Six pieces of equipment you need for your start-up restaurant

When you are planning to open a new restaurant or catering firm, one of your biggest costs will be outfitting your kitchen. So it is important to give a lot of thought and planning to the types of commercial equipment you need.

While the exact equipment required depends on your particular establishment, here are some general guidelines to what you should get:

1. Refrigerators and Freezers

All restaurants need freezers and refrigerators to preserve food. Industrial-grade refrigeration units are designed to meet the needs of the food industry, including reach-in or walk-in units. Think about the size of your operation. Although walk-in units have more cold storage space and can be custom built for any kitchen, a smaller restaurant may get away with a reach-in unit.

2. Counters

Food-preparation counters that are ready for chopping and are easy to clean are a necessity. Calculate how much counter space you need by the number of people who will be working in your kitchen. It’s good to choose ones made of sturdy stainless steel, resisting corrosion, and bacteria from food and meat juices, and harsh cleaning products.

3. Mixers and Slicers

You need slicers to cut meats, cheeses, and other foods. You can get away with a manual slicer if you only need a bit of slicing done. High volumes requiring precise cuts call for an electric slicer, saving time and labour.

If your offerings include homemade bread or bakery goods, you will need a commercial mixer, with a capacity that matches the size of your operation. The dense dough needed for things like pizza and pretzels usually require a spiral mixer. Other types of mixing can be handled by a planetary mixer.

4. Food Processors

To handle your food-processing demands, you have the choice of continuous feed, batch bowl, buffalo chopper, and combination food processors. Depending on what you are looking for, the units can handle everything from continuously adding food to the processing unit to handling heavy-duty chopping of tough vegetables and meats.

5. Ranges and Ovens

If you want to cook food over open flames, you will need a range with the right power and capacity. While there are both electric and gas ranges, gas ranges make for a more responsive cooking experience and make it easier to gauge temperatures by the strength of the flames.

The vast majority of ranges come with an oven. But if you do a lot of baking, you may also want one with a convection oven setting. You will also require proper ventilation equipment installed, including range hoods.

6. Shelving, Sinks, and Safety Equipment

Appliances and many non-perishable and even perishable foods require shelving. Some units have organization systems, helping your kitchen to run smoothly. Sinks are required to provide running water and washing space. And you should check your local fire department guidelines to see what fire, safety and sanitation equipment you should get.

Before you open the doors of your restaurant, check out Silver Chef for the types of commercial equipment you need. Our Rent-Try-Buy Solution gives you the freedom and flexibility to choose what works for your business.

With our 12-month rentals, you have the option to upgrade your equipment, purchase it with a 60% gross rebate, continue renting (with the purchase price dropping), return the equipment with no further obligation, or reduce rental payments by 30% and own your equipment with our Easy Own option.