# open kitchen or closed kitchen



## andrew563 (Oct 12, 2005)

Okay what does everyone prefer open or closed. One where the only way you see the dining room and the guests is when the double doors open and you get a quick peek, or when its all wide open for everyone to see. I myself prefer an open kitchen. I love the rapport I get with the guests when they come in and leave. The sparkle in their eye when they have had an awesome experience.


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## castironchef (Oct 10, 2005)

Open. Of course, one has to watch one's language. A small price . . . .


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## tripps11 (Sep 28, 2005)

Open, But that is only if one has control of their kitchen. If it is crazy with people running around looking like chickens with their heads cut off, you don't want the customers to see that, then again what good chef doesn't have control of his/her kitchen.


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## even stephen (Oct 10, 2005)

I have always prefered an open kitchen. It promotes uniformity in
kitchen staff dress code. It also promotes a sense of pride and an
added need for self control in respect to line cooks. Probably the
most import thing is the proximity to the dining room. There are virtually
never any heat lamps to speak of on an expo line. The food is that
much closer to the customer. Because of appearances the line cooks
have to produce food in union. Never one dish far ahead of the rest.
The communication with the guests can also be pleasant, to a point.

Then there is the down side. I have had a gas explosion from a fryer
on an expo line. I have also had a police chase ending up with a 
Ford F150 in the restaurant dining room. You also will eventually
end up with cooks that stare at customers or you may even get 
a new cook one day who picks his nose or ears inadvertently. In 
restaurants it is always a mixed bag of nuts!!!


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## kuan (Jun 11, 2001)

That's a good one.


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## mikeb (Jun 29, 2004)

I prefer a closed kitchen. All too many times I've had a dozen or more tickets in my window and then the customers decide that's the perfect time to strike up a conversation with the kitchen. Open kitchens are fun sometimes - on slower nights when customers want to watch you cook you can put on a little show, but I still prefer a closed kitchen.


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## gus20 (Jul 26, 2002)

Well, i think an open and a closed kitchen has good and bad things. Maybe it can sounds silly but im in the beggining.

When i was in open kitchen i had to say "good morning" ,, "thanks for coming",, i had to smile all day (it was an obligation), it wasnt bad,,, but many time customers came and asked me, i want some butter,, i want some napkins,,,(we had to say ask to ur waiter please) , but it was difficult to work with some much people asking u everytime. A good thing was my boss couldnt shout me, im a little sensitive maybe but when someone shouts me i feel angry and very sad for long days, it makes me feel very bad. Well in a closed kitchen i feel more confortable for cooking, nobody is checking if im smiling or not, hehe,, thats it

Gus


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## shroomgirl (Aug 11, 2000)

Open if I'm the diner....even Waffle House holds an attraction for me, love the way they have a system for each menu item.

Closed if I'm cooking...unless it's the open stage of the market when I work at my speed.....last Christmas I was cooking for a dinner and behind the eight ball, the rental company left out the clamps for the S table skirting and it backed up the event....guests coming through to tour the kitchen during preparations....it was one of my least favorite parties of all time.


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## botanique (Mar 23, 2005)

shroomgirl said:


> Open if I'm the diner....
> 
> I agree with you there. If I'm on the eating end, I like to watch. But I think that is possibly a bit selfish of me, because I have been on the other side.
> 
> ...


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## fatchef (Oct 28, 2005)

I have the open. Great when none of your cooks speak enough English to be able to offend people!


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## lwp (Oct 28, 2005)

I like closed. I prefer not having to interrupt what I'm doing while somebody tells me how the Iron Chef made that same dish using platypus liver instead of lamb.


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## andrew563 (Oct 12, 2005)

I don't know, maybe I just like the ego boost. I absolutely love display/open kitdhens. yeah, you got to watch your language, you have to be neater and cleaner about everything. But, dang, its like a show on the food net work only live! And you are the star! I really think the dining public love it also. They want the flames of the pans, the smoke from the broiler. Seeing all of us moving at 120 miles an hour. Dining is not just about going out to a very formal setting. Its becoming a performing art. And we are the actors. I love it!


