We all know that dishwashing is not an easy task to do even at homes. But in restaurants, there is a lot more going on and being a dishwasher in a restaurant is even more difficult and challenging.
Dishwashing in a restaurant needs a lot of patience and concentration and the dishes should be washed properly as later on; a different person has to eat again on those same dishes. So, there is a big responsibility on the dishwashers in a restaurant.
Being a dishwasher in a restaurant
If you are a dishwasher, then you have to encounter a lot of things in a restaurant. It includes a huge pile of never-ending dishes, big pots and pans, the stained and greasy cookware, clogged sink, and drains. Getting drenched in water with continuous washing of dishes, fatigue and numbness in the feet because of the same posture and continuous standing are some of the problems.
What does a dishwasher do at a restaurant?
They provide clean dishes for the chefs and customers. There are all kind of dishes in a restaurant; from cutlery to big cookware. We all know that there are many stubborn stains on dishes which come up while cooking different kinds of food. The best examples would be baking, frying, pressure cooker, etc. It takes a hell lot of time to wash a pressure cooker and trays and pans used for baking than simple plates.
Dishwashers are always the last ones to leave the restaurant. And they are responsible to keep the dishes clean and hygienic and it needs a lot of effort as well as time to do that properly.
Commercial dishwashers still need assistance
These days, almost all the restaurants have commercial dishwashers for washing dishes, but it does not bring an end to the work of a dishwasher. A dishwasher still needs to place the rack in and out of the commercial dishwashers. And even before that, most of the dishes need a pre-rinsing or pre-scrubbing so that the commercial dishwasher can clean them properly without leaving any stain.
Also, the commercial dishwashers do not have enough space for large pots and pans, and you have to wash them yourself. For best working of a commercial dishwasher, you must keep all the leftover food particles to get inside it as it will block the drainage system of a dishwasher and it will not clean the dishes anymore.
So, even after the inclusion of commercial dishwashers in restaurants, a dishwasher expert is required and has quite an important job.
13 efficient tips on being a dishwasher in a restaurant
Dishwashing is a hectic job and takes a lot of time and effort of a person to do it properly. If you follow the tips we have collected and mentioned below, then you can save a lot of your time as well as effort as a dishwasher. Following are the tips which you can apply to wash the dishes fast and efficiently.
1. Use of a proper detergent
The right kind of detergent is always very important for either washing dishes in a dishwasher, or by hand. If it takes longer to remove the grease from the dishes by hands or from the commercial dishwasher, then you might need to change the detergent.
There is a wide range of detergents from which you can choose according to the dishwasher you have in the restaurant. Ask your manager to provide you with the suitable dishwasher and this will save you a lot of time and energy.
2. Hard water
Hard water leaves a thin cloudy film on the dishes after a wash as it contains a high amount of magnesium and potassium which leave mineral deposits on the dishes. There are many solutions to this problem.
You can use rinse-aid and it will lower down the effect of those minerals. You can also use hot water for lowering down the effect of hard water on the dishes. The other solution is to use a rinse-aid along with the detergent.
3. Gloves and apron
A restaurant typically has a lot of dishes to wash, and long courses of washing dishes with hands can make the skin of your hands pale, dry and wrinkly, and furthermore, you can get drenched in the water.
In order to prevent that from happening, you should always wear gloves and apron for washing dishes. It will keep the moisture of your hands and will keep your skin wrinkle-free. Also, your clothes will remain dry even after hours of dishwashing.
4. Dry dishes and vacant rack
Another tip to keep your work easy and to save your time is to dry the dishes after a few minutes of washing them. Do not leave them for air drying as it will take a lot of time and your rack will not be empty for the next dishes.
Also, if you keep on washing the dishes and put the new wet ones on top of them, then this will; firstly, make a mountain of dishes on the rack, and secondly, it will be very hard to handle those dishes afterwards and there will be no space left on the rack for the next dishes.
So, drying dishes with hand should be the priority after washing them. This will keep the rack empty and you can wash the next shift without worrying about the space for where to put them. you can use a towel or paper towel for this.
5. Warm water
We all know that warm water makes it easier to wash those stubborn stains and spots that are a lot more common in restaurants than at homes. Restaurant cooking involves high flame cooking mostly. There are more chances of sticky stubborn stains to form with high flames at a restaurant than with low flames at home.
Also in restaurants, the food chefs cook according to the servings that are ordered by the customer and most of the time, they do not completely wash the pans for the same next dish. They just rinse them thoroughly with water and then reuse it for the same dish. This also leads to stubborn stains that are not easy to remove.
