Food and Beverage Equipment

Food and Beverage Equipment

Food and Beverage Equipment

Food service equipment include all pieces of equipment of furniture, cutlery, crockery,

glassware and so on used by the guests and the staff in the service areas. This equipment

can differ depending on the food and drinks to be prepared and served

The equipment can also depend on the particular type of bar and dining areas involved for

example if the bar and food service areas are located within a hotel, restaurant, cruise liner,

night club or cinema.

Glassware

1. It is the most delicate of all equipments, it is also very expensive and hence should be

treated accordingly.

2. There are four types of glasses, which are – crystal, cut, blown and pressed. Crystal is the

most expensive and rarely used in hotels while pressed glass is cheap to manufacture

and are more durable.

3. Glassware is extremely important to an appearance of the drink and hence the glasses

should be attractive, clean and appropriate.

4. A broken glass not only means loss of property but is also dangerous to the customers &

staff. A piece of broken glass in the food can kill.

5. When the glassware is machined washed or hand washed each individual item must be

polished and dried with a glass cloth made of linen, as water leaves stains on the glasses.

If the water is salty it will leave a permanent mark if not wiped quickly.

6. All glasses whether clean or dirty must be handled by the base or stem only as

fingerprints left on the glass necessitates polishing.

7. Always store your glasses where they are easily accessible and where they will not be

knocked over.

8. Never serve a drink in a glass that is chipped or cracked.

Types of Glasses

1. Cocktail glass: - These are stemmed glasses because the drinks to be served in this glass

has to be served chilled and hence the stem avoids the hands from heating the glass

quickly. The sizes can range from 7 to 17 cl.

2. Pony Tumbler / Juice glass / 4 ounce glass: - This is a small glass used sometimes for the

service of small juices.

3. High Ball Glass: - It is the most commonly used glass in a bar. They are long & straight

sided. They can range from 14 – 30 cl. But 24 cl is the most commonly used.

4. Tom Collins: - They are tall & thin and usually have a capacity of 12 ounce / 36 cl.

5. Old fashioned glass: - These are used to serve “spirits on the Rocks” (served on cube

ice). They range from 14 – 25 cl and the most commonly used is 17 cl.

6. Liqueur Glass:-They are available in a variety of design & shapes having a capacity of 2 – 3 cl.

7. Delmonico glass: - They are straight sided and have a capacity of 11 – 20 cl.

8. Pilsner Glass: - They are glasses which are used to serve Pilsners (a type of Beer). It holds

approximately 34 cl.

9. Beer Tankard: - These glasses are most commonly used for the service of Draft beers. It

has a capacity of around 34 cl.

10. Sherry glass: - This is a glass to serve sherry (a fortified wine) and has a capacity of 7 cl.

11. Vermouth glass: - These are glasses used for the service of vermouths or any other

aperitif. These glasses can vary in size but it usually has a capacity of 14 cl.

12. Brandy Balloon: - Always has the same shape with a short stem so that the hand can

heat the glass and allow the brandy / cognac to heat up and release its aroma.

13. Champagne saucer / Champagne tulip: - It is the glass which is used for the service of

Champagne.

14. A Punched Cup: - It is used mostly at cocktail parties to serve punch which is often hot

hence the handle like cup.

15. Whisky or short glass: - It is used for the serving of whiskey without ice.

16. Port wine Glass: - Used for the service of port wine. It has a capacity of 7 cl.

17. Red wine glass:-It has got the capacity of 22 cl and the red wine is served only half the

glass. The tulip shaped glass holds the aroma.

18. White wine Glass: - This is used for the service of white wine and has the capacity of 17 cl.

19. Decanter: - This is used to carry mixes or can be used as a wine carafe.

20. A Martini Jug or a Mixer: - It can come in a variety of shapes and it is used for mixing

drinks.

Crockery

1. Iron Stone, vitrified, vitreous are the three most commonly used hotel china. They are all

strengthen & glazed for durability & hardware.

2. Prior to mise – en – place, waiters should gather together all the crockery required for

the service.

3. Although the crockery may be machined washed it is no guarantee that the items are

perfectly clean. Each individual item of crockery must be inspected for dried particles

smears or any other kind of damage.

4. Chipped or cracked crockery must never be used under any circumstances. A cracked

plate will crack further and can break when it comes in contact with hot food.

