Get smart about your commercial kitchen and food storage containers

New year, fresh start. It’s the time of year we all start thinking about food storage containers and getting more organized. And as a restaurant operator, you know your commercial kitchen is a place that could always use more organization. In this post we’ll take you through some ways you can get smart about your commercial kitchen storage this year.

Start with your food storage containers

Take a look at your food storage containers. Do you have matching sets all being used perfectly? Probably not. You might have bought sizes or styles you ended up not using, lids may be missing, or you might just not be happy with the containers you have. The beginning of the year is a great time to start fresh with your food storage strategy.

First think about what kind of food you need to store. Our food storage containers buying guide will help you decide on the best containers for your establishment’s needs.

Two general tips:

• Go clear. You’ll be able to see exactly what’s in each container for faster, easier access.
• Go stackable. You’ll free up valuable counter space.

Reconsider your shelving

Shelving is an investment that’s critical for commercial kitchens. Look around at your shelving. Is your set up working for you? Do you have all the shelving you need, and is it being used in the most efficient way? There’s probably room for improvement. We’ll go through a few shelving tips – for even more tips and guides, see our shelving buying guide.

Upgrade your materials

Look around your back of house. You probably have some chrome-plated shelving. While chrome-plated wire shelving is the least expensive option, it’s also the least long-lasting. It’s strong enough to hold up to 150 pounds per shelf and it is rust-resistant, but it is not rust-proof and it will wear down and become unsafe over time. Epoxy-coated wire shelving is slightly better, but epoxy coating can wear off, especially if you’re storing metal cookware on it.

It might be time to upgrade to stronger, longer-lasting shelves. Polypropylene/polymer plastic is completely rust-proof and can hold anywhere from 600 to 3200 pounds depending on the exact shelving. Plastic shelving has a metal framework with a plastic coating, giving these units strength while keeping them lightweight and easy-to-clean. Cambro has some great options.

What type of shelving do you need?

Dry storage

For ingredients like flour, sugar, and pasta, or kitchen supplies like pots and pans, solid shelving is okay because these items don’t require ventilation. If you’re storing bulk amounts of ingredients (think bakeries and pizza parlors), dunnage racks are the best option. Dunnage racks can hold up to 2,000 pounds.

Walk-in coolers

For storage of ingredients in your walk-in coolers, such as meat and other refrigerated or frozen ingredients, you know you need to follow some specific health requirements. They can’t be chrome-plated and they should be vented. Plastic shelving is always rust-resistant and comes in vented styles.

Specialty shelving

There may be some areas of your kitchen where you could use specialty shelving. For instance, if you want to keep spices and other go-to ingredients close-at-hand, wall mount shelving is ideal. Or if you serve alcohol in your establishment, you may want to invest in wine shelving, keg racks, or security shelving.

We hope these tips help you get a fresh start with your commercial kitchen storage solutions this year. You can shop for new food storage containers here and shelving here.