Use of hot water will help you to remove the stains easily. The hot water easily removes the grease from the dishes, and it will be easy to wash them afterwards.
6. Silicon brushes
You can use silicon brushes for washing the dishes other than non-stick cookware. They are more hygienic than those scrub pads which have a lot of bacteria in them.
Silicone brushes are easy to clean and that way no bacteria grows on these brushes, but in contrary to this, the scrub pads are not easily cleaned and there are a lot of bacteria present in the holes of those scrub pads which, with the passage of time, grow in those holes and it is not hygienic to use them for washing dishes.
A good restaurant has the most sanitized and hygienic environment, and this is one of the best tips to keep the dishes clean as well as hygienic.
7. Pre-rinsing
Even if your restaurant has a commercial dishwasher for washing dishes, it still needs pre-rinsed dishes to work properly. Otherwise, the dishwasher will need another cycle to fully wash them.
The grease and dry stains do not wash easily and need pre-rinsing before being put in the dishwasher. Even by hands, the best and the most convenient way to wash the dishes is to pre-rinse all of them (with iron scrub for the hard and stubborn stains). This will remove all the stubborn food stains and grease on the dishes and then you can easily wash them with regular brushes.
8. Pre-soaking
As restaurants involves heavy cooking sessions and high flame cooking, the cookware easily gets burned or has hard spots of grease and food stains that do not come off and it takes a lot of time to scrub them off.
The solution to this is pre-soaking them beforehand. In the restaurant, whenever you have these kinds of dishes, just simply pre-soak them in a big tub full of hot water and leave them there for 5-6 minutes. In the meantime, you can finish other things and then washing them will not be a difficult job for you anymore.
9. Washtub
Washtub comes very handy for washing the dishes by hands. Fill a tub with hot water and add some detergent in it. Then put the dishes (as many dishes which can easily be placed in that tub). Then just simply brush or scrub them one by one and rinse them with tap water.
This will allow pre-soaking of all the dishes as you wash them one by one. It will help you a lot and you would be able to wash the dishes in no time. You can also do this in the sink. Just block the water flow and fill the sink with hot water and add some detergent and you are good to go.
10. Use of vinegar
For stubborn and burnt areas of cookware, vinegar always comes in handy. All those stains and spots can be washed in no time without any effort by simply using vinegar.
Take a tub and put a cup of white vinegar in it and then fill it with water. You can place all those dishes with stubborn spots in it and leave them there for some time. Wash all the other dishes in the meantime and then come back to these ones. The vinegar will make it easy to wash them afterwards.
The other way to use vinegar is to make a solution of detergent and vinegar in water. You can then use that solution to wash the dishes. It is very useful and hygienic for washing dishes and it does remove all the stains and spots leaving no smell of vinegar.
11. Use of salt
Another way you can wash the stained dishes or cookware easily and effortlessly is by using salt. Salt is very effective and is a gentle scouring agent. It serves as a catalyst for other ingredients like vinegar, and boosts the cleaning. It also deodorizes the dishes completely.
You can make a paste of salt, detergent and baking soda and use it to wash dishes in regular times. It also cleans the drains and other appliances.
12. Clogged drains
In big restaurants there is cleaning crew to clean the drains and take the garbage out. But in some restaurants, this is also included in the job of a dishwasher. if you keep the drain clean during your working shift then at the end of your shift, there will be no clogged drain and you would not have to clean it (as it will take more time and effort to clean it separately). So make sure that your drain remains clean.
Try to remove all the leftover food prior to washing dishes and rinse them once; this will remove all the remaining junk. After this, check if there is any food debris collected in the sink. Remove it as otherwise it will prevent the food to go into the drain and block it. This will also save your time and you will wash the dishes easily without any extra work afterwards.
13. Safety
Safety should be the priority for anyone in any field of work. There are many sharp items like forks, knives and also sharp chef knives in a restaurant’s kitchen for a dishwasher to wash. If you are a dishwasher, you should keep yourself from getting hurt from all these sharp items.
Do not put the sharp items together with the dishes and wash them separately. So that you can continue your work without any injury.
Final Verdict
Dishwashing is not an easy job to do. And being a dishwasher in a restaurant requires a lot of energy and work. You can follow the above-mentioned simple tips to do your job efficiently and professionally.
This will not only make you finish your job in a considerable less amount of time, but will also keep the dishes clean and hygienic. We hope all the tips we have mentioned here would have been helpful for you.
We have attached a video from YouTube that might be of some help to you.
Happy dishwashing 🙂
