How to Clean an Industrial Kitchen

If your hood range/oven vent has a charcoal filter, replace it every few months.

In any industrial kitchen, cleanliness must be top priority. Keeping a kitchen in working order can seem like a thankless task, particularly once grease begins to accumulate on kitchen fixtures and stainless steel. Regular cleaning is the best defense against an overwhelming cleaning job. Try to keep your kitchen clean enough that all you need are simple cleaning products---soap, water and gentle disinfectants.

Things You'll Need

• Scrub sponge
• Rag
• Terry cloth
• Long handled wire-brush
• Liquid soap
• Baking soda
• Vinegar
• Broom
• Dustpan
• Mop
• Bucket
• Cold water sanitizer (optional)

Instructions

1. Sponge and sanitize the sink area. Use a scrub sponge, water and baking soda to loosen grime, excess food and dirt. Hose with hot water so dirt funnels down the sink.

2. Fill up one sink with soapy hot water, a second with plain hot water and a third with cold water. Use liquid detergent in the first sink and a cold water sanitizing solution in the third.

3. Clean flatware and cooking equipment. Pile up your dirty dishes, pots and other kitchen sundries to one side of the sink. Scrape any food scraps into the trash or garbage disposal. Use the hot jet spray to shower each piece of kitchenware or simply run plenty of water from the faucet over each piece to remove any clinging food bits. Wash each dish with a scrub/sponge in the soapy water sink. Rinse away the soap from each dish in the sink with hot clean water. Submerge the cleaned dishes in the cold-water sink. Place the dishes on a dish rack to dry.

4. Wipe and disinfect counter tops, table surfaces and fixed cutting boards. Spray the surfaces with sanitizing solution, then wipe down with a damp rag. Don't neglect the lips of tables; grime tends to collect here. Wipe stainless steel with vinegar and water to shine it. Dry surfaces thoroughly with a terry cloth.

5. Scour ovens with a rag or sponge and soapy water. Warm up the grills to char remaining food bits. This will make it easier to clean. Scrub hot grill with a long-handled wire brush. Clean stove tops with a rag. Degrease the range hood above the sink periodically; wipe the surfaces of hood, remove the filter and soak it in water and vinegar or water and a stronger degreaser.

6. Empty trash cans before cleaning the floor to eliminate the possibility of spilling garbage on your freshly cleaned floor.

7. Sweep the floor, mop it and then mop the floor again. Remove debris and dust with a broom and dustpan. Mop the floor with a hot, soapy water and possibly a little sanitizing solution to disinfect the floor. Sop up the soapy floor with another pass of the mop, now with hot clean water. Allow the floor to air dry.

Tips & Warnings

• Most industrial kitchens have a lot of stainless steel. Never scrub against the grain on stainless steel surfaces. They could become permanently scuffed.

References

• Service Magic: Cleaning a Range Hood
• Mrs. Clean USA: Cleaning Stainless Steel