Designing a new restaurant is one of the biggest dreams for a chef. When you finally get that golden opportunity, you want to make sure you get all of the details right. With so many things on your to-do list, where do you begin? Choosing the right shelving lays the ground work for the rest of your kitchen. Efficient use of space and food safety are the cornerstone of your back of house. Don’t believe us? Here are three reasons you should:

1. Do it right the first time

When you’re designing a new restaurant, one of the first decisions you need to make is where your walk-in will be located. Once you draw out where the walk-in will go, everything else is filled in around it. Similarly, your shelving should be decided upon before adding the rest of your fixtures. Choosing the right shelving from the start will set you up for a better future. One of the biggest food safety problems associated with back of house equipment is rusty shelving. We get it, you’re opening a brand-new restaurant and want to cut corners somewhere, anywhere. PSA: this is not the place to skimp on your bottom line! Rusty shelving puts your customers, staff and restaurant at risk. Installing rust-free Camshelving® guarantees that you will never have to worry about corroded shelving again. When a health inspector shows up, you’ll have the confidence of knowing your shelving will pass with flying colors every single time. When examining cost versus worth, Camshelving wins the battle of worth every time.

2. Consider all the details

When choosing your shelving design, it is important to think about all of the factors that go into your back of house. How many days a week do you receive deliveries? Do you have enough room to hold all of that inventory—plus prepped food? The last thing you want is for your walk-in and storage areas to be overflowing to the extent of food being stored on the floor. This food safety faux pas is preventable if you ensure your space is being used as efficiently as possible. If you didn’t already know, Cambro offers a free Camshelving Design Service to that analyzes the most suitable and cost-effective shelving design for each space. Depending on where you are looking to install your Camshelving, this service ensures space is efficiently allocated, operational flow is maximized, and organizational challenges are solved.

Once you have the best design for your space, you can start thinking about how you’ll be filling your shelves and what additional precautions you can take it keep it safe. For example, if you’re holding small ingredients, you may want to order shelf rails and shelf dividers. Implement the organizational practices from the beginning for the best chance at consistency in the long run.

3. Shelving is the heart of your operation

The heart is commonly regarded as the hardest working muscle in the body. A strong heart helps keep the rest of your body on track. Think of your shelving as the heart and center of your back of house operation. When you have a strong shelving system in place, organization, storage and safety are well supported. In contrast, rotting and rusting shelving only breeds poor organizational practices and food safety problems. When we examine food safety faux pas, time after time we see violations involving rusty shelving—and it never ends there. Stop your food safety problems before they start by choosing the right shelving. One reason Camshelving is different: Camguard, an antimicrobial protection that is permanently molded into shelf plates to inhibit the growth of mold, fungus and bacteria. Clean shelving encourages clean food storage practices. Show your employees that you are committed to doing things the right way, and it will show in every aspect of your operation.

Whether you’re ready to make decisions for a new restaurant design today or in five years, the same truth remans: shelving should be one of the first things to be considered. Set your restaurant  for success with Camshelving by contacting your Cambro rep today or visiting the Camshelving website.

P.S. Already had your restaurant for a few years & starting to see the wear on your shelving?  Fear not–Camshelving can be brought it at any time. Check out how we transformed the dry storage inside this Newport Beach restaurant:

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: ADRIANA DESIDERIO IS THE DIGITAL CONTENT MANAGER AT CAMBRO.