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## general (Nov 2, 2005)

I have worked as a waiter in both (yes, I know, you all hate me now and will ignore my post ) and I prefer the open. There are many benefits to it and I'm sure that you could design things to minimize the drawbacks. First, it is a great show. It doesn't have to be the focus of what you're doing, but it is always nice for the guests to be able to see things going on. Second, it really gives people confidence in what they are eating. If they don't know your establishment, they can take a peek at the kitchen and see how clean and well organized I hope you are. It also creates a culture to the place. People can see/hear what goes on in a real kitchen. It can be a marketing point in that you can use space for a kitchen table or counterspace that would otherwise be dead space in your restaurant. 

I don't recall many times anyone on the hot line being bothered for anything. I would suggest keeping the open kitchen away from the flow of traffic around the restaurant. Also, you want to be sure that people can't just walk up onto the line or can bother the chefs so you need to keep it spaced out properly.


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## vertigo (Oct 28, 2005)

so far ive only ever worked in closed kitchens and while i would like to work in an open one sometime i think it would get old fast. im nervous enough when trying to finish a dish with an overzealous runner glaring at me, let alone a dining room full of customers. i mean it is a great show for the diners but id rather not be part of the focus. not to mention, i cant imagine having to behave myself on the line.


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## abefroman (Mar 12, 2005)

Closed, ur gonna give out your secret recipe?


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## paul (Nov 4, 2005)

Rapport is great, but, I prefer a closed kitchen because I reserve the right to spit in the food of customers that wear bow-ties to my restaurant


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## andrew563 (Oct 12, 2005)

I hope thats a joke


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## lwp (Oct 28, 2005)

I don't know if it was or not... but I'm definitely adding it to my list of rules.


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## lukeygina (Mar 28, 2005)

I cannot STAND to have some as$hole staring me down as I make his pizza or some italian dish.

Although I've only worked at 1 open kitchen, I didn't enjoy it needless to say.


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## chefphilhahn (Nov 9, 2005)

Open. I get to show off. It makes this cooking thing we do all worth while to impress them with a show as well as with our great food.


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## andrew563 (Oct 12, 2005)

I totally agree with you. Like i said, I like the ego boost.


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## jackbutler (Jan 11, 2007)

I swear too much for an open kitchen. Though I might be able to deal with a kitchen the customers can see into, but not hear.


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## ras1187 (Oct 3, 2006)

Closed; when a server mistakes a butterflied filet for a strip or a grouper for a halibut... I have to let out some tension.


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## piracer (Jun 22, 2006)

i worked in 2 closed kitchens and one open. its strange, cos for the first few days, the open kitchen was really cool and all in showing off and such, but then after a while, it just felt like any other kitchen. i guess it was cooler since it was a restuarent in a shopping centre so the air con was stronger and such. so if that, then open.


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## jayme (Sep 5, 2006)

I haven't had the opportunity to be in an open kichen, but I think I would like it- I'm a bit of a show off too(hey at least I'll admit it) I definately like it as a diner. Last weekend I was at a restaurant in Oakland that had an open kitchen, but it was separated by a plexigrass wall. We could watch but the plexiglass seemed to keep diners from bothering the chefs. I was very nice to sit and watch someone else cook. You definately would have to watch your language though (or learn to cuss in another language?? )... the kitchen I work in is right next to the dining room, so we have to watch our language even in a closed kitchen.(but you get really good at finger and hand gestures...LOL):suprise:


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## salliem (Nov 3, 2006)

I have worked in both open and closed kitchens as well and I rather like the open kitchen concept..we also had our fish cutting station out in the open as well, it was fun to have conversations with people wanting to know all about the differant types of fish we served. Yeah sure you have to watch what you say...but I think it is a good experience.


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## firiki03 (Oct 20, 2006)

Like a few posters have mentioned, I prefer an open kitchen when dining as a customer and a closed one when I have to handle a big menu especially on weekends. Needless to say, the kitchen is like a mad house!


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## jonowee (Mar 16, 2007)

It depends on the situation (eatery setup):

- Cafe/Resturant-types and larger: Closed Kitchen
* I prefer a closed kitchen because the kitchen is a smoky, 'smelly' (some folks are quite sensitive about the smell of cooking), noisy (order being read out, exhaust hood) and to me the basic thing about not feeling guilty handling food with bare hands cos the customers can't see it (to me I can work faster overall in a closed kitchen (guilt-free).
Most people just don't want to see what their food used to look like uncooked, they might love meaty steaks but they don't want to know it was a bloody slab of dead animal.

