Melamine Trays

Melamine Lunch Trays: What You Need to Know

Melamine is a sturdy type of plastic that can typically withstand commercial-grade dishwashers, which makes it a favorite of casual dining establishments, buffets, and medical or educational institutions. Melamine trays resist chips and breakage, so they're an economical alternative to wood or metal options and can be used at fast-paced or family-friendly establishments. Some models even come with nonslip surfaces already incorporated in the design, providing stability and preventing costly spills.

Common Questions About Melamine Trays

Who needs melamine compartment trays?

These versatile trays can be used to serve food in many types of establishments, and with their built-in compartments, they can help with controlling portion sizes and reducing spills in dining areas. Melamine trays are often used at buffet-style restaurants, cafeterias, and catered events as they have separate areas for different types of food. They're also a cost-effective way to let customers serve themselves and transport food back to their dining area. Melamine is a durable material and is stiff enough that trays don't easily bend or warp under the weight of use. Any establishment needing a way to get food from the staging area to the dining area needs trays, and melamine options are some of the most popular choices.

To complement their melamine cafeteria trays, many establishments also purchase tray dispensers and transport carts, condiment dispensers, beverage station organizers, and napkin dispensers.

Is melamine dishwasher or microwave safe?

Most melamine cafeteria trays are dishwasher safe, even in high-temperature commercial dishwashers. This property makes sanitizing the trays quick and easy, freeing up valuable time for other pressing tasks. Melamine is not microwave safe, though this usually isn't an issue as the trays won't fit in most microwaves. Consult the individual product specification page before purchase to ensure the model you've selected will fit into your existing warewashing procedures.

What melamine lunch tray styles are available?

Melamine is available in a variety of colors and patterns, which makes it popular for adding a decorative element to high-volume and/or institutional settings as well as providing pops of bright color to complement an establishment's branding. Melamine compartment trays come in many sizes, ranging from 10 to 15.5 inches wide, and, although some are round, most trays are rectangular in shape. This material can be molded into compartments of various sizes and quantities, and some styles feature a utensil slot or molded side grips in addition to food compartments, so options can be found for nearly any type of eating establishment.