Food Service Temperature in Hotel Kitchen
When it comes to food safety in the kitchen and F&B production, maintaining the correct food service temperature is crucial. This is because harmful bacteria can grow in food that is not stored or cooked at the right temperature, which can lead to food-borne illnesses.
The standard food service temperature varies depending on the type of food being prepared and served. For example, cooked meats should be kept at a temperature of at least 63°C, while hot dishes like soups and stews should be kept at a minimum of 60°C.
On the other hand, cold foods like salads should be kept at a temperature of 5°C or below, while perishable items like milk and dairy products should be stored at the same temperature.
It is important for kitchen and F&B production staff to be aware of these temperature guidelines and to use thermometers to regularly check the temperatures of food items. By doing so, they can ensure that the food they serve is safe and free from harmful bacteria.
Temperatures of all hot and cold foods are taken before the service to ensure that foods are maintained at appropriate temperatures and to ensure the safety of food served to customers.
The Executive Chef and the Sous Chef are responsible for ensuring that the foods are served at the appropriate temperature at all times. The hotel management should develop and implement proper written Kitchen SOP’s to ensure the same is implemented correctly throughout all the food preparation outlets.
Food Service Temperature Standard Procedures:
- All kitchen employees or chefs who are responsible for setting up the plates and serving food must follow these procedures.
- Always use a calibrated thermometer to take the temperatures of food products at the beginning of service.
- Before using the thermometer of any food item always wipe the thermometer stem with a new alcohol wipe.
- Take temperatures of all hot potentially hazardous foods as soon as they are ready for service.
- Take the temperature of all cold potentially hazardous foods as soon as they are ready for service.
- Record all temperatures on the food and beverage service temperature Log and sign them promptly.
- Make sure that all temperatures are within the critical limits.
- For hot foods, the temperature should be above 57º CelsiusCelsius - The thermometric scale on which 0� Celsius is the freezing point and 100� Celsius is t....
- For cold foods, the temperature should be below 5º Celsius.
- In case hot foods are below 57º Celsius, then they must be heated to above 74º Celsius before service.
- In case cold foods are above 5º Celsius, then they must be chilled to below 5º Celsius.
- In case more than four hours have elapsed since the last documentation of cold food items temperature, then the same should be discarded and not served to the guest.
Training Summary questions:
Q1. What is the purpose of this SOP?
Q2. Who is responsible to check and monitor the food temperature before serving?
Q3. What is the serving temperature for Hot Foods?
Q4. What is the serving temperature for Cold Foods?
Q5. What needs to be done if the temperature is not monitored for cold foods for more than 4 hours?
Patreon Only SOP Download
SOP Number: Kitchen / F&B Production SOP – 14 Department: Kitchen / Food Production - Food Service Temperature Date Issued: 5-Nov-2018 Time to Train: 30 Minutes
