Essential Restaurant Kitchen Supplies You Can't Survive Without

A restaurant is a place where people go to eat. It's also a place where food is prepared. Sometimes food is prepared where customers eat it. Sometimes it's prepared somewhere else. Either way, certain supplies are used in every restaurant kitchen.

A restaurant kitchen is any place that is used for commercial food preparation. It might be inside a fast food joint, a cafe, a catering service, or even a hospital and/or school. Inside the kitchen are a variety of supplies, depending on the size and type of restaurant. This includes pans to cook with, knives to cut food, spatulas, cutting boards, kitchen utensils, whisks, tongs, and more. Restaurant supplies may even encompass the POS software and kitchen display system used to view customer orders.

Factors to consider when investing in kitchen supplies include quality, storage space limits, cost, best supplier, and potential leasing options. You may even want to hire a restaurant kitchen planner if you are opening a new establishment or renovating the kitchen space. They can help you build your dream kitchen and ensure you have enough space to store all of your items. Some restaurant owners lease their kitchen equipment because it's so expensive to purchase. This will help you save money for other critical expenses.


Restaurant owners must invest in the best kitchen supplies without breaking the bank. Fancy restaurants will want to offer customers more expensive-looking and durable plates and utensils. Cafes and coffee shops may invest in plastic utensils or paper plates, depending on the brand type. Knowing the cost and type of kitchen supplies you need is critical to maintaining successful operations. Read ahead to learn about the top must-have supplies for your commercial kitchen.

This is probably the first thing restaurant owners think of when it comes to restaurant kitchen supplies. There are numerous types of ovens to choose from that depend on the menu items. Some important factors to consider are oven size and purpose. If you own a pizza joint, look for a pizza oven. Other establishments can suffice from multipurpose ovens that can cook various items at once. This will optimize productivity and efficiency in the kitchen.

Oven quality is another important consideration. You don't want to go cheap when it comes to your oven. Read user reviews and look into the speed of the oven, along with the various brands and service agreements available. Top oven brands include Amana Commercial, Vulcan, Hobart, or Bakers Pride.


Convection ovens use internal fans to blow air around the items while they are cooking. This will ensure the cooking is even and avoid those really hot spots you get when throwing a dish in the microwave. Combination ovens use both a steamer and a convection oven. They can steam food, bake food, and more. These are better for restaurants that have little kitchen room and need more flexibility in their cooking.

Ranges are what restaurants use to cook different foods over electric heat or gas. Ranges are how cooks increase heat in different pans or make water boil. There are gas ranges and electric ranges. Gas ranges produce live flames, which shortens the cooking time.

They are also handy in case there is an electric shortage or other problem with the electricity. Risks include gas leaks and even a fire. Electric ranges allow restaurants to cook food in a more even manner, but they will eat into your electric bill over time.


Ventilation is critical when designing the Best Restaurant kitchen. You need good airflow to keep employees comfortable and to generate the highest quality of food. Think about ventilation air volume or the rate that air vents inside the ducts. When you make food on an open flame, you need a higher amount of air volume than when you simply cook spaghetti.

Food processors are used in fast-paced diners. They make it much easier to slice, chop, blend, and puree different items. It is also useful for creating salad dressings or cutting up vegetables. Batch bowl processors gather processed items, just like the ones in your home kitchen.

Staff can pick the blade of their choice, put the item in, and watch it process. With a continuous feed food processor, food items are processed continuously. They are better suited for restaurants that need constant processing as opposed to occasional processing. Finally, the Buffalo Chopper is the most intense and powerful food processor. It has metal parts that are sturdy enough to process beef, chicken, or pork.


Consider the horsepower ratings when choosing your food processor. The more horsepower a processor contains, the greater length of time it can process items without getting too hot or becoming slow. Look into the various attachments connected to food processors. This will depend on what the restaurant kitchen staff need most. Finally, brands like Cuisinart are best suited for at-home kitchens, but you need options for a Small Business. Hobart, Waring, and Robot Coupe are potential food processor manufacturers.

What exactly is a mixer and how does it differ from a food processor? A mixer is one of the most important commercial kitchen supplies. It is similar to a blender and is used by bakeries and pizzerias. Hand mixers have a long handle with very sharp blades towards the end. These are more heavy duty and better for pizza shops who need to combine sauces or emulsify sauces.

Countertop mixers are better suited for very small bakeries that don't mix different items that often. You can typically find countertop mixers in home kitchens. Floor mixers are good when you need to mix a lot of batters regularly. They are also much faster than hand mixers and countertop mixers.

Every single restaurant kitchen uses a refrigerator or freezer in some capacity or another. They keep food fresh, maintain Food Safety, and help to manage your inventory. You don't want to have to buy 20 chickens each day to maintain operations!

Industrial grade refrigeration units are great for any type of restaurant. Walk-In refrigerators and freezers have a lot more room to store items, but they aren't always suited for small diners with limited space. It is critical to find a professional installer when you decide on a freezer or refrigerator. If you make an installation mistake, the repair costs are expensive.

We've talked about the kitchen equipment used to make food, but what about a system that helps manage all kitchen processes? That's what an optimized POS system can do. A point sale solution is used to process customer transactions, like an old-fashioned cash register. Except nowadays, it can do so much more than that.

Pos Systems optimize inventory management, handle loyalty programs, optimize employee management, and even handle accounting features. They also generate reports that help business owners do their jobs. In short, POS systems are not just for commercial kitchens, but to streamline restaurant processes.

Best of all, they integrate with a kitchen display system so cooks can immediately review each order as it comes in. They know exactly what to make and what order to make it in. Furthermore, every time an order is keyed in, the system updates inventory levels. This helps kitchen staff know exactly what's on hand at all times. An effective POS system can help streamline kitchen staff tasks, monitor food storage, and ensure food safety. This will help maintain compliance with FLSA standards and eliminate errors, which improves customer satisfaction.