Surviving the heatwave: keeping your kitchen, team, and stock safe

When it is 35°C outside, a busy kitchen can pass 45°C. At that point concentration slips, accidents become more likely, fridges struggle to hold temperature, and food safety is at risk. Plan for heat as a regular part of the summer, not a surprise: protect your team with water, breaks, and shorter shifts; look after your refrigeration; simplify the menu; and be ready to close the hours that do not pay.

Heat is now part of the year

Not long ago, a British heatwave was a few uncomfortable days: grumble about the lack of air conditioning, prop the cellar door open, and push through. That is no longer the pattern. Hot spells are longer and more frequent, and a London kitchen in July can be as punishing as any I have worked in on the Costa del Sol.

Many venues falter in the heat not for lack of effort, but because they do not respect the physics. A kitchen that runs hot in May becomes dangerous in a heatwave.

Look after the team first

In extreme heat, the body diverts blood to the skin to cool itself, and the brain gets less. People tire faster, think more slowly, and make more mistakes, and in a kitchen mistakes mean burns and cuts.

• Water, on a schedule. Having water available is not enough. Set regular breaks to drink, and provide drinks that replace salts lost in sweat.
• Shorter, smarter shifts. On the worst days, move prep to the cooler morning, give the team a proper rest in the hottest part of the afternoon, and bring them back for the evening. Losing a quiet afternoon costs less than a chef collapsing, or a kitchen running at a third of its speed.
• Know the signs. Dizziness, nausea, cramps, and confusion are signs of heat exhaustion. If someone shows them, they stop, cool down, and rest, and the service slows or pauses around them.

UK law sets no maximum temperature for a workplace, but employers must keep it reasonable and assess the risks, and heat is one of them. A written plan for hot days is part of that.

Look after the fridges

While the team struggles, so does the equipment. Refrigeration is built for a particular room temperature, shown by its climate class, and many units are not designed for a kitchen above the low thirties. Push them past it, and the compressors run constantly, wear out early, use more energy, and sometimes simply fail.

In the UK, chilled food must be kept at 8°C or below, and most kitchens work to 5°C to be safe. Hot food must be held at 63°C or above. Everything in between is where bacteria grow, and in a hot kitchen food reaches it faster.

• Clean the condenser coils before the summer. A coil clogged with grease and dust is the most common cause of a broken compressor in a heatwave.
• Open the doors less. Train the team to think before they open a fridge, and to take what they need in one go.
• Check temperatures more often. Every two hours on hot days, rather than twice a day, catches a failing unit before the stock is lost.

If a unit will not hold its temperature, order less and move what matters into your most reliable fridge.

Simplify the menu

Guests do not want a rich braise when the pavement is melting. A heatwave is the time for lighter dishes that need less time on the stove. Move prep to the early morning, favour dishes that are assembled rather than cooked to order, and turn down the heat the kitchen produces. That helps the team and eases the load on your extraction and your fridges.

Drinks matter more in the heat, and good, cold, well-priced ones, including alcohol-free drinks worth ordering, can make up for a dip in food.

Tell guests what you have changed. If the menu is shorter or the service a little slower because the team is taking breaks, a short note or a word at the table goes a long way. Most people are generous when they can see you are looking after your staff.

Three lines I would not cross

These are my own rules of thumb:

• If your kitchen will not stay below 40°C, you are paying for exhausted labour and struggling equipment, and getting less from both.
• If a member of the team shows signs of heat exhaustion, the service slows or stops. The environment is the problem, not the person.
• If the afternoon is empty in the heat, close it. Use the time for admin, a deep clean once it cools, or rest before the evening.

Surviving a heatwave is not about how much discomfort you can bear. It is about adapting the kitchen, the menu, and the rota so the people, the stock, and the guests all come through it.

If you would like a plan for next summer built into your rota and your menu, Run will help you put it in place before the heat arrives.