Katom > Buyer's Guides > Restaurant and Foodservice Equipment Buyer's Guides > Restaurant Equipment Buyer's Guide

The equipment section of the KaTom website has 20 different types of commercial kitchen equipment and supplies that are frequently used in a foodservice business. These 20 categories are the large, main pieces of equipment you will need to get your business up and running quickly, or the pieces you will need to replace quickly should they malfunction. This guide will break down each type of equipment on the page and help to explain exactly what is in each category.

Commercial Refrigeration

The commercial refrigeration category houses 13 subcategories. Commercial refrigeration is any type of refrigeration equipment that you will need in your commercial kitchen to keep your products cold while extending their shelf life. The 13 smaller subcategories are reach in refrigerators and freezers, ice makers, display merchandisers, deli & display cases, worktop & undercounter refrigerators, bar refrigeration, drop in refrigeration, food prep tables, walk in coolers & freezers, school milk coolers, blast chillers, water filters, and ice cream freezers & dipping cabinets.

Sinks, Faucets, & Accessories

Sinks, faucets, and accessories hold the pieces of restaurant equipment that help to keep your business clean and sanitary. This category has 12 subcategories, such as NSF Compartment Sinks, hand sinks, Non-NSF compartment sinks, cocktail units & ice bins, bar sinks, and drains & drain boards. Silver soak sinks, scullery sinks, portable sink & prep carts, hand sink accessories & sterilizing products, faucets & repair kits, and mop sinks are also included in this category.

Soft Serve Ice Cream Maker Machines

This soft serve ice cream maker machine section has three pieces of equipment to choose from, all of which create delicious, tasty ice cream each time it is used. Soft serve ice cream makers can produce either two, five, or seven servings per minute, depending on the exact machine you purchase.

Dishwashers & Accessories

Dishwashers & accessories are a broad category that houses 7 different products from the actual commercial dishwashers to the glass washers and brushes that clean the products inside the dishwasher. Glass & dish racks, flatware cylinders & bins, and cup & glass keepers are idea for helping protect your products from breaking in the dishwasher. Bus pans and dishwasher thermometers help keep your business organized and sanitary.

Commercial Mixers

The commercial mixers category includes all the equipment you will need to mix products in process of creating your delicious food for your customers. This category has two smaller subcategories, floor mixers or countertop planetary mixers. Floor mixers are large mixers that can mix massive amounts of product at a time, with the mixer actually moving inside the bowl. Planetary mixers have a bowl that moves around the mixer itself.

Food Bars & Accessories

The food bars and accessories category holds 6 smaller categories, all of which related to the necessary items for having a cold or hot bar, or countertop buffet warmer in your restaurant. This section of the restaurant equipment page shows all the equipment that is needed for a salad bar or hot bar for hot food items, such as freshly cooked meats. This section contains necessary sanitary items for your cold bars or hot bars, such as sneeze guards, tray slides & end shelves, and food bar accessories.

Food Warming Equipment

Food warming equipment is an essential part of your foodservice business. Food warming equipment allows you to cook your product and keep it warm and ready until it can be served. This category holds 10 smaller categories, such as heated pizza holding cabinets, heated cabinets, and combination proofers/heated cabinets. Commercial microwaves are included in this section are a valuable piece of equipment for any variety of businesses. Pasta cookers and rice cookers are ideal for creating the perfect dish. Proofing cabinets, pass through, roll through, and roll-in heated holding cabinets, quick thaw, and steamers are all included in this category as well.

Fryers & Accessories

The fryers and accessories category of equipment includes a very important piece of restaurant equipment for any business, the deep fryer. The deep fryer can quickly fry your foods, while creating an tasty, dark batter on the outside of the product, creating an eye catching food. Commercial restaurant fryers and pressure fryers will provide u with this high-quality type of food product. This category also houses all the accessories you will need for your deep fat fryers, such as the fryer baskets, taco / Mexican food baskets, and fry scoops. The gas connectors, filters & holders, and fryer screen grates are essential parts of the fryer that can be purchased here as well.

Grills, Griddles, Char-Broilers, Hot Plates, & Accessories

This grills, griddles, char-broilers, hot plates, & accessories category holds 6 separate smaller categories. You can choose from five top of the line grill types, and then choose the perfect grill accessories to go with it. Salamander broilers, hot plates, char-broilers & outdoor grills, griddles, and Panini & sandwich grills are perfect grill types to cook almost any type of food you desire. These grills will provide your customer with delicious, appealing products with every use.

