When going out to eat, it’s all about the experience. From the food to the service, customers take into consideration many things when choosing a restaurant. One of the most important factors diners think of is cleanliness. With the pandemic affecting our lives for the past 2 years, people gradually became more aware of the hygiene and sanitation of commercial spaces. That’s why cleaning is a must procedure however, your in-house restaurant cleaners might not be enough.

Reports show that more and more restaurants are being forced to close by health inspectors and this is not because of COVID. It is because the in-house cleaning crew is not cleaning as much as you think they might be. There are some cleaning procedures that they do not provide, unlike professional cleaning companies. In-house cleaning services only provide the basic cleaning necessities such as sweeping, dusting, and vacuuming floors, wiping down surfaces in the bathroom and kitchen, emptying trash cans, and scrubbing sinks and toilets. However, basic sweeping and mopping are not enough to achieve 100% safety in your restaurant. 

Why is it important for a restaurant to be clean?

Aside from prioritizing serving you the most delicious food you’ve ever tasted, restaurants also prioritize food safety. Food safety refers to how food is handled, prepared, and stored so as to minimize the risk of foodborne illness. A food-borne disease outbreak is the emergence of two or more cases of a comparable illness brought on by consuming a common meal. Food safety regulations are essential to protect consumer health, extend the shelf life of your food goods, and provide effective hazard management procedures. 

When we say food safety it also includes the proper cleaning protocols in the restaurant. We are sure that entering a restaurant full of flies and reeks makes you step out as soon as you step in. No diner wants to be worried that the servers and cooks handling their food are covered in germs. Food safety problems are damaging to large chains and especially to local businesses whose reputations can become greatly damaged by a food safety scandal. Regular and thorough cleaning of the kitchen and dining area reduces pathogens from spreading to consumers.

How often should a restaurant be cleaned?

A restaurant has 2 different main areas, the service, and production areas. Service area refers to where the customers are often such as the dining area while production area refers to where employees are often such as the kitchen. We know you must be wondering how restaurants clean their dining area and kitchen. These main areas are to be cleaned and sanitized but they are not cleaned and sanitized the same way and time.

Service Area

This area is the place that customers always see and come into contact with. After each visitor, clean and sanitize the tables and chairs to help foster a healthy environment. Throughout the day, you should clean high-traffic areas like door handles and handrails to avoid any outbreak that might happen. 

At the end of the day, sweep, mop, or vacuum the floors to remove crumbs and keep the restaurant tidy. Sanitize areas that don’t have as much touch as dining tables, such as takeaway counters. You should also clean windows and glass on doors at least once a day to keep your business looking tidy. Windows that sparkle demonstrates to customers that you take the time to keep everything tidy. Additionally, a daily deep clean of the restrooms will improve the dining experience for customers.

Production Area

This area is where food is being prepared so extra caution should be practiced to avoid food contamination. Kitchen counters and other surfaces that come into contact with food should be cleaned often by your workers. After every usage, wash and disinfect kitchen and dining utensils, plates, and other small gadgets like blenders. Cooking appliances including stoves, ovens, and fryers should be sterilized at least once per week or more frequently as needed. Another factor that needs to be regularly cleaned inside the production area is the restaurant drain since it encounters a lot of food particles every business day. If not cleaned it would pose a serious problems such as bad odor and being clogged. Restaurant drain cleaning is advised to be done once every three months to avoid these problems to occur. 

How do you run a clean restaurant?

Now that you are aware of the strict health and safety regulations your restaurant must adhere to and the limitations of your in-house cleaning staff, you must put in place particular procedures for keeping your restaurant clean and operating efficiently throughout the day.

Create a safe environment for your customers and employees. 

Aside from regular cleaning, you may also provide PPE to your employees such as gloves, hand sanitizers, and hand washing stations. 

Making a cleaning schedule makes it simpler to keep your restaurant clean from the back to the front. 

Organize yourself and your staff to keep a clean, safe environment for guests that complies with restaurant standards. You can divide the jobs on your cleaning plan between those that need to be done repeatedly throughout the day and those that can be completed once a day or once a week.

Maintaining food safety procedures is one of the most important aspects of running a clean, healthy business. 

By making sure clients eat secure and healthful meals, you’ll stop the spread of any diseases. Your food safety protocols may involve the following actions asking your employees to wash their hands regularly, immediately cleaning used kitchen utensils (cutlery, cutting board, knife, etc.), separating utensils used for raw meat, washing food ingredients thoroughly, and cooking food at right temperatures. 

Establishing a regular cleaning program to guarantee that your restaurant is constantly cleaned and sanitized is crucial. This is one of your responsibilities as a restaurant owner. You owe it to your customers and employees to ensure that your restaurant is taking all reasonable precautions to maintain both its health and its reputation. Any surfaces that customers may touch, such as doors, light switches, and beverage stations, should receive additional attention. If your internal personnel is ill-equipped to do these cleanings, think about arranging for daily cleanings by a reputable cleaning company.

At Burgos Cleaning, we ensure that your business establishment office is in top condition, create a comfortable working environment, and pass all health and safety standards. We offer our services in Fairfield, Hartford, and Litchfield County Connecticut, and provide numerous office cleaning services on the commercial level from small businesses to big buildings and complexes. Contact us now to avail the best office cleaning services in town!