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Restaurant Crockery & Tableware Buying Guide

13 Jan 2021, 4:31 PM

Restaurant Crockery & tableware
buying guide

Whether you're a brand new restaurant or a restaurant looking for a bit of a pick-me-up as the year comes to a close, ensuring that you have high-quality restaurant crockery and restaurant cutlery is important for the image that your establishment gives off. With such a huge range of styles, colours and materials available to choose from, the ball really is in your court and you can use your crockery choices as an opportunity to truly express your restaurant's brand. Your customers will make their judgements on whether they have had a positive experience at your restaurant by considering several factors - and the dishes on which their food was served and the method in which they were served it is definitely up there with some of the most vitally important.

What crockery do I need to open a restaurant?

If you're new to the restaurant business, you will need to ensure you have enough crockery - in terms of quantity and variation - to operate on a commercial level. You will need serving platters, side plates, dinner places, dessert plates or dishes and bowls as standard, as well as cappuccino cups and plates, mugs and other drinks crockery if you serve hot beverages on your menu. Restaurants go through crockery like it's going out of fashion - ensure you have more than enough to cover the tables you could fill on a busy day and double that; plus spares for when you inevitably drop and smash one. No one wants to be left waiting around for the dishwasher to finish its run.

Contemporary or classic vibe?

The material you choose can help you here.

If your restaurant is contemporarily fitted, then the crockery style you choose should be in line with the style of the fittings - you don't want crockery that doesn't give off the same image as the environment you're seating your guests in. This is where texture and material can come into play - consider your audience and the appearance you want to put across before deciding on the substance of your crockery. Restaurant crockery that is made up of wood or slate gives off a contemporary vibe, such as our Utopia crockery, whereas porcelain and layered displays are more indicative of a more upmarket dining venue. You also need to consider the longevity of the materials you choose - you don't want materials that are going to damage easily or need replacing frequently - pay for the quality you anticipate you will need. Consider also whether the dishes are dishwasher safe - working in a fast-paced environment such as a restaurant requires constant turnaround of clean crockery so purchasing materials that aren't dishwasher safe can be a hindrance.

Match the colour of your crockery with your restaurant's decor

If you've painstakingly put together a colour palette for your restaurant's decor and chosen your furnishings to align perfectly with your brand image - you don't want to throw all that hard work away by choosing coloured crockery that clashes with its surroundings. Earthy tones add a subtle sophistication to your dining area, such as those in our Artisan crockery range, whilst bold colours show your brand's more adventurous side - just make sure they don't take away from the effort you've put in elsewhere in the restaurant. Your colour scheme can be vitally important across all aspects of your business - in marketing campaigns, in the furnishings within the restaurant and with the colours your customers identify you with. Ensure that you are consistent as far as you can be.

Looking to add a bit of pizzaz? Choose patterned crockery

In the same way that colour can add a little bit of je ne sais quoi, choosing patterned crockery like our Kitchencraft crockery can add character to your brand and allow you to stand out from a saturated crowd. Whether you're more inclined towards Art Deco or floral prints, there's patterned crockery sets out there for everyone. Want to be even more out there? Mix and match patterns and designs to truly explore your style and give your brand a certain edge to it - who wants to be plain and simple in this day and age?

Price matters

Choosing the right crockery isn't just about considering all of the above - at the end of the day, a business needs to also consider its outgoings - with things like crockery, whether that be plates, bowls or drinking mugs, much more likely to be broken in the hospitality industry. You want to ensure that you spend enough on your restaurant crockery to ensure its durability and longevity - but not enough that you wince every time a plate is broken or chipped and needs replacing. Quality is vitally important - but it's also important to be affordable and not out-price yourself when the inevitable happens and you have to purchase replacement crockery. Price up several different options and get recommendations where you're able to - your business matters and your customers deserve to see the best side of you.

You may also find our Buying Guide to Restaurant Cutlery helpful.


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