Maintaining High Levels of Cleanliness in the Food Services & Hospitality Industries

A book can seldom be judged by its cover. Yet many patrons of food services, catering operations as well as hotels are often judged by their levels of cleanliness. Maintain your images and reputation – run a clean shop and operation.

The story was told of a parent who on road trips who not would not only scour restaurants, cafes and eateries off the beaten track – “where the locals eat …. None of these high priced clip joints on the highway who pay high rents and charge high prices … eat where the local eat…. They know best”. Yet the final test of this careful shopper.

Who could be called a vigilant consumer before his time … before even before books were written about and expensive hospitality and food service trade courses concerning customer service levels their creation and maintenance of to a high standard – employed one final and most exacting test before the restaurant could be carefully awarded his special seal of approval – because after all his family and wife were going to eat at this chosen establishment – was the “washroom test”. If the washroom passed the “cleanliness visual test “, then that was the final exam in the process. Now the restaurant, diner or café passed muster and it would be a wise as well as prudent choice for a meal for the family.

How can a food or hospitality food services operation work on a consistent basis to maintain a high standard of cleanliness in order to create and maintain their fine reputation? First of its entire not an off and off event, one day on the day off. Consistency is everything. You want a reasonable level that your customers and potential customers can count on with no apparent surprises on the run. Sure everyone and every operation indeed business have its run of bad luck. Let your event be that stroke of bad luck, not a string of events. People generally are reasonable and will forgive a single act, which could happen by chance to anyone – but not a regular run of sins.

First of all create a policy manual to set standards and routines of cleanliness and procedures thereof. This way the policy, standards and schedules are laid out clearly. There is no if and or buts of what is expected of staff – how, to what standard, when and how often.

Next prevention is a good part of the battle. Ensure that your kitchen is laid out well. Equipment and materials for cleaning up should be clearly available, always.

Next in terms of pest control – ensure that a reputable refuse pickup company is hired. Don’t scrimp on this cost. If not it will come back to bite you with a lot more of direct and indirect costs – even loss of your business reputation and customer base. Pickups should be often, regular and consistent. Make sure that your staff takes out the garbage and trash quickly – it should never just sit around, no matter how busy you or your staff is nor how demanding customers or catering clients are at the moment.

Next when designed your kitchen and work areas ensure that cupboards do not go all the way to the ground. Less hiding spaces for pests this way. Pests can also work their way into your building via open delivery areas – the scents of your wonderful food and its ingredients will carry far. Close doors when not in use – even in summer heat. If pests do manage to wander in – then a live trap in those areas can take care of the problem or problems for you. Along with these precautions standing water should be drained. Even the dish washer base pool should be drained on a regular basis to reduce humidity – and those cockroaches that enjoy moisture – in your kitchen areas. Along with this concern make sure that drains and pipes themselves are not plugged with debris. A plumber may need to be called to use an auger to clean up the blockage that reduced flow in pipes from time to time.

Along with these procedures are other areas in a restaurant, banquet hall, wedding reception area, café or hotel that require due diligence. Watch the opening where the soda dispenser gun sits. Covered with sugar residue from many sodas poured the soda dispenser gun can serve as an attractant to fruit flies. Once fruit flies have found a home, bred and flourished it can be most difficult to get rid of these pests fully. As well it most unsettling to many customers to see a prolific band of flies buzzing in your establishment. In addition the areas around and behind coolers themselves are areas that deserve extra attention when it comes to both cleaning on a regular basis and inspection as well.

If these basic procedures and attention to detail are followed your food service or hospitality business – be it hotel , caterer or restaurant , will both create and maintain a high caliber and standard of cleanliness that will both attract new customers to your hotel or eaters and as well maintain your present customer base.