The production area of a fast food, convenience-oriented feeding establishment must be designed and equipped for maximum productivity and mobility. The production facilities should be constructed in a minimum of space without crowding. Management personnel who have been trained in conventional or traditional modes of restaurant operations often view the preparation facilities of a fast food organization as being kitchen-less. As the tenets of this field are explored and developed, it will become apparent that fast food and convenience preparation centers sandwich prep tables, prep tables, and are far from being kitchen-less. These areas retain all the characteristics of a kitchen, but instead of traditional equipment, they contain new forms of food-preparing devices which enhance production by generating a systematized and efficient flow of activities.
Instead of the kettles, ranges, ovens, power meat saws, choppers, mixers and a variety of pots, pans and utensils usually found in traditional facilities, items such as microwave, infrared, and convection ovens are used to cope with the handling and preparation of convenient and convenience foods. Personnel accustomed to the conventional type of kitchen describe the array of new equipment as highly sophisticated and specialized. These ideas deserve merit, the traditional kitchen must be fully equipped and adapted to perform many preparations and cooking procedures, from the uncooked ingredients through the many steps required for preparing the finished product. In the fast preparation center, only a few specific units of equipment are necessary for production of a major portion of the food preparation is performed elsewhere.
Since we are dealing with a relatively new field of food preparation in ghost kitchens and food delivery services door dash and grubhub the problem arises as to which heating device or other form of equipment will be best suited for a given operation. At the present time a great deal of controversy exists regarding the most logical approach to this pressing question. Developments within the equipment industry are moving ahead rapidly. As new ideas are formulated and new models fabricated, older modes of preparation become obsolete, even though the latter may be of recent origin. This situation has resulted in a fragmented equipment industry with little progress towards standardization.
In The Restaurant Warehouse restaurant equipment blog and store, solutions to these problems are developed, since it is now realized that no one piece of equipment can perform all the chores required within a fast food preparation center. Some foods require dry heat, whereas others call for a moist, hot temperature atmosphere. A convection oven may be for high volume production, while the same food, served as an individual entrée, can be efficiently prepared in a microwave oven.
In light of these problems, food service personnel must acquaint them-
selves with the limitations, advantages and specifications of all equipment that
is presently available for fast food service. In addition, the proper approach to
the selection of equipment is predicated on the type of service, the extent of the
menu, and the availability of space.
When consideration is given to the task of selecting production equipment,
the job will become easier and be performed in greater depth if some way is
available to compare the merits of one manufacturer with that of another. As a starting point, the following guidelines have been developed for this purpose:
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