FH1218

EQUIPMENT
Grills and fryers feature prominently at South St. Burger locations
From giving burgers a satisfying char
to churning out perfectly crispy French
fries, grills and fryers are some of the
hardest-working tools in many restaurants.
But as kitchens become more streamlined,
the function of these stalwart appliances
is changing. For some operators, the timeless
simplicity of this equipment is making
it more valuable than ever, while others are
finding specialized adaptations in technology
can revolutionize their kitchens.
restaurants that have switched
to the Garland grills. The new
grills also reduce the frequency
with which restaurants need
to replace pricey filters in the
ventilation systems, leading to
further savings.
The burger chain has
installed Garland grills in
approximately one-third of
its restaurants to date and
McNaughtan says customer
reactions have been positive.
He says the new grills create a
juicier product and are easier
for cooks to operate. “You’re 30
seconds too long
on a charbroiler and that
burger isn’t ideal,” says
McNaughtan, “the window of
optimum time is larger [with
the Garland grills].”
A simple grooved griddle
plate brought about a radical
change in the chain’s kitchens
and, according to Stephen
Tyler, director of Consultant
and Contract Services at
Mississauga, Ont.-based W.D.
Colledge Co. Ltd., grill technology
is moving in the direction
of these kinds of specialized
adaptations. Tyler says he’s seeing
innovation around specific
styles of grills made for specific
applications in recent years,
rather than advancements in
basic grill technology.
A resurgence in the use
of real wood and charcoal
grills, for example, is fuelling
improvements in this age-old
style of cooking. “Once you
start working with wood or
charcoal, you can’t really adjust
the temperature up and down,”
SMALL CHANGE,
BIG DIFFERENCE
When it comes to grills,
restaurant operators have
traditionally been faced with
choosing between griddles and
charbroilers. South St. Burger,
however, says it’s found the
best of both worlds by adding
a grooved griddle plate to a
flat-top Garland heavy-duty
gas griddle (South St. Burger
uses them in pairs, which
retail for $7,400 per set). The
company is currently rolling
out this new grill system in its
restaurants across Canada.
According to South St.
Burger vice-president Thomas
McNaughtan, the Garland
grill offers the efficiency of a
griddle while also producing
burgers with the barbecue-style
look typically associated with a
charbroiler. After 13 years
in business using charbroilers,
the switch to griddles is a
big change for the company
and one McNaughtan says he’s
excited about.
“We tried the flat-top
technology a couple of times
and didn’t really like how
the product looked,” says
McNaughtan, yet the company
had never been satisfied with
the energy consumption and
amount of smoke generated
by its charbroilers. South St.
Burger is already seeing a
reduction in utility usage in
From The
Equipex’s Countertop Induction Griddles use induction technology to
eliminate the release of ambient heat, making for faster heat-up times,
improved energy efficiency and a cooler cooking environment for chefs.
Featuring 12 temperature levels (from 122°F to 536°F) and a multi-layer,
two-zone cooking surface, the griddle can reach a temperature of 400°F
in just two minutes. The model 35C+ economy fryer from Pitco is a freestanding,
stand-alone fryer with welded tank. The long-lasting, hightemperature
alloy stainless-steel heat baffles are mounted in the heat
exchanger tubes to provide maximum heating and combustion efficiency.
50 FOODSERVICE AND HOSPITALITY DECEMBER 2018 FOODSERVICEANDHOSPITALITY.COM