have to do more than setup bakery equipment and deliver food. It is common practice for them to have to get the dining hall ready. They’re responsible for making sure there are enough chairs and tables, as well as making sure all the cutlery, napkins, and other forms of dining paraphernalia is there and ready to use.

Serving the Food

Assuming this is not a buffet dinner, catering companies will provide staff to help serve the food. This requires good coordination to ensure everyone knows what they are doing and what the guests expect. Most catering companies will be forced to have separate teams for each area, which makes good management essential to the event’s success.

Cleaning Everything Up

The majority of customers prefer to pay extra to take advantage of a catering company’s cleaning services. After all the guests have gone home, it’s the job of the caterer to clean up the dining area and leave it in the same condition as it was before.

It will require logistics management to ensure everything is put back in its proper place without any breakages. Any breakages on your part will come out of your own pocket.

Services on Demand

Take note, some customers may decide to take care of different areas by themselves. For example, some catering equipment suppliers will only ask for the equipment. They will choose to supply their staff and send the equipment back again. It is important for catering businesses to offer their clientele as much choice as they possibly can. It is what the general public expects.

The Ultimate Guide to Hiring Commercial Catering Equipment

Hiring commercial catering equipment is not an easy task for anyone to take on. You need to get it right the first time or it could mean wasting a huge chunk of money. It requires careful planning and a full understanding of what you actually need. This is what you will learn by reading through this short guide.

The Menu Strategy

Your menu strategy encompasses aspects of the process like plating. You have to consider things like whether plating a fancy salmon platter with the most expensive plates you can find is really worth the risk. Remember, you will be responsible for any breakages that happen on your watch.

The menu strategy largely depends on what food you intend on serving, as well. You need to write down your menu from the beginning. Determine what you will need to make and how many alternative options you will be having. Do not make the mistake of hiring a series of commercial kitchen equipment first.

The Capacity

How many people are likely to be in the premises at the same time?

Consider the worst-case scenario not the best-case scenario. Look to the extremes. You must be able to cope with full capacity and the lowest capacity. Of course, it is likely the actual attendance will fall somewhere in the middle, but it is important to be prepared.

This is quite easy if you stipulate the number of people who will be coming before you begin the hiring process.

Added Extras

Standard kitchen equipment is relatively easy to hire. You also need to decide whether you will be having any added extras. Some venues decide to hire commercial coffee machines to offer an additional choice. Are you willing to do this?

The Company

Once you have decided what you need to hire, you need to decide on whom you will hire it from. Look online for some recommendations for companies that serve your local area. First of all, visit their websites to see if they suit your needs. Once you have a list of caterers who have everything you need, interview them.

Some of them will serve things like plates and cups in a variety of different styles. Determine whether these will suit the décor of your venue. You also need to consider whether their service packages are flexible. Think about whether they will be able to react in the right way should something change later on.

Make sure you have a list of your requirements when going into an interview. A reputable company will ask to see these so they can judge whether they will be able to fulfil them. They will tell you honestly if you would be better off looking elsewhere.

Always read the agreement and check the small print. You need to be clear on when the equipment needs to be returned and what you are responsible for. The last thing you want is to be stung by any unexpected expenses at the end of it all. These can easily add hundreds of pounds to the cost of your overall bill.

A New Trend of Show-offs

Now in this era of modernization, there is a war among these modern housewives to make their working place look better than the other. Kitchen is the most precious for housewives and they try their best to make it a dream home. The most attractive things in the kitchen nowadays are the kitchen ware and our ladies are quite specific about their needs. Not only its brand matters to them, but also the design and commercial kitchen equipment attraction are the key things. From matching knives to the matching juicer, blender, microwave, toaster and other all has to look good or sometimes they prefer to buy all the goods of the same brand for better matching and which adds more grace to the place. There are lots of stores where you can have these stuffs. 

Now people are so concern they prefer to buy a matching catering with their equipment like a coffee machine. So you get into a commercial coffee machine store and ask for matching machine, he will not laugh at you, but instead he will provide you with the best match.

You have noticed sometime, a coffee seems to taste better if we have it in a well design mug, which scientifically do not have any influence on it but yeah it does impress our eyes. So yes, there is a battle in between the coffee shop not only on the taste of their respective coffee but also how they are presenting it. People used to spend lots on marriages from decoration to a simple food items have to be perfect, food not only needs to taste good, but also it should look good too on its respective vessels at the same time. This job is in the hand of catering department, it is their job to make it look delicious whether or not it tastes same but, it should look perfect.

Apart this, commercial equipments are mostly used for having any special events or for regular purpose in an office. These commercial equipments are very necessary in terms with the presentation in front of the guests as it directly represents your status of your company. Each and every equipment ranging from a coffee mug to the best crockery items you can have if you are dealing with the best commercial equipment suppliers. Having a great supplier can provide you the extraordinary services which will surely attract you and your guests. They are always well-equipped with the latest collections as well as with mind-blowing stuffs. Expecting better quality equipments from the best equipment suppliers one can expect so without thinking much just grab good collection and make a good impressions on your guests.