# Prepping during service



## buttersstotch (Feb 18, 2015)

Do you prep during dinner service? At my last position, I concentrated on prep during the lull between lunch and dinner and concentrated solely on tickets during service. At my new position, I'm expected to prep the entire time and plate, fire bread and various appetizers. Have any of you any suggestions or advice on how to keep a cool head?


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## jimyra (Jun 23, 2015)

Approach all tasks with a sense of urgency. Make lists and stay organized.


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## flipflopgirl (Jun 27, 2012)

Depending on what and how much I think I would embrace the action.

Pantry can get a bit slow at times IMO.

mimi


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## neworleanscookj (Nov 22, 2015)

My last position was on the line (Garde manger) and ongoing prep. Multi-timers and checklists clipped to my station helped a lot in the balancing act.

My station was also situated nicely for this system. Front line range, grill and fryer are back to back with back line ranges and ovens. My station was at at end of both so I could monitor the going ons of the line and my stove top and oven prep relatively easily. If you can have any input on your stations positioning, it might help.

Also get really cool with the guys with positions in closest proxy to your's (Mine was grill and dish) Dish used to be responsible for plating desserts as a lot were oven flashed hot pies in the back line ovens. If I was busy plating composed salads (This place threw the book at me on this one. One salad had like seven components, three requiring seasoning, two requiring tossing dressing and one requiring knife work. Prettiest chicken salad EVA! lol) I'd have dish bail me out on pie because they were already cross trained. If I was busy pulling product out the oven or what not, I might ask grill to bail me out on an order for a cold app. A lot of the time grill would just wanna escape the heat anyways and break the burger & sandwich monotony.

Regardless of what's going on for one ticket,* never* allow product to be ruined. One minute long on a app or dessert ticket time is better than a scorched stockpot of cream soup, or 5 pans of burnt coutons, or what have you. Dark roux for a weeks worth of gumbo chef? I'm super-glued to the back line floor for 45 minutes *period*.

Talk to your chef if you have ideas, brainstorm solutions. Streamlining your station's operation should be very important to you both. I always hated coming in behind somebody who CFed everything up because they didn't think ahead.


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## linecook854 (Feb 13, 2013)

buttersstotch said:


> Do you prep during dinner service? At my last position, I concentrated on prep during the lull between lunch and dinner and concentrated solely on tickets during service. At my new position, I'm expected to prep the entire time and plate, fire bread and various appetizers. Have any of you any suggestions or advice on how to keep a cool head?


Could you elaborate a little more on your situation? Are you working garde manger or pantry while prepping pastry?


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## flipflopgirl (Jun 27, 2012)

@NewOrleansCookJ ...now THAT'S how to roll lol.

Punch in...wash hands....then a blur of activity.....

What?

Last ticket already??

That's how we got hooked...adrenaline junkies...the lot of us.

mimi


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## neworleanscookj (Nov 22, 2015)

@flipflopgirl Yeah always feels good being on your toes trying to stay a step ahead, feels like playing speed chess rather than working. *Sigh* alas night breakdown kills that mood, unless your kitchen cranks the radio and busts out the shift drinks a little early /img/vbsmilies/smilies/thumb.gif


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## cheflayne (Aug 21, 2004)

Keep an eye on the big picture. Prioritize. Remember that time accelerates in a stressed mind, 30 seconds feels like 5 minutes. This too shall pass.


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## flipflopgirl (Jun 27, 2012)

NewOrleansCookJ said:


> @flipflopgirl Yeah always feels good being on your toes trying to stay a step ahead, feels like playing speed chess rather than working. *Sigh* alas night breakdown kills that mood, unless your kitchen cranks the radio and busts out the shift drinks a little early /img/vbsmilies/smilies/thumb.gif


I can count on one hand the number of times I played with the BOH....

Usual station ?

Bartender /img/vbsmilies/smilies/wink.gif....

mimi


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## chrisbristol (Feb 16, 2014)

I've worked in a few places where we have had to prep during service. Personally where ever possible I like to keep a separate part of my section for prepping and service. Although this can be difficult in smaller kitchens.


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## doraima3875 (May 3, 2015)

I usually do prep during service since I am in charge of the Garde Manger especially on sauces, dressings, salads and prepping all fruits and vegetables. I do help sometimes like cooking,roasting and steaming veggie entrees, or make other toppings whenever the other staff are serving customers. My station is near the exit of the Flex Grill, and Sandwich and Soup Bars, so they can ask me to replenish, cook or prep food items for them.


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## cotswoldcommis (Dec 1, 2016)

Why would you not do prep during service if you have the time ?? Obviously pick jobs that you can drop if checks come on, also using part of your station for service and another for prep makes sense if you have the space. I’d sooner be doing prep rather than standing around bored out of my mind if it’s quiet.


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## Innocuous Lemon (Apr 29, 2019)

a good head chef will make sure you have a doable workload that pushes you
but isnt anything insane (like dealing with frozen items at a station a good distance from a freezer)

service always comes first, of course. tickets, and not cutting it fine with the space you have to do these tickets

i work in a relatively roomy kitchen so maybe im spoilt in this respect. it helps to make the space that you need as well though, so many people end up running backwards or spreading all over the place and forwards because they dont simply take the time to either get that trolley or ask so-and-so to work elsewhere so you can work closer to the freezer. its all about managing priorities and space. clean space. clean mind.


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## cotswoldcommis (Dec 1, 2016)

Innocuous Lemon - one of my CDP’s is so disorganised he does all his prep during service . Always running backwards and forwards to the walk-in, usual doesn’t get past the 1st check without needing to get something from out back. Heck we might as well give him the dupes in the walk-in cos he spends more time in there than on his section !


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