- Short Order style cooking: Open Kitchen
* I currently work in a short-order establishment, and I love the open kitchen setup mainly because it's easily the most comfortable kitchen I've ever been in. Heck I sweat more in the hour's worth getting to and from work than I do in the kitchen.
Our company has rules that doesn't allow us to eat or drink anything in view of the customers, so not even a glass of water at the hot section. So at home I sometimes get cramps from 'dehydration' after a long day, yes I know... I can easily work around it to take better care of myself.

Open kitchen allows a short order cook like me to better suit dishes to customer, some folks don't want the vineragrette with their salad and before I add it, they can see it and request accordingly.
Customer interaction is good in a short order because the cooking is fairly simple and you've got time to chat with customers especially the regulars.

I just wish I could use my bare hands more and do it guilt-free, but with customers watching me I prefer not to. We use vinyl gloves and I more or less hate them, when I got use to the fairly tactile latex gloves the switch to the vinyl ones wasn't too nice for me, took a quite awhile to get used to them. Still feels like cooking with oven gloves on.


All depends on setup of the estaiblishment and menu, if it's 'simple' I say go Open, if it's more complicated go closed kitchen.


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## blueicus (Mar 16, 2005)

I agree, when you work in an open kitchen long enough, you sort of learn to tune everything out and it feels perfectly normal. Of course at our open kitchen we're partially blocked by the heat lamps, a long rack of dishes and so forth so it's not as "open" as I've seen in other restaurants, but I have found that I don't need to watch my language unless there are people sitting at the two closest tables to the hot pass.


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## mochefs (Mar 8, 2007)

There's such a thing as a closed kitchen? Not to me! 

I have this 'quirk', don't remember when it started but it's become a bit of a joke with my friends when we go out to eat and they generally try and hide the fact that they're with me when it occurs. But I walk straight into the kitchen, (or service window depending on setup) everyone looks up to see what this wierdo is doing and I say hello, and proceed to discuss what they recommend I should eat (not to the entire kitchen usually, primarily the expeditor/chef)

I'm sure this developed at some point because I visit so many restaraunts where everyone knows me and vice versa and I just got comfortable being in and out of the kitchen, and I'm sure I must freak out some folks in the kitchen from time to time when I'm at a new place. What can I say, I know it's wierd. You'd think they would be irked at someone interfering with their hectic pace, and god knows why they don't send me packing with a string of obscenities, but virtually always the expeditor/chef is happy to be asked their opinion and in many cases they end up making something off the menu that they think I should try. 

I have no idea why I have such a thing against servers, they've never done anything to me to deserve it, but when it comes to making decisions about what to eat I want to deal with the people who are most invested in the food. If there's a sommelier in the house I can't imagine asking my waiter what would pair well with my dish instad of them, I think of food the same way. And I must say that I end up having some of the best meals because of my odd proclivities.

God help the kitchen if many people become as brain damaged as me though.


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## rambo (Sep 8, 2008)

You would have to be very well recognized, or just very confident to do that in most places I've worked. Walk into a kitchen, interupt an expo/chef and ask what's good tonite? Hmmm. You are lucky you are published.


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## redalert (Jan 4, 2007)

I liked the open kitchen I worked in because one time afterlunch service this total MILF came up to the pass the after her meal and asked for the recipie for my roasted tomato and basil soup. 

I told her it was against company policy to give away recipie secrets (it wasn't). She then asked if i'd give her a few pointers if she took me out for dinner (she was about 45-50 i was 28.) I got her number and took her up on the offer.

Long story short we had a great meal and I ended up banging her senceless and giving her some roasted tomato and basil soup making tips.

Best thing was I never even made the soup she ate in the first place.


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## todayskitchens (Jul 11, 2010)

I love our open kitchen. I can easily chat with friends and visitors while cooking. I can never do that in a closed kitchen.


