Hot food displays are common practice across most food service establishments. But they are more than just a visual feast to entice customers, they can impact customer satisfaction and overall sales and hygiene stats. Keeping your hot food display clean is key, but there are so many more tips and tricks in order to achieve the most mouthwatering display to entice customers in from the cold and convince them to sit and enjoy your carefully crafted culinary creations.

Hot Food Displays

If you want to provide customers with a visual look at hot food, take a look at our heated merchandisers. These powerful appliances keep your food warm while showcasing them to potential customers. With clear glass and plastic panels, these merchandisers allow your heated food to shine while still remaining at the ideal serving temperature. From pizzas to pastries these appliances can be used in a wide range of establishments.

Hot Display Food Safety

When it comes to the serving and display of food, there are strict rules to prevent bad food from being served. The Food Standards Agency (FSA) sets the danger zone between 8 °C and 63°C. This is the range you want to keep your food out of, if the food falls into this range it can quickly become spoiled or rotten and unfit to serve to customers. We have a range of temperature probes and digital thermometers to monitor your food's temperatures easily.

Hot food must be kept at a temperature of 63°C or above. Food can be held at this temperature for up to 2 hours. If food is taken out of hot holding for display, it must be reheated until it is steaming hot before being put back. If food is not used within 2 hours, it must be chilled down as quickly as possible to 8°C or below. Hot food should be cooled to the lowest temperature within 90 minutes. Following these heat rules can help minimise food waste and save money in the long run.

4Cs of Food Hygiene

It’s also important to remember the 4Cs of food hygiene when serving food. The four main things to remember are the 4Cs. These are:

• Cleaning. You should clean and disinfect food areas and equipment between different tasks and not let food waste build-up.
• Cooking. This varies depending on what you are cooking, but the standard advice is to cook food until it has reached a core temperature of 70°C for 2 minutes.
• Chilling. Chilling food properly helps to stop harmful bacteria from growing.
• Cross-contamination. Prevent food from harmful cross-contamination, especially when it comes to raw food.

Cleanliness Is Key

You must keep your display clean at all times, even during busy rush hours when your service staff are busy. For heated merchandisers keeping the plastic/glass clean allows your customers to view potential food. Window scrapers and squeegees are a great way to carefully keep these surfaces clean and free from finger marks and other dirt and grime. Cloths are also a great way to quickly wipe down the exterior and interior panels, keeping your culinary creations sparkling from behind the glass. General cleaners keep the area clean from germs and bacteria and can be easily sprayed and wiped down between busy periods and at the end of the day or shift.

A key part of hot food displays is knowing when to dispose of food. As previously explained, hot food can only be kept at specific temperatures for a certain period of time. Afterwards, the food needs to be disposed of before it pollutes other fresh food. We have plenty of waste management options, from refuse sacks for food to pedal bins and push bins. Keeping waste properly disposed of reduces the risk of pest infestation and massively improves customers first impressions of your food display. Colour-coded guides can be used for day-by-day labelling as well for easy identification of food past its sell-by date.

Clear Labelling & Lighting

Labelling your food makes it much easier for customers to understand what they want. It also saves your staff re-explaining the food on offer multiple times a day, promoting a prompt and quick service. PVC tickets are an ideal solution for quickly labelling food items. Black PVC Tickets allow you to write information on them, such as prices and the names of food being shown. They would make a great addition to bakeries, cafes, delis and other businesses where food is displayed fresh every day. Each ticket measures 50 x 90mm, with plenty of room to write. They come in a pack of 30, which is enough for even the busiest of locations. These tickets are also available in white.

Providing customers with information on their dietary requirements has become increasingly important in recent years. The 25mm round Suitable for Vegetarians label lets customers and guests know what food is vegetarian-friendly and gives customers peace of mind when it comes to their food consumption choices. Also, having an allergen advice sign helps to prevent accidental reactions to unknown food. These signs remind customers to check and ask about allergen information before ordering. Similarly, the Self-Adhesive Halal Food Sign clearly labels Halal food in both English and Arabic. 

Heat lamps are an ideal solution for keeping dishes warm without drying them out. These heat lamps harness the power of radiant heat to keep your dishes at optimal temperatures, ensuring that every bite is served warm. This is the perfect solution to enhance your culinary presentation and maintain the ideal serving conditions. The baselite lamps are especially stylish and a great piece for establishments looking for a decoration piece as well as something to keep food warm.

Culinary Display With Cooksmill

Hot food displays are so much more than simply warming food. They show off your delicious goods and entice customers in, making them key components in succeeding. Shop everything you need with Cooksmill, and enjoy free delivery on large orders over £60 (excluding VAT). Elevate your food displays and watch your customer base grow!