Modern Ergonomics and Preparations

Obviously, the heart of a commercial restaurant is the kitchen. What it produces (and how fast) makes or breaks the dining experience for the customers. The secret is in the commercial kitchen’s layout which is the result of the commercial kitchen design.

It will always be a toss up between a haphazard preparation in putting up the kitchen’s design or a strategic design to have the restaurant’s team to work efficiently and produce high-quality meals consistently.

Poorly-designed kitchen will have an inefficient staff because they will always be worried on bumping each other. A winning commercial kitchen design (executed from an excellent layout) is easy to use, meet the restaurant’s needs, and the staff being able to deliver an amazing experience to the customers.

Ergonomics

There is need to factor into the kitchen design some crucial considerations in order to ensure safety and function. The first one is ergonomics. This is simply designing and arranging things people use so that people and things interact act most efficiently.

Take for instance the question of how much equipment the kitchen will need to hold, how many people will be in the kitchen and how the flow of the kitchen staff’s routes goes between stations.

Space

How much room you need to work will limit the commercial kitchen’s layout you can adopt. Industry guidelines suggest dedicating 60% of your commercial space to the front of the house and reserving the remaining 40% for the back of the house.

For instance, if your restaurant has an area of 500 square feet, 300 square feet would be used for the dining area and waiting room. The remaining 200 square feet should be reserved for the kitchen.

Staff communication

In designing space, never leave out the human factor. Facilitate the interaction and communication of the staff with an open floor plan instead of a maze-like kitchen with walled-off sections. The executive chef and the managers need to oversee the things going on in the kitchen.

This consideration is important in a fast-food restaurant but is applicable to high-end restaurants with experienced chefs.

Safety

In a kitchen, safety and design go together. You first need to consider food safety in the restaurant. You need to design a space that keeps food safe for consumption.

There is a vital need to check with local authorities to ensure your restaurant takes food safety precautions that go beyond common sense. In some states, local regulations may determine your commercial kitchen layout or design elements.

In Missouri, for instance, the code prohibits the use of wood as a food preparation surface and prohibits carpeting in a commercial kitchen.

For example, Missouri’s food code prohibits the use of wood as a food preparation surface (with a few exceptions) and prohibits carpeting in a commercial kitchen. Check local commercial kitchen laws to ensure that your restaurant is up to code.

You also need to take your staff’s health when you design your commercial kitchen. You might build proper ventilation into the space.

Fire safety is a major concern, too, and you need to consider safety like installing smoke detectors and putting fire extinguishers in correct places.