12 Important Tips to Rent a Commercial Kitchen

Are you planning to start your food business and thinking about where to cook? Don’t worry; you can rent a commercial kitchen with space, utensils, storage, and other facilities to fulfill your business needs. So, you will be able to prepare food in time, maintaining the desired quality and safety measures.

The Commercial Kitchen Equipment manufacturing industry market in the United States alone as per this report reached a volume of $4 billion in the year 2019. The demand for commercial kitchens is on the rise and is expected to grow in the coming days.

First of all, let us simply know what is a commercial kitchen.

What is a Commercial Kitchen?

Commercial kitchens and commissaries are professionally designed and managed facilities for cooking food. It has the required licenses to prepare and store food. Food truck owners, bakers, independent chefs, and others rent commercial kitchens or commissaries.

Read: How To Start A Mobile Food Truck Business

Before you go to consider the tips to rent a commercial kitchen, you have to carefully think of your need and profit structure. Carefully calculate how much space and time your business will likely need.

Then comes, how much production volume will get you a profit, and how much kitchen space and time you’ll need for that production volume. Now, judge how much of your profit can you spend on renting a commercial kitchen. Now that you are ready to rent a commercial kitchen, you must consider a few points. Let us know them one by one.

Here are the 12 Tips to Rent a Commercial Kitchen

 1. Assess your Needs

Make sure what kind of kitchen you need. If your volume is large, you can go for a monthly rental to have access to the kitchen anytime and every time. If you need the kitchen for a specific time daily or weekly, you can rent the kitchen on an hourly basis. In that case, you will be able to use the kitchen during that specific time.

Suggested Read: How To Open A Restaurant

2. Gadgets and Utensils

Depending on the nature of your business, you will need specific gadgets and utensils like ovens for bakeries, chilled and dry storage, and others. Before you rent a commercial kitchen, carefully see that it caters to all the requirements of your business.

3. Rental Formalities

Before deciding upon the kitchen you want to rent, ask the owner about rental requirements, the required insurance level, the charge per hour, available appliances and storage materials, and whether the space is shared or dedicated.

4. Legal Documents to Rent a Commercial kitchen

To rent a commercial kitchen, you need your business license, liability insurance, and food handler’s certificate from the local health department. These documents enable you to apply for all the necessary items you need to rent your commercial kitchen. Your commercial kitchen rent agreement should assure that you can set up your food business there without any difficulty.

5. Check the History of the Selected Commercial Kitchen

Before entering into a contract to rent a commercial kitchen, carefully scrutinize its legal history and standards. If the health department often shuts down the commercial kitchen your business may suffer in many ways. First, you’ll have to stop operations if the kitchen is shut down. Second, association with a kitchen of questionable repute can damage your goodwill and image, which will be difficult for you to recover.

6. Cleaning and Disposal Facilities

Carefully check the cleaning and disposal facilities before you rent a commercial kitchen. If your kind of food requires a lot of oil and grease, you need proper and safe cleaning and disposal of the materials. Also, see whether the kitchen has recycling and dumpster facilities. These are very essential for safety as well as the quality of the food you cook.

7. Check Yourself

Before you rent a commercial kitchen, take an exhaustive tour of the space you want to rent. Check the brand and quality of the equipment, and the storage and labeling facilities offered, and judge whether it suits your needs or not. You can take the help of many online portals where modern commercial kitchen facilities are available.

8. Location of the Commercial Kitchen

The location of the commercial kitchen is a very important aspect of its success and acceptability. Before you rent one such kitchen, check out whether the location suits your business needs or not. If you are in a catering business, check out that the place is not far off and conveniently located to deliver the food.

9. Arrangement and Space Planning

To rent a commercial kitchen where there is a number of spaces available to different people at different time slots, check the space planning and the comfort index. It should be well arranged so that people do not bump into each other. Apart from it, there should be maximum utilization of space.

10. Ergonomics in commercial kitchen planning

Look for ergonomics in the planning of the commercial kitchen you are going to rent. An ergonomically designed commercial kitchen is one where you can stand in one spot and do all the work with minimal bending, reaching, walking, or turning. This also decreases the amount of injury, discomfort, and fatigue in the kitchen.

11. Equipment and Facilities

Commercial kitchens offer a number of equipment and facilities for different kinds of food being cooked. Let us have a look at the items and facilities.

The List of Main Kitchen Equipment is as follows:

• Refer/Prep Station
• Freezer/Prep station
• Shelving
• Hand Sink
• 3‐Compartment Sink
• Prep Sink
• Tilt Kettle ‐ 12 gallon
• Tilt Kettle ‐ 40 gallon
• Stand Mixer ‐ 30 qt
• Combi Steamer/Oven
• Gas Convection Oven
• Speed Racks
• 6‐Burner Range Convection Base
• Stock Burner
• Blast Chiller
• Convection Steamer
• Smoker (hot/cold)

Gluten-free Kitchen Details 

• Refer/Prep Station
• Freezer/Prep station
• Shelving
• Hand Sink
• 3‐Compartment Sink
• Prep Sink
• Stand Mixer ‐ 30 qt
• Combi Steamer/Oven
• Gas Convection Oven
• Speed Racks
• 6‐Burner Range Convection Base

Basic Equipment for Confectionary Kitchen 

• Hand Sink
• 3‐Compartment Refer/Prep Station
• Freezer/Prep station
• Shelving Sink
• Prep Sink
• Induction Burners
• Chocolate Tempering Machine
• Granite Counter

In addition, you must the storage options for the commercial kitchen to be hired. Broadly, there are three types of storage you will find. They are dry storage, cold storage, and freezer storage.

Many renowned commercial kitchens offer other facilities like a business center with facilities of free Wi-Fi, printer and copier, locker, and retail facilities for selling at on-site markets as well as hosting classes and dinners. Consultation services include recipe development, menu item ideation, labeling or packaging, PR, etc.

12. Rent Structure

In the case of commercial kitchens, the peak hour is considered to be 6 AM to 10 PM and the non-pick hour is 10 PM to 6 AM. Most of the kitchens require a security deposit. The hourly rate ranges between $10 and $30 per hour.

The monthly rent starts from $300 to a thousand dollars. So, you have to decide your slot according to your needs and volume of business. So, carefully go through these tips and decide on how to move ahead to rent a commercial kitchen.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do commercial kitchen rentals work?

You can rent out your commercial kitchen on an hourly or daily basis. Some owners also charge a fixed subscription rate.

What does a commercial kitchen need?

Some of the popular kitchen items for your commercial kitchen are benches, storage space, cookware, crockeries, exhaust canopies, hoods, fans, and many more.

How much does building a commercial kitchen cost?

The investment will vary as per the size and kitchen equipment leased. However, the cost of building a commercial kitchen on an average small scale will be in the range of $5,00,000 to $7,50,000.

Can I rent a commercial kitchen part-time or on an hourly basis?

Yes, many commercial kitchens offer flexible rental options, including part-time or hourly rates. This allows businesses with varying needs to access the kitchen space without committing to a full-time lease.

Are utilities usually included in the rental cost?

This can vary depending on the agreement. Some commercial kitchen rentals include utilities in the overall cost, while others may require tenants to cover utility expenses separately. Clarify this with the landlord or facility management before finalizing the lease.

Is insurance coverage necessary when renting a commercial kitchen?

It is highly recommended to have insurance coverage for your business when renting a commercial kitchen. This helps protect your business from liability in case of accidents, damages, or other unforeseen incidents. Consult with an insurance professional to determine the appropriate coverage for your specific needs.