Every day at a restaurant looks like coordinating everything from preparing food with the chef to keeping the servers stocked with supplies and making sure the food and serving meet health and safety standards. One operational burden that gets overlooked is managing table cloths.

Table linens are an important part of the overall presentation of the restaurant. To have clean and presentable linens for your customers every day, you must wash, dry, fold, store and replace damaged linens. For restaurants that have a high volume of customers, this process can quickly become overwhelming for the staff because it takes up so much time.

However, restaurant owners can take advantage of table cloth rentals that provide a simple and efficient way to manage linens. Rather than having your servers wash, dry, fold and store all of their own linens, they can send their linens to a rental service to be managed by professionals who specialise in commercial textile management.

The following list highlights how renting table linens will reduce the operational stress of busy restaurant operations.

1. Eliminating In-House Laundry Operations

One of the greatest operational difficulties for restaurants is to manage the laundry for linens.

If a restaurant cleans tablecloths in-house, they are responsible for:

• washing machine/dryer
• water/electricity
• detergent/stain removal chemicals
• staff time for laundry
• drying/ironing tablecloths
• folding/storing tablecloth inventory

When restaurants use table cloth rentals, the professionals take care of all the laundry responsibilities.  As such, restaurant managers will no longer have to allocate employee time to linen cleaning activities. Rather, employees can devote their time to preparing food and managing the restaurant.

2. Continual Availability of Linens during Hours of Highest Demand

Busy restaurants run the risk of running short on linens during peak dining hours.

Several operational issues can arise when a restaurant runs out of clean tablecloths during the dining services.

• Customers’ tables are delayed in being turned over
• Some tables do not have customers
• The impression of the customer will deteriorate
• Staff will have to rush to get replacement linen cleaned

Professional table linen companies have a large linen inventory on hand to offer restaurants. They establish schedules for linen delivery and pickup that make sure restaurants receive fresh linens prior to their busiest hours. Also, restaurants can alter the amount of linens ordered, based on historical evidence or estimation of the amount of traffic that they will see for events.

3. Reduces Linen Replacement Costs

Restaurants that handle their own linens need to replace tablecloths frequently because of continual damage and/or wear.

Typical causes of damage to linens are:

• Misuse of bleach when washing linens
• Damage from high heat generated by drying linens
• Permanent stains from food or other substances
• Fabric deterioration from being laundered many times over

For restaurants with large dining areas, purchasing new table cloths on a regular basis can create significant expenses. Linen rental services include linen replacement in their service agreements so restaurants do not have to make purchases for new tablecloths every time one becomes worn or damaged.

4. Improves Cleanliness and Sanitation Levels

Hygienic dining surfaces are a key ingredient in food safety and consumer confidence.

Professional linen rental companies must adhere to rigid standards for sanitation designed for use in commercial hospitality establishments.

Sanitation processes normally include:

• Use of hot water to wash away any remaining germs.
• Use of sanitizing detergent that is safe for food customers.
• Drying linens in controlled conditions.
• Packaging linens to reduce the chance of contamination.

By outsourcing their linen service, restaurants are assured that all tablecloths meet uniform sanitation standards.

5. Keeps Free Valuable Space in the Restaurant

Most restaurants have a packed inventory due to limited space; kitchens, fridges and dry storage take up most, if not all, of what is available.

Common linen stock and inventory will require allocation of storage space, which could be used instead for food or operational use; clean folded tablecloths will take one area; all used linens waiting for cleaning need another area; a backup inventory of linens requires a third area of storage.

Through the linen rental program restaurant only have to keep enough linens on hand for immediate service and the provider picks up used linens on a regular basis which eliminates the need for the three areas currently used for linen storage.

6. Easily Scales For Special Events And Peak Demand Days

Urgent demand for restaurants can occur unexpectedly from holidays, private party, wedding, or even from local festivals.

In general, restaurants will have trouble scaling if they use in-house linens due to the requirement of acquiring additional table linens that are likely only to be needed on certain occasions.

Rental companies provide restaurants with the ability to increase their linen supply through temporary acquisition of table linens just for their event which decreases the need for restaurants to purchase linens to be placed in permanent inventory.

Because of this ability to temporarily increase the restaurant’s linen supply, operating pressure is reduced during peak demand.

Summary

Although table linen management may appear as a trivial operational responsibility, it can add considerable strain to the restaurant in busy periods. The amount of time, equipment and coordination that goes into washing, storing, replacing and maintaining table linens can create challenges for a restaurant’s kitchen and staff.

When restaurants use Linen rental services, they are able to realize many advantages such as consistent inventory, professional-level sanitation of table linens, and a lower level of daily operational stress. Table linen rentals are more than just a convenience for high-volume restaurants; they are also an effective way to reduce the level of daily operational stress.

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