5. Cracks and chips harbor germs and can cause stomach infections.

6. When the crockery has been checked, polished and sorted out, the dinner plated should

be placed in the plate warmer and other items required by the kitchen should be

returned to that department ready for service.

7. The crockery required by the restaurants should be divided equally between the

stations.

Different types of crockery and their sizes

1. A soup plate: - 20 cms in diameter and used for the service of thick

soups.

2. B & B plate (Side plate) :- 15 cms in diameter use for the service of bread &

butter.

3. A Fish plate :- 20 cms in diameter used for service of fish items and

Hors d ‘oeuvres.

4. A Dessert plate (Sweet plate):- 18 cms in diameter and used for the service of

desserts.

5. A Meat plate ( Joint plate / dinner plate / main course plate ) :- 25 cms in diameter and

Used for the service of main courses only.

6. A Cereal Bowl :- 13 cms in diameter used for the service of cereals

(Cornflakes, wheat flakes, Choco flakes, etc.), puddings,

Compotes.

7. Cheese plate :- 16 cms in diameter used for the service of cheese and

Biscuits.

8. Consommé cup: - Used for the service of thin soups only.

9. Coffee cup: - It has a capacity of 10 cl and is used for the service of

black coffee only. It is also referred to as a demi – tasse

Cup.

10. Tea cup: - 19 cl capacity used for the service of tea and coffee

with milk.

Cutlery

1. Tableware is a term used to denote flat cutlery and hollowware. It may be analyzed as

follows:-

a) Flatware: - all forms of spoons and forks.

b) Cutlery – all knives and other cutting equipments.

c) Hollowware – any item made from silver apart from flatware and cutlery e.g. :-

teapots , milk creamers, entrée dishes etc

2. Stainless steel is the most used metal in the making of cutleries because it is the most

durable and does not need any special cleaning methods.

3. After being washed in the machine each individual piece of cutlery must be checked and

polished.

4. When storing silverware cutlery make sure that it is stored properly (usually in baize

lined drawers) because they tend to scratch very easily.

5. A normal cover consists of the following

a) a large knife and a large fork

b) a fish knife and a fish fork

c) a dessert spoon and a dessert fork

d) a soup spoon

e) A bread and butter knife.

Types of cutlery / special cover equipments

a) Butter knife i) Nut cracker

b) Carving knife j) Oyster fork

c) Cheese knife k) Pastry fork

d) Fruit knife & fruit fork l) Snail fork

e) Grape scissors m) Snail tong

f) Grape fruit spoon n) Steak knife

g) Lobster cracker o) Sundae spoon

h) Lobster pick p) Asparagus tong

Furniture

Furniture must be chosen according to the need of the establishment. The type of operation

will determine ones specific needs as far as the dinning arrangements are concerned. Very

often by using different materials and designs and finishes and by careful arrangement one

can change the atmosphere and appearance of the food service area to suite different

occasions.

Wood is the most commonly used material for dining room furniture although metal

in form of aluminum and steel are also used. Marble is a popular material India for dining

table tops. Aluminum is usually lightweight, hardwearing, has a variety of finishes, easy to

clean and the cost are reasonable. Plastic or Formica coated tabletops may be found in

many cafeterias, staff dining rooms etc.

Nowadays plastic & fiberglass are being extensively used to produce dining room

chairs. These materials are easily molded into a single piece seat and back. Advantages are

that they are durable, easily cleaned, light weight and can be stacked. They are also

available in a large range of colors and designs and are relatively inexpensive. They are

mostly found in bars and in staff dining rooms.

When buying tables and chairs keep the following points in mind

1) They should be easy to stack

2) They should match the décor of the restaurant

3) They should be fire proof, waterproof, and durable.

4) They should be within the budget of the establishments

5) Keep in mind the style of service

Chairs

A chair come in various shapes and sizes, designs, materials and colors to suite all situations

and occasions. Because of the wide range of styles, the chairs vary in height, width but as a

guide, a chair seat is 18 inches from the ground, the height from the ground to the top of

the back of the seat 1 meter and the depth from the front edge of the seat to the back of

the chair is 18 inches.

Tables

Tables can come in three main shapes: - round, Rectangular, Square. An establishment may

have a mixture of these or all of one shape depending on the shape of the room and the

style of service being offered. The tables can be for 2 pax, 4 pax, and 8 pax and so on. Tables

can be joined to seat large groups. The tables are usually covered with a baize cloth which

are heat resistant. This covering will also deaden the sound of the cutlery, crockery and

glassware when being kept on the table.

