Proper organization in a restaurant allows for smoother operations, saving time and providing a quick response to any demands or unforeseen events during service. Achieving this level of efficiency requires the right kitchen equipment and an effective organizational strategy. In this article, we’ll explore what mise en place is, how to set it up in a professional kitchen, and the many advantages it offers.
What Does ”Mise en Place” Mean?
“Mise en place” comes from French and literally means “put in place” but can also be translated as “set up.” This concept is key in hospitality, describing the set of preparatory actions taken before the culinary process begins. This involves organizing utensils and ingredients, ensuring a top-tier service for customers.
By establishing mise en place in your restaurant, you can significantly reduce wait times and enhance the service experience in both the kitchen and dining room.
Mise en place is widely embraced across the restaurant industry, embodying an entire culinary philosophy where every detail counts. To make this system truly effective, high-quality tools and resources are essential. For example, at Araven, we offer a wide range of functional products for service and display, designed for the entire team.
Types of Mise en Place in Restaurants
How do you do mise en place? First, it is important to say there are two main types, depending on the area of operation:
Mise en Place in the Kitchen
As is well known, kitchen work can be chaotic. Many dishes need to be prepared simultaneously, often with a lot of staff working in the same workspace. To maintain order amid this chaos, a well-organized arrangement of all utensils and ingredients needed for each recipe is essential.
Kitchen mise en place allows us to meet timed goals by performing tasks in parallel that require different preparation times. For instance, cooking rice while grilling a hake filet.
Looking for professional kitchen tools for an ideal mise en place? Araven has you covered. Take a look at our squeeze bottles and sauces dispensers or this catering dishware designed for professional use. For the kitchen, we also offer Gastronorm food pans, perfect for having ingredients ready before cooking, as well as our container with 4 compartments.
Mise en Place in the Dining Room
Just as the kitchen team preps ingredients and dishes, the restaurant’s dining team—including servers, headwaiters, and sommeliers—needs an organized work area. Dining room mise en place is equally crucial. With this setup, necessary items such as napkins, glasses, plates, or cutlery are ready in advance, ensuring seamless service for customers.
For this type of mise en place, tasks may include preparing replacement napkins and cutlery, ironing table linens and, slicing lemons for drinks, and stocking ice buckets, among others. This setup will vary depending on the type of restaurant, service, or event. The requirements of a wedding banquet are very different from those of a casual restaurant serving a daily menu.
And for the dining team? Araven offers different products to enhance service efficiency. An example is this cutlery tray for easy access, along with service carts to gather and transport everything required for table setup.
How to Carry Out Mise en Place in the Kitchen?
But what are the necessary steps for mise en place? Here’s how to prepare it effectively in a professional kitchen:
- Planning: It’s crucial to identify all resources required for each dish, including precise quantities of raw ingredients, utensils, and kitchen equipment.
- Ingredient Preparation: Preparing ingredients in advance saves as much time as possible. For instance, dicing onions, slicing meat, or preparing stews, sauces, or dressings beforehand. Ensure everything is properly labeled for easy identification. Using specific storage systems like airtight Gastronorm containers is highly recommended.
- Kitchen and Utensil Layout: This is a crucial step. Mise en place also involves organizing the kitchen and assigning different items to different dishes. It’s also important to keep utensils and kitchen tools in perfect condition to avoid unnecessary cleaning time during preparation.
- Labor Organization: Each team member should feel comfortable performing their job. It implies that they have within reach all necessary items to work well. It is also indispensable they have a clear understanding of their responsibilities during service to ensure a smooth workflow.
Benefits of Mise en Place
Why implement mise en place? What are the benefits? Here are a few reasons why implementing mise en place in a professional kitchen is so important:
- Practicality and Organization: Having ingredients prepared and stored correctly not only improves organization and practicality but also ensures quality. It helps streamline tasks and minimizes distractions.
- Hygiene: More order means more cleanliness. Mise en place encourages better sanitation of the workplace by keeping utensils and ingredients orderly.
- Time Saving: It speeds up kitchen and dining room tasks. Mise en place allows faster service and quicker meal delivery.
- Customer Satisfaction: Faster service reduces customer wait times, increasing satisfaction, which in turn encourages them to repeat visits to your restaurant.
- Complexity in Recipes: With mise en place, more complex recipes can be created since ingredients and even pre-cooked items are ready.
- Safety: Cooking with everything in place is key to kitchen safety, reducing stress and potential accidents.
Want to learn more about mise en place in a professional kitchen? At Araven, we specialize in the hospitality industry. Contact us to help create the ideal workspace for you and your team!
