Commercial ranges can be configured in a variety of ways giving the buyer a great deal of flexibility to create the perfect piece of equipment for your operation. There are several options in cook tops that each work best for certain foods or cooking techniques. It’s important to remember that many of these different range top options can be paired together on your range to meet your ideal surface configuration for your commercial range.
Burners – when you think of a range top, you most often think of the traditional gas burner or if you prefer cooking with electricity, dual circular shaped burner. Burners are a popular choice because they are so familiar to anyone that cooks and easy to use. They are also a very quick and simple way to bring heat to what ever you want to prepare.
Griddles – also referred to as flat tops, having a flat top griddle can be a time saver in many kitchens. Often paired with burners on one side of the range top, having a range with a combination griddle and burner top is highly efficient and allows for two of the most popular types of cooking to happen in one place. Keep in mind the whole griddle surface has to be heated and there can be considerable heat loss requiring additional ventilation and air conditioning.
Charbroilers – similar to griddles, adding a charbroiler to the range top increases efficiency in the kitchen and can be easier on the cook. Charbroilers heat up quickly and can be used to add flavor to many menu items. With many proteins, you can quickly sear the outside for flavor and then complete the cooking process over the burners or on a hot top.
Hot Tops – this is a flat cooking surface, and unlike burners, the entire surface will get hot. The metal plate of the hot top is often square and typically range from 12” to 18” in width and is generally 1-1/2”thick. As far as cooking surfaces go, hot tops generally heat up more slowly than other surfaces and especially burners, sometimes taking 30 minutes or more to reach the desired temperature. Along with slow heat up times, these plates can also loose heat more quickly than other surfaces and so they are a less efficient range top option, but they do provide more consistent surface temperature which can be highly important depending on what you are cooking.
French Plates – this is also a flat cooking surface, similar to a hot top, but the burner is hottest at the center and the surface gets cooler as you move out to the edge. The benefit to a french plate is that you can cook foods on different parts of plate depending on the temperature that you desire. Also similar to the hot top, french plates are slow to heat up, experience heat loss but provide consistent cooking temperatures.
We carry commercial ranges in a variety of configurations or can work with our suppliers to order a range with the surface configuration that meets your needs. We carry ranges from top brands including Garland ranges, Vulcan ranges and Wolf Range.
