Playbook guide 路 Run it
Run Your Kitchen
The systems cooks learn over years on the line, in plain English. Set your kitchen up right, and speak the same language as the people you hire.
Kitchen talk
What your crew will say on day one, what it means, and why it matters to you as the owner.
On the line
Behind, Corner, Hot, Sharp
Called out loud when walking behind someone, turning a blind corner, or carrying something hot or a knife.
Why you care: This is how kitchens avoid burns and cuts. Expect it from everyone, including you.
Heard
“I got it.” The cook confirms they heard a call or an order.
Why you care: If nobody says heard, assume nobody heard. Silence causes missed tickets.
Fire
Start cooking that item now.
Why you care: Lets courses come out on time instead of all at once.
All day
The total count of an item across every open ticket: “four burgers all day.”
Why you care: Cooks drop the right amount at once instead of reading tickets one by one.
On the fly
Needed right now, ahead of everything else, usually to fix a mistake.
Why you care: Too many on-the-fly calls means something earlier is broken.
86
Out of it. “86 the salmon” means stop selling salmon.
Why you care: Tell servers fast so nobody sells what you don’t have. Track 86s to fix ordering.
In the weeds
Behind and struggling to catch up.
Why you care: A station that’s always in the weeds needs better mise, more help or a menu change.
Expo and the pass
Expo checks every plate before it leaves. The pass is the shelf or window where plates wait.
Why you care: Expo is your quality control. In small places the owner or manager often does it.
Hands
A call for someone to run food that’s ready in the window.
Why you care: Food that sits dies. Everyone in the front of house answers “hands.”
Storage and prep
Mise en place
Everything prepped and in its place before service starts.
Why you care: The biggest single difference between a smooth night and a bad one.
FIFO
First in, first out. The oldest product gets used first.
Why you care: Cuts waste and keeps expired food off plates.
Par
How much of an item you want on hand to get through a shift or until the next delivery.
Why you care: Pars turn ordering and prep into a simple count instead of guessing.
Prep list
Today’s prep to-do list: par minus what’s on hand.
Why you care: Anyone can come in and know what to do without asking you.
Line check
A walk down the line before service: temperatures, labels, dates, amounts, taste.
Why you care: Catches problems before guests or the inspector do.
Label and date
Every container marked with what it is, when it was made and who made it.
Why you care: Inspectors look for it, and it makes FIFO possible.
Money and service
FOH and BOH
Front of house (dining room, bar, hosts, servers) and back of house (kitchen, dish, prep).
Why you care: Each side has its own systems; the handoff between them is where things break.
Cover
One guest served: “we did 120 covers.”
Why you care: The basic count for staffing, prep and sales.
Ticket time
Minutes from order to food in the window.
Why you care: Rising ticket times are the first sign a station needs help.
Food cost
What the ingredients on a plate cost, usually as a percent of its menu price.
Why you care: Know it for every dish and check it weekly.
Comp
Something given free, usually to make up for a mistake.
Why you care: Decide who can comp, and track every one.
Turn
How many times a table gets a new party in one service.
Why you care: More turns with good service means more sales from the same room.
Side work
Non-serving jobs each shift owes the next: rolling silverware, restocking, wiping menus.
Why you care: A written list keeps openers and closers from blaming each other.
Family meal
The staff meal before or after service.
Why you care: A cheap way to build loyalty and use product before it turns.
Prime cost
Food, drink and labor costs added together, shown as a percent of sales.
Why you care: It’s the biggest number you control. Check it every week.
Run your grill like a clock
Food goes down in one spot and moves across the grill in the same direction every time. Anyone can look down and know what went on first and what comes off next.
1 Down here
2 Cook
3 Cook
6 Off here
5 Finish
4 Flip
Back of the grill on top, the cook stands at the bottom, and the pass is on the left. Your clock can run the other way; what matters is that it never changes.
- Down at 1. New items always go down in the same zone, so the newest food is always in the same place.
- Move with the clock. As items cook, they move one zone along, always the same direction.
- Finish up front. The zones nearest the cook are for checking doneness, flipping, cheese and temping.
- Off at 6. One zone, nearest the pass, is the only place food comes off. The oldest ticket is always next out.
First in, first out (FIFO)
The oldest product goes in front and gets used first. New deliveries go behind it, never on top. It cuts waste and keeps you from serving something past its date.
Back
Diced onion
Made Wednesday
Middle
Diced onion
Made Tuesday
Front 路 use first
Diced onion
Made Monday
- Label every container: what it is, the date it was made or opened, and who made it.
- When a delivery comes in, pull the old stock forward first, then put the new stock behind it.
- Check dates at every line check. Past its date or no readable label? Throw it out.
- Your local food code sets how long prepped food can be kept. Ask your inspector, and post it on the walk-in door.
Mise en place
French for “everything in its place” (say it “meez”). Before service, every station is stocked, prepped and set up the same way, so nobody leaves the line mid-rush. A grill station, for example:
- Proteins portioned and in the lowboy, counted to par
- Toppings in the rail, labeled and dated
- Sauces in full, labeled squeeze bottles
- Spatula, tongs, probe thermometer, towels, sanitizer bucket
- Plates stocked for the first rush
- Grill cleaned and up to temperature
- Cooler temperatures checked and written down
- Ticket printer has paper and the rail is clear
Tape a photo of the finished station above it. “Make it look like the picture” is the fastest training there is. A blank station card is page C4 of the Owner’s Binder.
A day’s rhythm
Where each system shows up in a normal day. If something keeps going wrong during service, the fix is usually in an earlier step.
- OpenLights and equipment on. Check cooler and freezer temperatures and write them down.
- ReceiveCheck in deliveries, rotate stock, put away cold food first.
- PrepCount what’s on hand, write the prep list from your pars, and prep it.
- Set stationsEvery cook builds their station to the station card.
- Line check and pre-shiftWalk the line, then a five-minute huddle with front and back of house: specials, 86s, big parties.
- ServiceTickets in, expo calls, the grill run like a clock, “heard” on every call.
- CloseBreak down stations, cool and label leftovers, clean to the checklist, log temperatures, note what to order.
Write an SOP
An SOP (standard operating procedure) is one job written down so it’s done the same way no matter who’s working. Start with the jobs that cost you money or fail inspections when they’re done wrong. Every SOP answers six questions:
- Task. What job is this?
- Who. Which role owns it?
- When. What starts it?
- Tools. What do they need?
- Steps. In order, one action each.
- Done looks like. How do you check it?
Good first SOPs: opening the line, closing the line, receiving deliveries, cleaning hood filters, cooling food and handling an allergy order. The Owner’s Binder has 23 ready-made SOPs and a blank template.
Quick answers
What does 86 mean in a restaurant?
It means you’re out of an item. “86 the salmon” tells servers to stop selling it until it’s back.
What does FIFO mean in a kitchen?
First in, first out: use the oldest product first by putting new deliveries behind older stock.
What is mise en place?
Having every ingredient and tool prepped and in its place before service starts.
What is an SOP in a restaurant?
A standard operating procedure: one job written step by step so everyone does it the same way.
What does “all day” mean in a kitchen?
The total number of an item across all open tickets, so the cook can make them together.
Put it to work
Tools for this guide
Talk to STLFSE
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General information to help you think things through, not legal, financial or code advice. Rules vary by city and county; confirm with your local health, building and fire officials.