By Anna Skyttä
”Recipe and ingredient databases establish the foundation for efficient kitchen management”. This is a quote from Certified Master Chef Ron DeSantis, from one of his newsletters. Once that foundation is in place, the kitchen needs to have the actual ingredients on hand in order to cook food according to the recipes. And in more detail, for you to be able to cook the needed amount of food at the time expected, the right amount of ingredients needs to be on hand at the right time. Seems obvious at this point: The ingredients and the solution accordingly can be found in the restaurant inventory. Might sound simple. You just need to order the ingredients needed at the right time. Could it be so simple?
Ordering Ingredients Requires Work On The Background
The answer to the previous question is basically yes. On the other hand, you could say that in a restaurant kitchen ordering ingredients already for one recipe requires work on the background. And the work required grows along with the amount of menu options to be prepared. First of all, you need to know what to order and how much. The planned quantity of portions along with the recipes effect on that. Secondly, before making the order it would be good to know what ingredients you already have in the food inventory and how much there is. In addition to these you need to take the supplier specific delivery times for different ingredients into consideration. And in addition to these… even more details could be added into this list. So what might sound simple at first, turns out to be quite complex in the end.
There’s a Lot Of Background Information Related To Ingredients
So the ingredients build the restaurant inventory. Again, sounds simple. However, there’s a lot of background information related to the ingredients. Logistical information includes the size of the package, the product code, the bar code, the price and the supplier. Going further, information on the inventory balance is linked into these and it is needed for example for the production. The quantities determine the value of the food inventory, as well, which nearly without exception is significant information regardless of the nature of the food service operation. Other, very essential product related information includes ingredients, allergens, and nutrition facts.
How do you then manage all this information, and along with that the process which might sound simple at first, but which requires several details to be taken into consideration in the end? The best tool for this job is a kitchen system that keeps all the previously mentioned information safe, and that in addition to that works on that information for you.
A System Helps You Manage Restaurant Inventory And Procurement
JAMIX Kitchen Intelligence System enables you to manage your food inventory and procurement in addition to recipes and menus. Best of all, all the information is linked within the system, and it utilizes the information automatically in several functions. When the suppliers’ product information can be found in the system, it automatically calculates costs and margins for the recipes. The system utilizes the product information also when calculating ingredient needs based on the menu or the production sheet. So it creates a finished shopping list for you, and you can then send it as a purchase order to your supplier – electronically and directly from the system.
The system provides you the general view into your food inventory without an effort. You can easily register information into the system on both delivered items, as well as on items withdrawn from the inventory. JAMIX Kitchen Intelligence System can be integrated with your point of sale system, and the inventory balance will be updated automatically and in real time when menu items are sold. You can also track wastage related to your food inventory so that you know how much waste is generated and for what reasons. With the previously mentioned actions you can keep your inventory balances up-to-date in the system. This way you don’t have to physically go to the food inventory to check up on things.
Even if you register food deliveries and withdrawals systematically into the system, you also need to take inventory periodically. Taking inventory is especially easy with the Mobile application related to JAMIX Kitchen Intelligence System. You can register quantities directly into the application on a mobile device which you can carry with you in the store room.
Operation Runs, When Restaurant Inventory And Procurement Are In Control
Whether you work in a full service restaurant where the same recipes are utilized every day, or in food services where the menu changes every day – along with the ingredient database and the recipes, the food inventory and the control of it ensure smooth production in the kitchen. A kitchen system that manages all of that is a crucial tool for food service operators regardless of size or type.
