All right, so everyone knows that when customers sit down for a meal, the last thing they want is to wait an eternity for their food. Do you want loyalty from your customers? Well, those long wait times are a recipe for bad reviews and customers who never come back. In fact, for small restaurants, cutting down on prep time is crucial, but how do you speed things up without compromising the taste and quality of your dishes? While sure, speed matters, no one wants slop on their plate either, that’s only going to upset them even more. So, with all of that said, here are 4 simple strategies that can save you precious time in the kitchen while keeping your customers happy and full.
By Team Savant
Image: Jelezniac Bianca
Make Your Kitchen Work Smarter, Not Harder
Alright, so one of the easiest ways to reduce prep time is by getting your kitchen layout just right. If your chefs are sprinting back and forth to grab ingredients or utensils, it’s going to slow everything down. So ideally, you’re going to have to look into reorganising the space so everything they need is within arm’s reach—be it’s knives, pans, or spices.
The less time your team spends running around, the more time they can spend getting food out faster. It’s the same at home; if you’re rummaging around looking for things, you’re cutting out time that could have been used for something else.
Simplify the Menu More
So, what’s another way to speed things up? Simplify the menu. Yes, you read that right! Now, it should be said that this doesn’t mean making it boring, but having too many options can lead to chaos and slow service.
So instead, just try and focus on dishes that use similar ingredients, or meals that can be whipped up quickly without compromising on flavour. No, this doesn’t mean buying premade meals and heating them up (that looks super bad on you).
Overall, this is a win-win—you still offer variety, but your kitchen becomes more efficient. But on top of that, you can keep it interesting with seasonal specials or a rotating menu. That way, you’re keeping customers intrigued without overloading the kitchen.
Source Prepped or Even Pre-Made Ingredients
So, just above it was mention that it’s a bad idea to buy already-made food and heat it up. So yes, you still shouldn’t do that, but it’s okay to source already prepped and pre-made ingredients (but this shouldn’t be the whole meal though). So, here’s a great example; instead of making dough from scratch every day, why not source pre-made dough from suppliers like Suprima Bakeries?
This is just one example, but you’d still be saving time without losing quality. The same could be said about getting precut veggies, sauces, or even marinades because these don’t take away the integrity of your dishes. It’s the whole “think smarter not harder” mantra and overall it’ll make work for your staff so much easier too.
Invest in Time-Saving Tools
Believe it or not, but having the right tools can make all the difference. Simple gadgets like a high-quality food processor can save you loads of time when it comes to chopping, blending, or pureeing. Even better, invest in equipment like a combi oven since these tend to be able to handle multiple tasks at once (depending on the brand).