For generations, the gas flame was the unquestioned heart of the commercial kitchen — the tool every cook trained on and every kitchen was designed around. That assumption is now being tested from two directions at once. Recent municipal restrictions on gas-powered kitchen appliances, particularly across California and other West Coast markets, are compelling more food and beverage operators to seriously explore electric commercial kitchen equipment. And when they do, many ar

Food and beverage design frequently revolves around reinforcing a brand concept — every finish, fixture, and floor plan decision either supports the story or dilutes it. Few restaurant design moves support a story as powerfully as the open kitchen. When guests can watch their meal come together, the brand's promises stop being marketing copy and become observable fact. Freshness is not claimed; it is demonstrated, order by order, in full view of the dining room. The open kitc

If the past several years taught food and beverage operators anything, it is that the concept you open with is rarely the concept you are running three years later. Menus evolve, delivery channels appear, a slow daypart becomes the profitable one, and suddenly the kitchen designed for one way of working is fighting the business instead of serving it. That is why the future of commercial kitchen design hinges on two key principles: modularity and flexibility. The principle app

When setting out to design a commercial kitchen as part of a restaurant, there are a number of guidelines that are often used in determining the portion of a floor plan to dedicate to that function. The metric of 5 sq ft per seat in the restaurant is often used to guess at kitchen size. And the 60/40 ratio frequently justifies the portion of a restaurant that should be FOH (front of house) versus the kitchen and operational uses. Occasionally these metrics are in the ballpark