Sizes of tables

Square: - For 2 pax – 76 cm sq

For 4 pax – 1mtr (3 ft.)

Round For 4 pax – 1 meter in diameter

For 8 pax – 1.52 meters / 5 ft diameter

Rectangular For 4 pax – 4 ft 6” x 2ft 6”

Sideboards

It is also called as an Étagère / Dummy Waiter / Service Console

This is perhaps one of the most important furniture for a waiter. The style and design

of the sideboard will vary from one establishment to another. It is dependent on the

following points:-

1) Style of service and the menu being offered.

2) The number of waiters or waitresses working from one sideboard.

3) The number of tables to be served from one sideboard.

4) The amount of equipment’s it is expected to hold.

It is essential that the sideboard is of a minimum size and can be easily moved around.

Some establishments use smaller fixed sideboards and use “Tray jacks” (movable folding

tray stands) when serving and clearing. The top of the sideboard should be of a heat

resistant material, which can be easily washed down.

Some of the points to be kept in mind while stacking a sideboard

1) When the restaurant cleaning has been completed all equipment necessary for the

service must be collected, cleaned, checked and set out.

2) Sideboards being the central point for the waiters to work on, it must be kept spotlessly

clean at all times.

3) The stacking of the sideboards must be done with proper planning. One must ensure

that sufficient covers for relaying a station i.e. extra linen, crockery, cutlery, glassware,

ashtrays etc must be kept in a condition whereby they can be used immediately when

required.

4) Prior to mise-en-place cutleries, crockeries, and glassware should be brought from the

wash-up area to the sideboard. It is from this point that the waiter commences his miseen-

place.

5) All the sauce bottles should be refilled & the bottle neck should be wiped before the

start of the operations. The salvers should also be wiped and kept clean before and after

the operations.

Linen

1) Restaurant linen is a very expensive commodity. Table linen has to be changed every

meal and often during a meal.

2) Table cloths should not be used for polishing table items.

3) The most commonly used material is cotton.

4) Because of the high cost of laundering, a table cloth which is a little dirty would not be

changed but a slip cloth would be placed over it for the succeeding service. Slip cloth is

not as expensive to have re – laundered as would be a table cloth.

5) Dirty serviettes when being exchanged for clean ones should be tied in bundles of 10’s.

6) Linen should be stored on paper lined shelves, the correct sizes together and with the

inverted folds facing outwards, which will facilitate counting and control.

7) Tables come in various sizes hence we have square, rectangular, round table cloths

8) The type of linen used would depend on the class of the restaurant, the type of

customers, the cost involved, the style of the menu and the service to be offered.

Types of linen

1) Table cloth: All tables with wooden top are covered with tablecloths. The color of the

cloth must blend with color scheme of the interior. Hotels with many restaurants may

use different colored tablecloths for each outlet for better control of linen movement.

The size of the table cloth depends on the size of the table to be covered

2) Slip Cloth: It is used to cover the soiled table cloth during the operations. Size is the

same as that of the table top

3) Waiter’s Cloth: It is used by waiters during the service for wiping the edges of the

dishes and for carrying the hot dishes. This should be folded and carried just above the

wrist and never over the shoulder, around the neck, or tucked inside the pocket.

4) Napkins or Serviettes Napkins are used for guests’ use, folded and kept either in the

glass, on side plate, or in the centre of the cover. The folded napkins are kept in the

glass for the dinner, and on side plates or at the centre of the cover for lunch.

However this is not followed rigidly. All covers must have one type of fold and all

covers must have napkins placed in one position

5) Buffet Cloth: Buffet cloths of various sizes are used for covering the buffet tables.

Centre crease of the cloth should run in the middle of the table. When more cloths are

used, the overlapping of the cloth should not be facing the entrance. The fall of the

cloth should be even all over, especially on the front side

6) Satin Cloth: It is draped around the front side of the buffet table to cover the legs and

to make the buffet counter attractive. It is available in attractive colors.

7) Tea Cloth: It is used for wiping cutlery and crockery. The cloth should be lint free and

changed frequently

8) Wiping Cloths. Discarded linen can be used as Wiping cloth. They should be changed

frequently. Preferably Wiping cloth should be of a lint free material