What Should I Consider When Shopping for a Food Prep Table?

The first thing to consider is your menu and the types of foods you’re preparing. A refrigerated food prep table can save a lot of time when you're making made-to-order items like sandwiches, salads, or pizzas. The advantage of a refrigerated prep table or worktop refrigerator is that you can prepare the individual ingredients in advance and have everything readily available when assembling dishes. By using a prep table, you can reduce labor costs and boost productivity by keeping all the ingredients in one place, along with backup supplies stored in the cold cabinet. This method is incredibly efficient. However, this solution works best if you're making a variety of dishes from a set list of ingredients that you can easily store in the prep table.

What's the Difference Between a Pizza Table and a Sandwich Table?

Pizza tables are ideal for making pizzas because they have a deeper work surface—typically around 20 inches deep—to accommodate larger items like pizzas. Additionally, pizza tables often feature a raised rail above the prep area. This elevated, angled rail allows the pizza chef to access various ingredients more easily without stretching or moving around too much, which speeds up the assembly process and increases output. On the other hand, sandwich or salad prep tables usually have a narrower work surface, ranging from 10 to 12 inches deep. Extra depth isn't necessary for preparing sandwiches or salads.

How Do I Determine the Best Pan Capacity?

Reviewing your menu will help you decide on the right pan capacity for your setup. You'll also want to consider the available space in your kitchen. The smallest prep table size is typically 27 inches wide, and these models usually hold six sixth-size pans. Most refrigerated prep tables are designed to fit standard-sized food pans, with sixth-size being the most common. Your prep table will often come with the pans included. The dividers between the pans are usually adjustable, allowing you to swap out for different pan sizes depending on how frequently certain ingredients are used.

What's the Difference Between Cold Wall and Forced-Air Cooling?

A cold wall system uses an evaporator where tubes are directly embedded into the interior walls of the unit, ensuring even cooling across the walls. This type of cooling system is particularly well-suited for pizza tables since it excels at keeping heavy, dense ingredients like cheese, meat, and sauce at safe temperatures. It's also commonly found in raised rail systems. In contrast, forced-air systems blow cooled air directly over the food pans to maintain their temperature. You’ll see this type of system on salad and sandwich prep tables, where the ingredients might dry out if left sitting for too long.

What Do I Need to Know About Exhaust and Intake?

Like most commercial restaurant equipment, refrigerated prep tables require proper ventilation to ensure they remain cool during extended use. The placement of the intake and exhaust vents varies between models, even within the same brand. Knowing where you plan to position your prep table in the kitchen is essential for determining where the intake and exhaust vents should be located. While it's common to have these vents at the back of the unit, if the table will be placed in a tight space or against a wall where airflow could be obstructed, it’s better to have the vents at the front of the unit.

Cook’s offers refrigerated prep tables from several manufacturers, including FSE, True, and Norlake. We can help you choose the best refrigerated prep table for your foodservice operation.