I am going through some of my old files and I came across the ‘instruction sheet’ I had made for the school staff regarding my domain. I mean the kitchen. Every kitchen is different. From the layout to how the plumbing works(or doesn’t), it is always good to have a set of procedures to be able to get through the day without having the place explode.
I have to share this. The specifics are hilarious because of the level I had to write it on. And the reasons for some of the instructions… Oh, yes. There are stories.
Kitchen Notes
The Dishes
Hi there! You are probably reading this because one of the office people said you have to. Yup, you have to. There are some things that are not very obvious when dealing with the dishes in the kitchen, and some things people just forget. I hope this helps you to get through the dishes quickly and efficiently.
1 – It is a SANITIZER. This means it does not have a disposal inside the box, and the jets cannot clean stuck on food, just ‘sanitize’ it. Because of this, you need to wash everything before it goes into the box. The simplest way to do this is to use one of the grey bins/ bus tubs, put it in the sink in the wet side of the dish pit and use that to hold soapy water. There is dish soap, scrubbies and such available. And remember to wash and sanitize the bin when you are done.
2 – Small things jump. Cups, bowls, forks… they all like to jump out of the dish crates when they are put into the sanitizer. If the dishes are filled with water when they come out, and are let to cool down, they have to be redone because the sanitization only works if the dishes are allowed to air dry. For snack bowls and cups, put them into one of the ‘spike’ dish crates and then have another crate on top to keep them from jumping out and over. For utensils, ONLY use the ‘closed bottom’ dish crates, with another crate on top. This keeps the utensils from jumping out and into the drain. You do not want to find out what kind of a hassle it is to get a stuck utensil out of the plumbing. Bob would not be happy. Use the beige crate for the 4 and 6 oz tumblers, not the colorful IKEA snack cups as the plastic in the IKEA cups will soften and get stuck if not pulled out IMMEDIATELY. Oh, And put a crate on top of the glasses crate to keep them from dancing around and tipping, allowing them to gather water.
3 – Do not leave anything in the box. Always pull the last of the dishes to the drying side of the dish pit to dry and cool down, and check inside the sanitizer. This allows you to know that nothing has jumped out and into the water or along the rails. If anything is left inside the box, especially overnight, it has to be redone in the morning. The cooling water looses it’s ‘sanitization’ below 120 degrees and re contaminates anything that is left in there.
4 – Drain the tank. Pull the plugs and let the water drain. Do not leave water in it over night.
5 – certain things cannot go through the sanitizer –
The rubber Squeegee
Disposable Blue-Ice Bags(the squishy ones, not the hard-cased ones)
Anything having to do with fishtanks, especially the gravel
Plastic Bags
5 – There is a disposal in the sink in the wet side of the dish pit. The switch is cleverly hidden under the sanitizer left-hand door. Run the disposal with the water on until it completely clears, and then a little more. It does make some odd sounds, but if you hear something really bad, just turn it off. Clear the blades, if you can, or get someone else to do it before turning it on again. The other disposal in the kitchen is in the three-part sink. There is a little lid that was made to let it keep running after it has sucked and crushed everything that is usually on top of the cooler – use it to keep the disposal from spitting things back out at you. Run that one for a few minutes to make sure everything is clear.
Eating dishes can go into the lunch room, as can the cups and eating utensils. Serving dishes, utensils and pans have their places in the kitchen, some labeled, some not. Please do not hoard serving utensils and dishes in the classrooms.