Commercial kitchen cleaning means removing soil, hitting food-safe sanitizer contact times, and logging each step for audit-ready proof.
A busy line throws grease, crumbs, moisture, and biofilm at every surface. A smart routine strips buildup, kills germs on food contact points, and keeps logs that match health inspections. The plan below shows what spotless looks like day to day, what to do weekly and monthly, and how to choose chemicals, tools, and temps that actually work in a food service setting.
What “Clean” Means In Food Service
Clean isn’t just shiny steel. It’s a chain: dry soil removal, detergent wash to lift grease, clean rinse, food-safe sanitizing at the right strength and time, then air-dry. Miss a link and you leave behind film that traps microbes. You’ll see that sequence repeated across prep tables, cutting boards, smallwares, and high-touch handles.
Commercial Kitchen Zones And Tasks (Quick Map)
Use this map to plan labor and avoid re-soiling a cleaned area. Work high to low and clean to dirty, then front to back. Line cooks can own station tasks; dish and night crew can close the loop.
| Zone | Core Tasks | When |
|---|---|---|
| Prep Surfaces & Cutting Boards | Scrape, wash, rinse, sanitize, air-dry; swap boards by food type | Between tasks & at shift end |
| Cooking Line (Ranges, Fryers, Griddles) | Degrease splash zones, scrape plates, empty crumb trays, polish metal | Mid-shift wipes; deep each night |
| Hoods & Backsplash | Detergent wipe, degreaser on film, rinse; schedule pro duct cleaning | Daily wipe; pro every 3–6 months |
| Smallwares & Knives | Pre-scrape, wash, rinse, sanitize, air-dry on racks | After each use |
| Dish Machine / 3-Comp Sink | Drain, delime, clean screens; verify final rinse or ppm | Daily; delime weekly |
| Walk-In & Reach-Ins | Wipe gaskets, shelves, handles; pull spills; label and date | Daily spot; weekly pull-out |
| Sinks & Faucets | Detergent scrub, rinse, sanitize fixtures and splash | Shift end |
| Floors & Drains | Sweep, degrease, brush grout, squeegee to trench, drain foam | Nightly; foam weekly |
| Trash & Bins | Liner swap, wash bin, rinse, sanitize, air-dry | Nightly |
| High-Touch Points | Sanitize handles, switches, POS, fridge pulls | Every 2–4 hours |
How To Clean A Commercial Kitchen Daily: The Flow
Set up carts with color-coded bottles, microfiber, scrapers, a nylon brush, and test strips. Post the steps on the wall. Assign zones. Then run this order.
1) Pull Food And Cover Cold Wells
Move ready-to-eat items to covered tubs. Cap condiment pans. Close lids on cold wells. That keeps splash away while you wash equipment.
2) Dry Scrape And Pre-Soak
Use a bench scraper on griddles, planchas, and prep tops. Knock crumbs into waste. Soak filter screens, fryer baskets, and hood baffles in hot detergent to loosen film while you work.
3) Wash, Rinse, Sanitize, Air-Dry
On food-contact areas, run the core sequence: detergent wash with hot water, clean rinse, then sanitizer at labeled strength for labeled contact time. Air-dry only. Towels can re-seed bacteria, so skip hand-drying on those surfaces.
4) Line Equipment
Range fronts, knobs, and guard rails collect grease mist. Spray a food-service degreaser, agitate with a brush, and wipe with clean rinse water. Treat splash walls the same way. Pull and empty fryer crumb trays. Scrape griddles, add a thin coat of oil to season while warm.
5) Sinks And Dish Area
At the dish machine, remove screens, scrap baskets, and curtains. Wash parts in the sink, rinse, and set to air-dry. Run a delime cycle per label. At a 3-comp sink, set up wash, rinse, and sanitize bays with posted ppm and contact times. Keep test strips by the sink to verify strength through the shift.
6) Cold Units
Wipe gaskets, handles, and shelves with detergent, then sanitize. Pull sticky jars and clean rings. Check temps and door seal gaps while you’re there.
7) Floors, Grout, And Drains
Sweep first. Mix degreaser in a bucket, flood the floor lightly, and scrub grout lines. Squeegee to the trench. Foam drains with a dedicated brush. Don’t send sanitizer into grease traps; you’ll upset the trap’s balance.
8) Reset, Label, And Log
Bring back pans and smallwares. Label bottles. Refill paper and soap. Sign the checklist with date, initials, and any issues found.
Sanitizer Basics You Can Trust
Food-safe sanitisers work only when mixed to label strength and held on the surface for the full contact time. That’s why test strips live on the wall near the sink and dish area. Quats usually target 200–400 ppm. Chlorine often sits at 50–100 ppm for food contact. Iodine sits near 12.5–25 ppm. Always check your exact product label and the local code. For science-backed contact time guidance on food contact surfaces and virus cleanup, see the CDC page on clean and disinfect. For model code detail and sanitizer ranges, see the FDA’s Food Code 2022.
Weekly And Monthly Tasks That Keep You Ahead
Daily wipe-downs keep you afloat. The deeper list keeps you ahead of inspections and fire risk. Park these on the calendar and crop labor from slow windows.
Weekly
- Pull line equipment and scrub the wall line and legs.
- Delime faucets, spray heads, and the dish machine if your water runs hard.
- Detail grout with a stiff brush and a degreasing cleaner.
- Flip and clean rubber floor mats, then stand them to dry.
- Inventory chemicals and restock test strips, gloves, and microfiber.
Monthly
- Deep clean the walk-in: empty one shelf bank at a time, wash, rinse, sanitize, and dry. Defrost if ice builds on coils or fans.