Hoods & Accessories

The hoods & accessories category is the perfect place to look for any type of grill hood or replacement part you may need. This category holds baffle filters for hoods, which are filters that are evenly spaced to collect grease, which then drains down the baffles and collects in a trough. Condensate hoods are hoods that hold the baffle filters. Custom ventilation hoods can be purchased from this category to meet the specific ventilation needs of your business. You can also find replacement globes here in case on of yours ever breaks.

Large Capacity Kettles, Skillets, & Braising Pans

Large capacity kettles, skillets, & braising pans is a category that holds five of the larger pieces of restaurant equipment you will need in your foodservice business. Large capacity kettles and tilting kettles are perfect for holding a soup or other similar product until it is ready to be used. Tilting skillets cook the product and keep it warm until it can be used. Tilting kettle / cooker mixers and tilting braising pans can also be found in this section.

Ovens & Ranges

This specific section of equipment holds 7 of the most important pieces of cooking equipment you will use in your commercial kitchen. This category holds all of the ovens and ranges offered through KaTom. Convection ovens, which use a fan to circulate air through the unit, are offered as well as conveyor ovens, which free up your time by running the food through the oven on a conveyor belt. Deck ovens and cook & hold ovens are perfect for pizzas and other such foods. Specialty & combi ovens and specialty countertop ovens can cook and hold specific types of foods, from foods that require smoking to achieve that perfect taste to rotisserie products.

Shelving & Carts

Shelving and carts holds 6 smaller categories that can help get your business organized in no time. Keg & wine racks are available to hold all of your businesses alcoholic products in one area, while security cages can be used to keep products secure when needed. Carts are perfect for moving around heavy products that dunnage racks typically hold. Pan & can racks and wire shelving are capable of holding a variety of different products.

Slicers

The slicer category holds three different kinds of slicers, which are categorized by their blade size. 9 inch slicers, 10 inch slicers, and large 12-14 inch slicers are available to meet the needs of nearly any sized business. The size of the specific slicer you purchased will also determine what type of product can be cut with the unit, which can be further studied in the buyers information section of the category.

Strip & Swing Doors

This strip & swing door category houses two different types of doors which are often used in coolers and/or freezers to help hold in the cold air, while allowing you to go in and out without having to open and close the main door each time. Strip doors have many hanging strips of heavy material that are easily moved to allow easy access to a freezer or cooler unit. Swing doors are actually two doors that can be swung open without having to spend time and effort struggling to push a heavy main door.

Water Heaters

Water heaters are essential to the operation of your business because they keep the hot water flowing to any necessary areas. You can purchase four different types of water heaters from this section, such as sanitizing sink heaters, which heat water to hot enough temperatures to sanitize your products. Food Rethermalizers/Bain Maries, sink water heaters, and water booster heaters are also available to meet your individual need.

Work Tables, Butcher Blocks, & Equipment Stands

This section, work tables, butcher blocks, & equipment stands holds six smaller categories that are highly important, yet often overlooked. Work tables offer lots of extra workspace that can be placed anywhere in your kitchen. Equipment stands, dish tables, and table mounted pot racks all provide sturdy places to hold the smaller pieces of equipment you need, while wall mounted shelving can hold nearly anything imaginable. Butcher blocks & tables provide extra cutting area anywhere you need it.

Dish Dispensers

Dish dispensers hold many dishes at a time and allow you or your customers to take one out as needed. These convenient pieces of equipment are great for time saving, self-serve operations.

Vegetable & Salad Dryers

Vegetable and salad dryers hold important equipment that will dry out the lettuce and other vegetables in your salads to prevent excess juice at the bottom of the salad plate. Drying your vegetables helps to ensure a high-quality salad.

Ice Makers

Ice makers is a broad category that can be broken down into 5 smaller categories. Ice makers are essential to your business by creating ice for all the various needs you may have. Ice makers can be purchased as head & bin combination ice maker units, which are precombined with some of the most popular sizes available. Head only ice machines are great replacement parts for your ice machines, while ice maker accessories can also be purchased to replace any part needed. Undercounter ice makers are compact units that help to make the most of the space you have available by fitting nearly anywhere you need it. Ice dispensers do not actually make ice, but dispense it at any time necessary.