When running a restaurant, one of the focuses of the team should be to maintain order, so it is important to know how to organise a kitchen storeroom
It is an activity that is done in a few steps, in which you need the members of your team to be involved and committed to achieve a good result.
Find out the best method for organising a restaurant kitchen store, as well as some tips on how to optimise the use of space and reduce waste in your business.
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Steps to follow: how to organise a kitchen storeroom
Every restaurant should have a kitchen storeroom where fresh food is kept in order to prepare the dishes and drinks on the menu
One of the main drawbacks of these warehouses is the lack of knowledge about the best way to organise them, leading to the loss of raw materials and money in the business
Take note on how to organise a kitchen store. Also, pay attention to guidance on how products should be handled within the warehouse.
Draw a plan of the warehouse space
First of all, you should draw a floor plan of the space that will be used or is used for the restaurant’s kitchen storage
This plan should indicate the doors, columns, walls, windows, ducts and other aspects of the structure.
In this way, it will be easy to establish how the storage shelves will be organised and to establish the order of the products, always taking into account the needs of your restaurant.
Sort the products by categories and add labels to their space
Decide on the categories by which you will sort the products. An example of this is sorting by pulses, vegetables, refrigerated products, cereals and fruits
Beyond these classifications, it is important to take into account the nature of the product. For these, you should analyse those that can be stored and those that need to be placed inside refrigerated chambers.
When you have defined their order by categories, label the areas destined to the organisation of these products
This will make it easier for the kitchen staff to find the ingredients.
Place the products in strategic order
When you have finished placing labels, instruct your team to start placing the products on the shelves, making sure that they do so strategically
That is, placing the lighter products at the top and the heavier ones at the bottom of the shelves.
On the other hand, they should place products close to expiry towards the front, while newly manufactured products go towards the back.
Establish an area of the warehouse for fast-moving products
In every restaurant there is a higher demand for certain dishes and drinks on the menu
In view of this, it is necessary to establish an area for those products that are used in fast-moving dishes
Our recommendation is that it should be a part of the warehouse that is easily and quickly accessible to the staff, such as the sides near the door.
This way the staff will not spend a lot of time removing the food they need for service
Tips for good organisation of a restaurant’s kitchen storeroom
In addition to following the steps to organise a kitchen storeroom, it is not a bad idea to follow some tips that will make this task easier for you
These points will allow you to have a functional and safe organisation for the restaurant
Maintain a constant cleanliness of a restaurant’s kitchen storeroom
The hygiene of a restaurant’s kitchen storeroom is fundamental
Therefore, it is necessary that you incorporate a calendar that indicates the cleaning dates of the storeroom
This is the best way to avoid the formation of bacteria and the appearance of pests inside this space
Cleaning should also include a reorganisation of the space, to maintain order and accessibility of the staff to the products.
Throw away what does not work
Do not keep anything that is out of date, broken or of no use to the kitchen
In the case of foodstuffs, it is best to throw them away to avoid contamination of other products
In the case ofcrockery or similar items, it is best to recycle them, unless they are products made of unsuitable materials.
Once you are finished with the depuration of the storage room, clean it to remove dust and other contaminants.
Follow product refrigeration standards
Read the instructions that come with the refrigeration ch ambers you have in your restaurant
They are a guide to understand their use, refrigeration temperatures, cleaning, maintenance and other aspects that guarantee their optimal functioning over time.
Similarly, it is necessary to keep refrigerated products at the temperatures indicated on their packaging
Locate the warehouse in a quiet area
When designing the kitchen store, make sure that it is located in a quiet area that does not interfere with customer service
A good option is to locate the storeroom in or around the kitchen, so that staff can remove food without inconvenience and without affecting the quietness of the service.
Install a security mechanism
It is advisable that the kitchen storeroom of a restaurant has a security mechanism.
In this way, you can prevent food theft or the alteration of any of the products that are stored
Also, choose a system that allows you to keep a record of the people who enter and leave the warehouse, so that you can act in the best way if any mishap occurs.
Rely on digital management
When organising a kitchen warehouse, it is important to rely on digital management, through which the availability of products can be recorded
It is a decision that will undoubtedly make it easier for the staff to know if the food is available and the spaces where it is located to access it
In addition, it will facilitate the task of knowing which products are out of stock, in order to place orders with suppliers to supply the warehouse.
Importance of knowing how to organise warehouse shelves
In addition to having an orderly flow of work in the restaurant kitchen, the kitchen storeroom is of financial importance to your business.
With the organisation of the kitchen storeroom, you obtain an inventory with information about each product and its availability
This data allows you to know what the food needs of the business are, as well as the approximate costs for the purchase of ingredients
Taking this data into account, you can make forecasts of expenses and necessary modifications in purchases from suppliers to improve the profitability of your business.
Indispensable products in a kitchen store
More than just food, a restaurant’s kitchen store contains the crockery and containers that are used as part of the service
At Greenuso, our online shop, we have a catalogue where we offer you these indispensable items for every restaurant business, with the particularity of being environmentally friendly.
Our products are manufactured with natural raw materials such as palm leaves, coconut shells, cardboard, bamboo, corn starch, wood, pine needles, sugar cane bagasse and paper.
Of course, always guaranteeing the quality and resistance you are looking for.
Contact us and place your order at affordable prices. In addition, your order will arrive at the address of your convenience, between 24 and 48 hours after the confirmation of your order.
