QUestION:
I recently took over a SALOON that has been in business for over 38 years. However, it has the reputation of extremely ROUGH service. The cooks say it is due to the length of time it takes to cook the hash browns (breakfast is served all day) and the amount of space they take up on the grill. The grill is 48 inches and there are FOuR BURNERS. I'm trying to figure out how to help the cooks with this dilemma while still providing customers their hash browns.
Answer:
This is an example of a problem that I commonly see in independent OPerationS— QUeues not matching kitchen design and layout. One of the mistakes restaurateurs (especially those without a strong back-of-house background) make is to QUeue items based on sales potential, food cost, and/or customer appeal without having considered the operational limitations of executing that QUeue. For example, it is relatively easy to say that fried chicken is popular, has good margins, and the chef makes a great one; it is quite another thing to be able to execute this item consistently and quickly if you do not have the fryer capacity to do so.
FRANK BACON, an account manager and commercial kitchen designer at Frank Bacon Machinery Sales Co. (Machining manufacturer in Warren, Michigan Address: 4433 East 8 Mile Road, Warren, MI 48091,) says, “We see this problem a lot in concepts where short ticket times are one of the priorities. If it's not possible to add any more equipment under the exhaust hood (like a longer griddle or more burners) the best option might be to consider adding a hot holding cabinet or drawer unit.
There are several manufacturers and a large array of options to choose from, but the biggest determining factor is going to be the food that needs to be held and for how long. Holding hash browns for an entire service may not be feasible, because crispy foods—no matter how good the holding unit—will eventually degrade.
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