Salad Bowls

Restaurant Salad Bowls: What You Need to Know

We carry brightly colored melamine bowls that fit into casual dining atmospheres, but you can also find elegant metal and glass salad bowls that are suited for fine dining. Large salad bowls can be used as a serving dish to distribute salad to multiple guests, while small, three-ounce pieces can accent the rest of your table setting.

Our selection of commercial salad bowls contains hundreds of options, from simple melamine bowls to natural wooden options and even clear glass pieces. Choosing the right material can be tricky, but we're here to help. Melamine, wood, glass, plastic, and ceramic all have different benefits, drawbacks, and maintenance needs, which we'll discuss below.

Common Questions About Salad Bowls

Which material should I choose?

Your first decision when shopping for commercial salad bowls is which material will best suit your needs. Melamine is the most popular choice – and for good reason. This organic plastic is inexpensive, lightweight, and remarkably durable, leading to one of the lowest total costs of ownership. Melamine can also be shaped and colored to match any style, leading to a variety of options that possess the benefits of melamine dinnerware. These pieces can be sanitized in high- and low-temperature commercial dishwashers but cannot be used in a microwave since chemicals may seep from the material into the food. Most casual and mid-tier restaurants consider melamine their material of choice; however, fine dining establishments often look at glass or stoneware salad bowls instead.

Stoneware – a blanket term that encompasses all types of ceramic, porcelain, and china – is considered a step up from melamine in terms of elegance. With its distinct texture and weight, stoneware shows customers that you are intent on providing a quality experience. Porcelain, also called china, is considered the highest tier of stoneware and is usually found in fine dining establishments. Porcelain salad bowls are made of fully vitrified ceramic, meaning they have been hardened to the point they will not absorb any water and resist stains, odors, and flavor transference. Stoneware can usually be sanitized in commercial dishwashers and is safe to use in a microwave.

Wooden salad bowls can heighten the appeal of a salad. Fresh, clean vegetables match the feel of a traditional wooden bowl well, and any farm-to-table or traditionally styled restaurant will want to consider these options. Depending on the finish of the bowl, it may be safe for sanitization in a commercial dishwasher. Consult the product specification page for the individual product to determine the best sanitization method.

The other materials are not as common, but they might fit what you need. Transparent salad bowls, usually made of glass or plastic, enable the vegetables in a fresh salad to shine through and can be a great choice if your salads are colorful. Glass will fit best with high-tier dinnerware, such as porcelain, while melamine can be accompanied by clear plastics. There are too many types of plastic to cover them all in detail here, but individual product specifications sheets will contain more information.

What style of bowl do I need?

Once you've chosen a material, you need to match the style of the bowl to your existing dinnerware. Salad bowls are usually chosen to highlight the fresh colors of the food served within them rather than the bowls themselves, but if the rest of your dinnerware is brightly colored, you'll probably want a restaurant salad bowl that matches.

Large salad bowls are normally used to distribute salad to smaller individual bowls at the table. These pieces can be more of a focal point for your design. Consider the space available on a given table before choosing a bowl size.