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## Guest (Jul 14, 2010)

I went to an interesting place in Melbourne where the plating was all in full view of the dining room, but the kitchen itself was out of view.  Kind of a hybrid.  Myself, in an open kitchen, I wouldn't want customers to see me bleeding all over the place, or hear me cussing every five minutes.  The open kitchens in the mom and pop izakayas in Japan were nice, except when mama decides she wants to give you a huge platter of greasy fried chicken livers.


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## boar_d_laze (Feb 13, 2008)

As a guest:  Open.

As a cook/chef:  Open.

BDL


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## chefbillyb (Feb 8, 2009)

Closed, I came out to dinner to eat and enjoy my friends, not watch of a bunch front line cooks banging things around....................ChefBillyB


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## kyheirloomer (Feb 1, 2007)

As a patron, I love open kitchens.

As a short-order cook I didn't have a whole lot of choice. It was an open kitchen, long before the term got popular.  Maybe because of that, or maybe for other reasons, but I don't mind cooking in front of an audience.

Anybody else remember the Tad's chain? These were all-you-can-eat steak joints. Their big claim to fame (which certainly was not the quality of the meat) was that the grills were inside the windows, and the cooks flipped the steaks in front of passers-by out on the street, as well as being open to the patrons. Again, the term "open kitchen" wasn't used much. This was just a stunt designed to entice you in.

Years ago, in Chicago, there was a high-end Chinese restaurant with a nice hybrid version. It had an open kitchen behind a glass (more likely plexiglas) wall. So patrons could see what was going on, but not disturb the cooks with idle chatter.

In front of the wall was a demonstration station, where cooks would, from time to time, show-off some of their techniques. That's the first time I ever saw noodles made by folding, for instance, instead of cutting.

Unfortunately, the place is long gone.


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## darktaco128 (Jul 15, 2010)

I prefer an open Kitchen, but not completely open.  At the restaurant I'm currently at, we have counter to ceiling glass, which is nice, it allows you to observe and holds you accountable for almost every thing you do.


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## tamtam39 (Jul 14, 2010)

_*Cooking is about flexibility so whether it be an open or closed kitchen, success is still in the hands of the great cook. Though in my case, open kitchen makes me comfortable, cause you can work freely with a huge space. (well as long as everything you need is there) *_


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## cookpiper (Jul 6, 2010)

I would go with open kitchen for most people votes on that already. lol.

The reason behind it actually is it's not enclosed completely by 4 walls, bigger and more spacious. It's better for entertaining for the cook can still interact with guests.


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## kyheirloomer (Feb 1, 2007)

TamTam and Cookpiper, you might be confused about what the term "open kitchen" means in this context. It has little to do with the size of the kitchen, or how you configure it at home.

In a professional setting kitchens are either closed (i.e., behind closed doors, with only staff allowed to enter), or open (i.e., the kitchen---in whole or in part---is visually, and sometimes physically, accessible to the paying customers).

The professional working in closed kitchen only has to worry about doing his/her job. One in an open kitchen, on the other hand, is not just a cook. He or she is an actor on a stage, and must be aware of that at all times.


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## chefelle (Feb 17, 2007)

Given the choice I prefer closed....but the one in my shop is open.


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## chefboyarg (Oct 28, 2008)

I love working in open kitchens. As was mentioned above the rapport you establish with customers is really enjoyable. Actually seeing the expressions on people's faces as they enjoy their food is ridiculously satisfying as well. When I was working in one place we had a regular who would come and sit at the kitchen bar, usually in front of my station. He would always engage in conversation with me provided it wasn't busy and would always compliment us on the food. There is no other feeling like hearing "this is the best (insert dish ordered) I have ever had!" directly from the customer. Also it gives the customer a sense of the amount of skill and care it takes to prepare a meal in a restaurant.


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## leeniek (Aug 21, 2009)

I've worked in both and currently I'm in an open kitchen.  Customers are separated from us by the pass but when they come in to the restaurant the first thing they see is the kitchen.  Alot of them watch us as we work and seem fascinated by the fruit plates etc that they see whey they come in.  Sometimes when I'm calling board I'll call for a waffle and I've seen some of the customers actually look up to see where that voice came from.  We rarely have contact with customers... some of the regulars talk to us and if we see someone in line we know we can say hello but that's as far as it goes for the most part.  If someone has an allergy and has questions, the KM or I will go out and speak to them instead of doing it via a server.


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