With 25+ years of experience serving the correctional industry, we are well known in the industry for having products that are specific for the foodservice kitchen in a jail or prison. Many of these items are Cook’s Brand, products we developed because we couldn’t find them in the market and our customers needed them. Some are from nationally known manufacturers but are the best option for correctional operator. Here are our five most popular kitchen supply items that you’ll find in a jail or prison kitchen, and not in other institutional or commercial kitchens:
1. The Knife Leash Kit - Finding knives and other kitchen utensils tethered to a station or table in a correctional facility is very common place. This ensures that ‘sharps’ don’t take end up somewhere they shouldn’t. The Knife Leash Kit is more than just a tether though; it is a leash that can be locked in place and then removed for cleaning or storage. This kit consists of a leash, security fastener and lock. The security fastener is attached to the knife and is permanent. The leash and lock are used to secure the tool in place using the fastener.
2. The Full Tang Dough Cutter & Full Tang Turners – Dough Cutters and Turners are in nearly every foodservice kitchen regardless of industry, but it’s in a jail or prison kitchen that you want one that is full tang, meaning that the blade runs the length of the handle. The Cook’s Brand Full Tang Dough Cutter and Turner also feature an eyelet so that you can secure them with a knife leash or tether, but that isn’t the real reason we designed these with the full tang. These were developed because many of our customers complained about the white handled utensils were easily broken by inmates. They would simply push hard enough on the blade until the plastic handle would snap and then you have the opportunity to create a weapon or you simply made things just a little more difficult for the kitchen officer.
3. High Security Tool Locker – You may have noticed that knife safety is a theme here. The High Security Tool Locker is similar to the Knife Leash Kit in that there are many jails and prisons that have home grown solutions that do the same function as these products. Many facilities have a dedicated tool room or a tool locker that was built by maintenance. This tool locker was designed to work in the worst of the worst as far as correctional facilities are concerned. The door has a reinforced door plate and a flush front so it cannot be pried open, it’s all welded 14 gauge stainless steel construction, and the reinforced Lexan door is virtually impossible to break. It can also be moved if there is a kitchen renovation or other facility changes.
4. Insulated Tray Washrack Insulated trays are predominately used in the correctional industry for meal serving because you are delivering meals to the inmates. This means that the insulated tray washrack is used in jails and prisons to make cleaning the insulated trays better. If you don’t have a tray washer or conveyor type dish machine, without the insulated tray washrack you are using a peg rack. These work fine for the cafeteria trays as they aren’t particularly deep trays, but the insulated trays come cleaner when they are tilted forward so that the water can be directed into the compartments.
5. Rite-Size Square Servers – While many types of foodservice operations use portion control dishers, the Rite-Size Square Servers are very specific to the correctional menu and meal delivery process. Like our standard Rite-Size Round Servers, these servers help you control portion sizes when dishing out servings onto meal trays. The square design is made for correctional facilities that use meal trays that have smaller square or rectangular compartments. Round servers can distribute food in the compartment and around the compartment. This excess can make your tray assembly line and trays a mess as well as cause inconsistencies in portions. The square bowl design is small and compact, to immediately improve sanitation by reducing the amount of food that does not make it into the compartment.
There are many other products that you’ll find at Cook’s that are specific to the jail or prison kitchen and foodservice operation that you won’t find anywhere else. Our Deadman Box, Correctional Tray Assembly and Beverage Server Lock are just some examples of foodservice equipment and supply items that can only be found at Cook’s.
