Equipment and the level of staffing are to some extent linked. The more efficient your equipment, the less staff you are likely to need. Since staff can create problems as well as reduce your profits, you will benefit by carefully assessing your equipment needs.

Assessing And Buying Equipment

The Kitchen

The kitchen is, without doubt, the engine room of your hotel. If guests’ food is not right you will not get them back, and if the kitchen is inadequately equipped you will have a job to get the food right. At the least, it will make life far more difficult for the cook and/or the kitchen staff than it need be.

Keep things in perspective, though. If you are running a small B and B with only two letting bedrooms, you should be able to cater for your guests as if they were part of the family, with little or no commercial catering equipment. (You still need to comply with the food hygiene regulations – see page 35).

As premises get larger, and particularly if you provide evening meals, catering for guests requires a far more professional approach. The secret is to have precisely what you need.

• Have individual items the right size for your needs, neither too large nor too small.
• Have the right amount of equipment, neither any items you will never use nor too few to make for efficiency.

It is surprising how many hotel kitchens catering for, say, ten or more guests, contain not one single item of commercial equipment. Yet it can make life so much easier and the whole catering operation much more efficient. Such equipment, which comes in a variety of sizes, is generally much more robust than its domestic equivalent, more powerful but, you’ve guessed it, more expensive.

Take a look at what might suit you in a small hotel kitchen:

• Cookers. Some will consider it essential to have the right capacity cooker, capable of producing the variety of food you intend to serve. Once the right cooker is installed, the rest of your kitchen can be built around it. Ranges are designed to slot together. Remarkably sophisticated combination cookers are on the market, some with probes to continuously monitor the inside temperature of the food.
• Hotplates. Often separate from the cooker and so can use different fuels for convenience. Four will rarely be enough.
• Microwave ovens. Far more powerful and robust than domestic versions, therefore faster and more versatile. Booklets to help you make the most of your professional microwave oven are available free from some manufacturers.
• Fryers. Can be free-standing, built-in or mobile. If chips are a regular feature of your menu, if only for children, the right fryer can be invaluable.
• Griddles. Very useful for beefburgers, steaks, chops and for breakfasts.
• Grills. Can be wall-mounted, free-standing or built-in. Combination grills/griddles are available.
• Bains Marie. For hot storage of soups and vegetables.
• Toasters. Various models have a capacity of between 60 and 380 slices an hour, and keep it hot after toasting.
• Dishwashers. For highly efficient cleaning of crockery, cutlery and sometimes pans. Washing cycles range from two minutes to about half an hour.
• Hot water boilers. Can be likened to a constant kettle. Virtually essential when producing numerous pots of tea and coffee.
• Hot cupboards. Useful for preheating plates and for keeping food hot prior to serving. Note that a minimum temperature of 63°C is laid down under The Food Safety Act when keeping food hot.
• Refrigerators and freezers. In a busy kitchen, only commercial models can cope with the demands laid down by The Food Safety Act. Certain foodstuffs need to be kept at temperatures no higher than 5°C. For maximum efficiency, self-defrosting models should be used. Some have fan-assistance for quick chilling.
• Miscellaneous. Worksurfaces, shelving, cookerhoods, coffee machines, utensils and knives. Domestic quality pans will usually wear out very quickly if used heavily.

Since high standards of hygiene are essential and all surfaces need to be smooth, impervious, durable and easy to clean, it is normal for commercial catering equipment to be produced in stainless steel.

Reputable catering equipment companies will be only too pleased to advise you on the items best suited to your kitchen and may design a layout free of charge providing you purchase equipment from them. Such companies may submit layouts to the local Environmental Health Department for approval before installation.

In addition to the actual catering equipment, under your fire risk assessment you will be required to provide a fire blanket, preferably near your kitchen exit door.

An actual small hotel kitchen layout is shown in Figure 14.

As with most, it is not perfect. Always consider the distances between key points:

• where the goods are unloaded
• where they are stored
• where food preparation takes place
• where the food is rested prior to cooking
• where the food is cooked
• where it is rested after cooking
• where it is assembled for serving
• where it is held prior to serving.

It can thus be worked out how much walking is required during the whole operation. It should obviously be kept to a minimum within the constraints imposed by individual hotel layouts.

Note the necessity for a separate basin for hand-washing, also the advisability of separate preparation areas to reduce the possibility of food cross-contamination.

Consideration should always be given to the electrical supply. Some equipment requires more than a 13 amp socket and a number of demands can cause the system to be overloaded. Advice should be sought from either the electricity company or a competent electrician.

Under the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 you have a duty to consider the suitability, use (including training of employees), hazards, maintenance and safety of all equipment used.

Further, the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 and the Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 1994, together with various other sets of related regulations, need to be complied with. These regulations, as amended, also cover the safety, maintenance and use of all relevant equipment and appliances throughout your establishment. At least once a year you are required to have all gas appliances and flues inspected by a Corgi-registered engineer and the result recorded and retained for two years. Unless you are registered as a House of Multiple Occupancy (see page 35) or are licensed for public entertainment, there is no such requirement regarding electricity, although you must still maintain wiring and equipment assiduously.

Consult your local Environmental Health Officer or Trading Standards department for the latest requirements. Call the Health & Safety Executive advice line (0800 300363) for information about gas safety matters.