Kitchen Operations and Production Management
Core concepts
Operations is about flow: mise en place, station (partie) organization, the brigade, par levels, prep lists, and the production schedule. Understand the flow of a service-receiving, storage, prep, line, expo, dish-and where bottlenecks form. Know how to build a prep list from forecasts, set pars against anticipated covers, and use batch cooking to balance freshness and speed. Cross-utilization (using one product across multiple dishes) reduces waste and SKUs.
Traps
Questions test whether you can distinguish a symptom from a cause: a slow line may be a station imbalance, not a staffing shortage. Watch for confusion between par (minimum on-hand) and reorder point (par plus safety stock). Also beware answers that solve a problem by adding labor when the real fix is prep sequencing or equipment layout.
Worked example
Forecast 180 covers; a dish uses 0.2 lb protein per cover and you hold a 20% buffer. Need = 180 × 0.2 × 1.2 = 43.2 lb. Set par at 44 lb and schedule prep in two batches to protect freshness. Rule of thumb: prep to forecast plus a safety margin, not to yesterday's sales.