Tips for caring for your restaurant's cutlery.

The cutlery you use in your restaurant is one of the first things your customers see. If it is stained or dull, it will undoubtedly create a bad impression and could drive customers away from your establishment. Therefore, it is very important to keep your cutlery clean and shiny.

In this post, we want to give you some guidelines that will help you care for the large volume of cutlery in your restaurant.

As with any other item in use, cutlery needs special treatment to prolong its useful life and ensure that when it is washed, it is as clean as when it was purchased. To help preserve the life of your cutlery, there are a number of steps you can take.

Stains on cutlery.

Once cutlery has been used, it should never be left for a long time with food on it. Cutlery should be washed or rinsed immediately after use, as prolonged contact with certain foods such as salt, eggs, acidic fruits, and vinegars can cause stains and color marks. These foods attack stainless steel and can permanently damage the surface, dulling the shine and causing your cutlery to lose its luster. Very hot grease, fats or meat juices can sometimes leave stubborn rainbow-colored stains on stainless steel; again, this does not mean there is any problem with the product, the cutlery will be as good as new after the stain has been removed.

Pre-soaking cutlery.

To prevent dirt from remaining on cutlery for too long, make sure to rinse cutlery immediately after use with a pre-rinse unit, a sponge, or a rubber scraper. Never use metal scouring pads, as they can scratch cutlery.

The pre-soaking process should last between 10 and 20 minutes, and never leave cutlery to soak overnight. Don't forget to change your pre-soak solution frequently.

Washing cutlery.

After pre-soaking the cutlery, load the dishwasher's cutlery cylinder with the handles of spoons, the tines of forks, and the blades of knives facing down, and always wash vertically. Never overload the wash baskets with cutlery. If you leave adequate space between cutlery during the wash cycle, you will get cleaner cutlery. Washing temperatures should be above 135 degrees, as lower temperatures can attack the metal.

Keep in mind the type of detergent you choose. Certain detergents containing bleach or intense chlorination can erode the protective layer of your cutlery. Avoid detergents with lemon or orange additives, as they can cause corrosion of your stainless steel. Remember to maintain adequate levels of rinse aid and salt.

Never mix stainless steel cutlery and silver-plated cutlery in the same dishwasher basket, as this can corrode the steel.

Drying and polishing cutlery.

To maintain the shine of stainless steel cutlery, remember to polish it. Polishing involves removing surface water from the cutlery with a soft cloth after washing. If, due to unforeseen circumstances, the water is allowed to dry on the cutlery, re-wet the cutlery and polish immediately.

This laborious task can be reduced thanks to cutlery polishers that dry, polish, and remove limescale from cutlery, both stainless steel and silver, after washing. Regular use of our polishers significantly reduces cutlery oxidation and gives it a better appearance, shine, and visible polish.

Frucosol's cutlery polishers are a significant innovation in the field of catering equipment that include a germicidal ultraviolet lamp, which will help you provide a service with greater hygiene and quality.

Cutlery storage.

Cutlery should be stored away from the cooking area in a dry place. Choose vertical cutlery cylinders or horizontal cutlery containers with separate compartments to store types of cutlery together. Avoid mixing different types of metal in one storage compartment.

Tips for restoring cutlery.

If your cutlery is tarnishing or discolored, you can solve this in several ways. One way is to use a stainless steel cleaner and a microfiber cloth and rub the cutlery. Then, with a clean rag, wipe off the cleaner, in the same way you would polish silver. This helps restore the shine and removes small scratches from the cutlery.

Another way is to use olive oil as an alternative to chemical cleaners. You apply the olive oil to the cutlery and then wipe off all the excess oil when you're done.