- Clean light diffusers and check bulbs above prep and line areas.
- Detail hood exteriors and send baffles for a soak and rinse.
- Schedule hood and duct service based on cooking volume.
- Check caulk at sinks and walls; scrape, re-caulk where gaps appear.
Pick The Right Chemical For The Job
Grease wants an alkaline detergent or food-service degreaser. Mineral scale wants an acid cleaner. Protein film on stainless needs surfactants with a bit of dwell time. Glass wants a low-residue cleaner. Food contact sanitizing sits in a separate bottle, mixed for label time and strength. Never mix products. Label everything with the product name and mix ratio.
| Product Type | Best Uses | Typical Mix & Contact |
|---|---|---|
| Food-Service Degreaser (Alkaline) | Line fronts, hoods, tile, concrete floors | Per label; 5–10 min dwell on heavy film |
| Delimer / Descaler (Acid) | Dish machine scale, kettles, faucets, steamers | Per label; rinse until pH neutral |
| Quat Sanitizer | Food contact after rinse; high-touch handles | 200–400 ppm; 60 sec contact |
| Chlorine Sanitizer | Food contact and fruit/veg sinks when label allows | 50–100 ppm; 7 sec to 1 min contact per label |
| Iodine Sanitizer | Cutting boards and smallwares in 3-comp sinks | 12.5–25 ppm; 30 sec contact |
| Enzymatic Drain Foam | Floor drains and soda lines (labelled) | Per label; overnight hold |
Tools That Speed The Job
Microfiber grabs fine soil better than cotton. Color coding stops cross-use: red for raw meat zones, blue for general, green for produce, yellow for restroom. A stiff deck brush makes quick work of grout. A razor scraper removes carbon on flat tops. A squeegee cuts drying time and prevents slip hazards. Keep a spare set of test strips for each sanitizer type.
Dish Machine And 3-Comp Sink, Step By Step
Dish Machine
- Scrape plates and pans into a scrap bin. No heavy soil into the machine.
- Rack items by type so spray reaches the surface.
- Verify wash and rinse temps on the gauge or with a thermal strip for high-temp units.
- Check final rinse on chemical units with test strips at least once per meal period.
- Drain, remove screens, wash parts, and leave the door open to dry.
Three-Compartment Sink
- Set bay one with hot detergent, bay two with clean rinse water, bay three with sanitizer at label ppm.
- Wash, rinse, then submerge in sanitizer for full contact time.
- Air-dry on racks; no towel wipe on food contact.
- Log ppm and time on the posted sheet.
Grease Traps, Hoods, And Fire Safety
Grease traps need regular pumping based on volume. Don’t pour caustic drain openers into traps. Hood systems include filter baffles you can soak and rinse in the sink, plus ductwork that needs pro cleaning. Keep fusible links and fire suppression nozzles clear of film. Store class K extinguishers within reach of the line and train the crew on pull-aim-squeeze-sweep.
Floors And Slip Prevention
Fats and sauces turn tile into ice. A degreasing cleaner plus brush agitation breaks that bond. Rinse with clean water, then squeegee to a trench or mop sink. Work from dry storage toward the dish pit so you’re not walking through wet areas. Post cones, then lock doors until dry if the floor opens to a guest path.
Walk-In Hygiene And Food Safety Checks
Keep ready-to-eat on top shelves, raw poultry on the bottom, and raw beef and pork in the middle. Label and date all tubs. Wipe gaskets and door sweeps. Check fan guards for dust. A clean walk-in holds temp better and cuts cross-smell between foods.
PPE And Chemical Handling
Nitrile gloves, splash goggles for deliming, and slip-resistant shoes protect the crew. Mix chemicals in a well-ventilated spot, never into hot water unless the label allows it, and never combine products. Mount Safety Data Sheets in a binder near the sink. Use closed-loop dilution systems where possible to avoid over-mixing and residue.
Scheduling, Training, And Logs
Turn the big list into a station chart. Each box carries tasks for that zone, the tool set, the chemical, and the contact time. Daily check sheets live on a clipboard. Weekly and monthly lists live in a bound log. New cooks train by shadowing one full close. Managers spot-check ppm, temperature, and log entries during service.
Troubleshooting Common Headaches
Cloudy Glasses
Likely scale or too much detergent. Delime and verify rinse agent. Check water hardness with strips and adjust dosing.
Greasy Tile After Mopping
Detergent film. Rinse with clean water after degreasing and squeegee dry. Swap to microfiber mops that release soil better.
Lingering Odor Near Drains
Biofilm. Foam with a labelled enzymatic product and brush the crown and walls. Rinse lightly and let it dwell.
Sanitizer Fails Test
Old mix or dirty rinse water. Dump and remix. Replace test strips past their shelf life.
Pre-Open And Pre-Close Mini Checklists
Pre-Open
- Sanitize prep tables and cutting boards.
- Check sanitizer ppm at sink and in spray bottles.
- Spot-clean door pulls, handles, and POS.
- Verify dish machine rinse temp or chemical ppm.
Pre-Close
- Run the zone map from high to low.
- Pull and soak baffles and fryer baskets.
- Scrub grout and foam drains.
- Log tasks and note repairs for the next shift.
Why This Routine Passes Real Inspections
Inspectors look for the wash-rinse-sanitize chain, sanitizer strength, date-marking, clean gaskets and handles, and proof that tasks happen every day. This plan hits each point with posted steps, testable numbers, and logs that match what they see on the line. Keep the charts up, keep the strips handy, and the kitchen stays service-ready.