What is a Central Kitchen?
A centralized kitchen is a very different operation from normal restaurant kitchens. It requires a high investment in specialized equipment such as planetary cookers, blast freezers, and vacuum-packing machines.
Many F&B businesses, like restaurant chains and groups, large-scale banquet and catering operators, and even some F&B retail businesses, require a central production kitchen. Here are its pros and cons:
Centralized Kitchen Advantages and Disadvantages
Economies of scale
This is a cost advantage that an expanded F&B operation enjoys due to its larger size. It refers to the reductions in unit cost as the size of a facility and usage levels of systems and equipment increase. A possible disadvantage arises when demand decreases over time.
Better consistency
F&B operations can deliver a uniform standard and achieve consistent quality of food sold and served at different outlets. However, this limits special requests for customized food, especially for people with food allergy reactions.
Greater efficiency
A central kitchen enjoys greater efficiency through:
1. Human resources
Leaner, more efficient use of manpower through automation and specialization of tasks as the centralized kitchen takes care of preparation work while outlet staff focus on serving.
2. Purchasing
Centralizing purchasing will increase the purchasing power of the operation due to the high volume of food and supplies used. It also results in fewer deliveries needed. But this will also require an improved inventory system.
Building a Centralized Kitchen
When building a new central kitchen or renovating an existing building, there are several factors to consider for improving operations and maximizing efficiency and effectiveness:
- Human resource ideas
- Layout and design of the facility
- Equipment
- Maintenance
- Purchasing
- Warehousing
- Communications
- Transportation
- Waste management
- Computer systems
- Miscellaneous operational issues
Setting up a central kitchen can be a challenging pursuit, but this investment can hugely impact the expansion of a food business. Make sure you consider all the advantages and disadvantages before deciding to put one up. And once it’s up and running, make the most out of it by keeping operations as efficient as possible.
Congratulations, you’ve completed The Central Kitchen and Its Benefits topic!
Continue on to the next topic, pick a related topic from the High Volume Production Cooking module, or go back to the Chefmanship Academy modules page.
