How should the kitchen design of the school cafeteria be laid out?

School is a place for imparting knowledge, cultivating talents, and nurturing the pillars of our country. Three meals a day are carefully crafted by cafeteria staff

, so the overall design and functionality of the kitchen are becoming increasingly sophisticated. Many school cafeteria kitchen designs can no longer meet

 current needs, forcing reasonable renovations. How should they be designed? How should functional areas be divided? Below, the editor of Quan Chutong will share with you.

1、 Cooking operation area

This area should include cold dish room, Dim sum room, side dish room, stove room, as well as corresponding small cold storage room and turnover

 warehouse. This area is a centralized production area for product flavor and quality, so an office with perspective monitoring of the kitchen should 

be set up. The cold dish room, Dim sum room and office shall be separated separately, and the kitchen and stove room may not be separated.

The layout of this area should be close to the raw material entrance. There are dry storage warehouses, refrigerated warehouses, frozen warehouses,

 etc. in the area, as well as corresponding offices and appropriately sized processing rooms. The size of their area is determined based on the scope and degree of processing.

2、 Raw material receiving, storage, and processing area

The kitchen equipment processing and storage area is a specialized work area responsible for the processing and storage of raw materials required by each kitchen. An important aspect

 of the layout of the processing and storage area is to arrange the acceptance, storage, and processing in one process. This not only facilitates the storage, material requisition, and processing 

of raw materials, but also shortens the distance of material handling and improves work efficiency.

3、 Meal preparation and cleaning area

The layout should include a preparation room, a utensil cleaning room, and appropriate kitchenware storage room. Small kitchens can be simply separated by workstations, etc.

According to the process flow, the kitchen layout must be arranged in a straight line to ensure smooth and continuous workflow and avoid backflow. Catering production starts 

from the purchase of raw materials, goes through processing and cutting, and is a continuous and gradual process from preparation to cooking.

Therefore, the procurement and receiving routes of kitchen utensils and raw materials, as well as the cooking, assembly, and production routes of dishes, should avoid cross flow

. Special attention should be paid to preventing the intersection of cooking and receiving, washing dishes, and entering cabinets, in order to improve the work efficiency of kitchen staff and avoid blockages or accidents.

Common Layout Types

The type of layout in the kitchen workspace should be based on the specific specifications of the kitchen structure, area, height, and equipment. There are several types available for reference.

1、 L-shaped layout

Usually, commercial kitchen equipment is arranged in a corner shape along the wall, combining commonly used equipment such as 

gas stoves, ovens, grills, grills, fryers, and stir fry pans on one side, and other larger equipment on the other side. The two sides are connected to

 form a corner for centralized heating and smoke exhaust. When the kitchen area and kitchen building structure are unfavorable and require a linear layout, an 

L-shaped layout is often adopted. This layout method is widely used in general restaurant kitchens, bakeries, and pastry shops.

2、 Back-to-back layout

Combine the main cooking equipment, such as stir frying equipment and steaming equipment, in two groups back-to-back in the kitchen, separated by

 a low wall in the middle, placed under the same exhaust hood, and operated by the chef standing opposite each other.

3、 Linear layout

All heating equipment such as stoves, fryers, ovens, etc. are arranged in a straight line layout. Usually arranged along the wall and placed under a 

rectangular ventilation hood, heating equipment is centrally arranged to absorb and exhaust fumes. Each chef is responsible for cooking certain dishes in a

 relatively fixed manner according to their division of labor, and the required equipment and tools are distributed on the left, right, and nearby. Suitable for kitchens 

of large catering enterprises with high division of labor, large site area, and relatively concentrated space.

4、 U-shaped layout

Arrange the workbench, freezer, and heating equipment along the perimeter, leaving an exit for personnel and raw materials to enter and exit. Products can be 

delivered through the window. When the kitchen area is small, this layout can be used, such as noodle room, cold dish room, and hot pot ingredient preparation room

. The U-shaped kitchen layout can fully utilize the existing workspace and improve work efficiency.

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