A restaurant kitchen runs on stations, prep, tickets, and timing that move food safely from delivery to table.
Curious about what happens past the swinging door? Here’s the plain view. A pro kitchen is a small factory that turns raw goods into plated dishes in minutes. It runs on clear roles, tight prep, and a shared clock. The flow starts long before dinner service and ends after the last pan is scrubbed.
The Core Flow From Delivery To Plate
Every service follows the same backbone: receive goods, store them, prep, set stations, fire orders, plate, and clean down. The names vary by house, but the beats match. Get the steps right and the night feels smooth; slip on any link and tickets stack up.
| Role | Core Tasks | Works With |
|---|---|---|
| Executive Chef | Menu vision, costing, vendor deals | Owners, sous, FOH leaders |
| Sous Chef | Runs shift, checks prep, solves bottlenecks | Line cooks, expo, dish |
| Expeditor (Expo) | Controls pass, calls timing, checks plates | All stations, servers |
| Line Cook | Fires items on station to spec and time | Expo, other stations |
| Prep Cook | Batch sauces, cut veg, portion proteins | Sous, line |
| Pastry | Desserts, breads, doughs | Expo, cold station |
| Dish/Porter | Washing, trash, restock wares | Whole team |
Stations Make Speed Possible
Most houses split the line into hot side and cold side. Hot side holds grill, sauté, fry, and sometimes a pizza deck. Cold covers garde manger for salads and cold plates. Each station owns a slice of the menu with its own mise en place: cut, labeled, and within easy reach. This cuts motion and keeps cooks looking forward, not running laps.
How Orders Travel
Orders land by printer, screen, or spoken call. A ticket lists table, seat numbers, and items. Expo or the lead cook sets the pace, calling “fire,” “pick up,” or “hold.” Each station sets pans, lights burners, or drops baskets. Times are synced so a steak, a salmon, and a side all reach the pass together. When plates hit the pass, expo checks temps, garnish, and plate edges, then releases to the server.
Mise En Place In Practice
Prep starts before the day’s first coffee. Stocks simmer, vinaigrettes get blended, proteins are trimmed, and veg is cut. Every pan, spoon, and ninth pan has a home. Labels show item, date, and allergen flags. During service, the station cook keeps the rail topped off and swaps low pans in seconds. Clean hands, clean tools, hot food hot, cold food cold.
Safety, Temperatures, And Clean Habits
Food safety isn’t a side task; it’s baked into every step. Cold items stay at safe holding temps, hot items stay above the danger zone, and cooling happens on a timer. Many teams follow HACCP plans that map risks and checkpoints from receiving to service.
Cooling rules matter on the line and during close. The FDA Food Code cooling guide spells out the range where bacteria grow fast and the time windows that keep food safe. Labeling, shallow pans, ice wands, and blast chillers help kitchens hit the marks.
Burns, cuts, and slips are an everyday risk. OSHA’s restaurant eTool lists plain steps like dry floors, knife care, and the right gloves for heat and blades. See OSHA cooking safety for simple checklists you can put to work today.
Receiving And Storage
Trucks arrive with the day’s goods. The check is fast: temps, seals, dates, and counts. Proteins move to low shelves, produce to crispers, dry goods to labeled bins. FIFO rules keep older stock moving first. Tight storage turns into fast prep later.
Prep And Batch Work
Prep cooks handle volume. They portion meats, marinate, blanch greens, and set sauces. Batch items cut strain on the line during the rush. Every batch has a yield sheet, so the team knows how many orders a container covers. When the set hits par, the sous signs off.
How A Restaurant Kitchen Works During Service
Good timing comes from clear talk. Short calls beat long speeches. The lead voice sets the tempo: “Two steak medium, one salmon, one risotto—on deck.” Replies are crisp. If grill needs a minute, they say so early. The expo watches the rail and holds plates that are too early with a warmer or quick reheat on the plancha.
Fire, Hold, And Push
Most menus mix quick and slow items. Fries fly in minutes. Short ribs take hours in braise and only need a reheat and glaze. The team staggers work so slow items start sooner and fast items land last. When a table adds a dish late, expo may hold the rest or push a fast side to keep the wait fair.
Plating Standards
Every dish has a plate map: sauce line, protein angle, starch position, herb finish. The map keeps plates consistent across cooks and nights. Tongs wipe edges. Hot plates for hot items, chilled plates for raw fish. Allergens get a clear flag at call and at pass.
