Health inspections are a regular part of the restaurant industry. Although these bi-yearly visits aren’t anyone’s favorite part of running a restaurant, they can help consumers identify which restaurants are performing at the top of their game. While commercial kitchen managers don’t look forward to inspections, it’s actually an opportunity to showcase your food safety systems. Preparing your team for an inspection is a way to review protocols and answer any questions about how to keep customers safe. If you’re expecting an inspection soon, here are five tips to help you prepare for this visit.
1. Alert your team to the most common health code violations.
If you’ve had a violation in the past, preparing for the next inspection is the time to get it right. Consider holding a quick refresher course during prep time to cover anything you may have missed on the last inspection. Common violations include time and temperature violations, storage violations, sanitation violations, and equipment violations. To prepare for scheduled or surprise inspections, have an Authorized Service Agent inspect and fix your commercial kitchen equipment in advance to help keep you in compliance.
2. Check your dishwasher sanitizer concentration.
County and city health departments are meticulous about
checking the sanitization level
of plates, utensils, and glassware after they leave the dishwasher. That’s been especially true over the past 18 months. There are two ways that dishwashers sanitize dishes. Some commercial warewashers use high-temperature water to sanitize, while others use chemicals to fight pathogens, grease, and food residue. Whichever your commercial kitchen uses, you’ll want to ensure it’s performing up to health code standards. Have your commercial kitchen repair service
double-check the water temperature or check the sanitizer concentration level of your dishwasher.
3. Check the temperature of your commercial ovens.
Commercial oven temperature is another health department requirement that is important to check before an inspection. Food must be kept at the proper temperature for the appropriate amount of time (often referred to as TTC) to pass inspection. Consequently, an oven that comes up to temp quickly and can hold temperatures for long periods of time is a must. While an in-oven thermometer is helpful, it may be a few degrees off in accuracy. This small error could prevent a passing score on an inspection. The best way to make sure your oven is ready for inspection is to have your commercial kitchen service tech test the heating and holding time.
4. Check the ambient temperature of your commercial refrigeration equipment.
This is another area where violations can run rampant. The temperature of your prep tables, coolers, and freezers can vary depending on the amount of inventory kept inside. Prior to an inspection, keep doors closed if at all possible, preventing warm air from entering. If the ambient temperature on your equipment looks high, don’t risk a code violation. Have an Authorized Service Agent check the refrigeration unit’s thermostat, clear the drain lines, clean the coils, and check the fans during a scheduled service visit. Your commercial kitchen equipment should be at peak performance during an inspection.
5. Check your ingredients for proper storage.
One violation that occasionally slips past kitchen managers is the need for proper storage for all types of kitchen inventory, including frozen foods, meats, veggies, dairy, and eggs. Restaurants are busy spaces, and food storage systems are not always used correctly. In addition to keeping foods at the correct temperature, food must also be kept at least six inches off the ground, and inventory must be labeled and dated. Ideally, food should be stored using the FIFO method (First In, First Out) to ensure that older ingredients are used before newer inventory. Most teams utilize a color-coded system to quickly identify what inventory needs to be kept at what temperature.
Consider simplifying your food organization system
if inventory tends to be disorganized or left out too long.
Let ATECH prep your industrial kitchen equipment for inspection.
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