How The Brigade Fits Together
The brigade model gives each cook a lane. One lead handles grill marks and temps. Another runs sauté pans. A third watches the fry baskets. Cold station arranges salads and raw plates. Pastry fires lava cakes at the right moment so they land with mains. This split keeps eyes on fewer tasks and boosts speed and quality.
Role Hand-Offs During Service
Before the rush, the sous checks each station’s par lists and taste-tests sauces and dressings. During peak, the sous floats, jumps where hands are thin, and solves choke points. When tickets stack, they may trim menu calls to dishes with shorter fires or move a cook from fry to grill for fifteen minutes.
Working With The Dining Room
The kitchen and the front desk share the same goal: fast, correct plates. Seat maps, pacing notes, and large party timings flow through the pass. When a table has a late arrival, the host gives a heads-up so the line doesn’t fire entrees too soon. Clear talk saves plates and keeps guests happy.
Menu Design That Supports The Line
A menu that sells well and cooks fast starts with balance. Pair a few long braises with quick grills and pan sears. Build sides that overlap across dishes, so prep covers more menu spots. Choose garnishes that stand time under heat lamps without wilting. Lean lists plate faster than sprawling menus with one-off parts.
Prep Lists, Pars, And Counts
Each morning, leads write prep lists with counts for sauces, proteins, and sides. Pars tie to covers and past sales. If the house expects 120 covers on Saturday, the team builds to that number with a buffer for walk-ins. Real-time counts during service keep “eighty-six” calls rare.
Equipment Layout
Speed depends on layout. The grill sits near the salamander for quick melts and finishes. Fryers live by a drain board with heat-proof quart containers for oil skimming. Reach-ins sit behind the line with the top sellers on the easiest shelf. Knives and towels stay in the same spot night after night.
From Open To Close: A Day In Short Beats
Open starts with temp checks and a walk-through. Hoods on, pilots lit, sanitizer mixed, boards set, and hand sinks stocked. Midday brings staff meal and a short lineup to review specials, allergens, and 86’d items. Doors open, tickets roll, and the clock takes over. After last send, the close list runs: cool down, label, wrap, scrub, mop, polish steel, and set pans for the next day.
| Stage | What Happens | Typical Tools |
|---|---|---|
| Open | Walk-in check, temps, set stations | Thermometers, checklists |
| Pre-Service | Lineup, taste, assign roles | Prep lists, spoons |
| Service | Fire, plate, expo, send | Tongs, pans, timers |
| Mid-Shift | Restock, wipe downs, quick mop | Backups, sanitizer buckets |
| Close | Cool, label, deep clean | Wrap, labels, degreaser |
Quality Control You Can Taste
Great houses taste all day. A spoon rack sits at the pass. Sauces get checked for salt, acid, and texture. Fries are sampled for crispness. Steaks rest before slicing. A steady eye on waste keeps food cost in line and prevents stockouts that slow the line.
Allergens And Special Requests
Allergen calls are logged on the ticket and repeated at pass. Shared fryers and flat-tops carry cross-contact risk, so many teams keep a clean pan and fresh oil on standby. Servers repeat the plan at table so guests know what changed.
Clean Downs And Maintenance
Daily cleaning tackles hoods, floors, and drains. Weekly lists hit gaskets, fryer boils, and fridge coils. Small fixes during the week beat a broken fryer on Saturday night. Logs help the next shift see what still needs work.
Training, Checklists, And Culture
New cooks shadow, then take a small station on a slow night. Clear recipes and photos remove guesswork. Checklists turn habits into routine. Praise a clean station and a well-timed pickup. That sets the tone for the next shift.
What Guests Don’t See
Behind the pass, the key is calm. Tickets spike, a burner dies, a delivery runs late—yet plates keep moving. The team leans on prep, setup, and short calls. That’s the secret: hours of setup for a few minutes of cooking, repeated plate after plate.
Quick Glossary For First-Timers
Common Terms
Expo: The traffic cop at the pass. Fire: Start cooking. Hold: Delay cooking. Sell: Send the plate. Par: Target prep count. 86: Out of stock. Mise: Station setup. Plancha: Flat steel grill.
Why This System Works
Clear lanes, repeatable prep, and short calls let a small crew feed a room fast. When the pieces click, guests get hot plates, servers stay in rhythm, and cooks finish with a clean line and a clear head.