Wash, Listen and Learn - PubChef's tips on choosing dishwashers

Danny Blyth looks at tips for choosing the right machine to meet your pub's needs

Choosing the dishwasher that's right for your pub can be a demanding task. There are so many machines and each has so many features.

But according to Tim Bender at Hobart UK, pub caterers shouldn't do things on their own.

The first step for everyone should be to take advice. "It's not easy to work out what's right for you," he explains, "so I say that you should get a reputable manufacturer or distributor to come in and assess things on your premises, free-of charge.

"They can help think things through, looking not just at total covers but at what sort of food and service you do, what space you have for dish washing and how this fits in with space for preparation, storage, refrigeration and the rest.

"Together you can refine what sort of throughput your machine will have to cope with - and then you can begin to look at particular machines."

Tim says that there is always a balance to be struck between the numerous priorities facing a licensee.

Pubs doing less than 50 covers a session are likely to be most suited to a frontloading machine, while those doing 50 to 200 might require a pass-through hoodtype machine. Hobart's leading passthrough model is its AMX 900. Tim says: "The main advantage here is speed of throughput. This machine is capable of 60 racks per hour. It does, however, require more space, coming with a "dirty" and a "clean" table area for racks either side of the machine, and it does require a bigger investment."

If you can't get a manufacturer down in time for a site survey, then you can always call on a local dealer to come in and advise. This option was taken by Joanna King, licensee of the Black Dog in Crediton, Devon, who took a CF50 machine on the recommendation of dealers Target.

"When we got here six months ago there was just so much to do in all parts of the pub, so we followed the advice of Target." Joanna is an ex-Army caterer who became a licensee after running West Country restaurants for some years and was shocked at what equipment she inherited at the Black Dog.

She says: "What we found for dishwashing was an old domestic machine with a wash cycle that took about one and a half hours. We had to get up and running and get on with building up a food trade. Often you just don't have the time to be talking to every manufacturer - and we have always got on very well with Target."

The key factor in choosing a machine is ease of use, according to Nigel Townsend of Electrolux. "Of course the first thing is to size your machine properly - but you must then look for something that's user-friendly," he urges. "Some controls out there can be complicated to use and, here, we have been putting a lot of attention into making things easier."

Also ask whoever is doing your site survey about how easy it is to clean and maintain a machine, for the easier it is, the more likely people will do what's needed and you won't get breakdowns "And breakdowns do happen. I've seen some myself when I've been out to eat - and even seen the paper plates being put out! For chefs that's just a nightmare. "And one thing that's coming to matter more these days is getting your cutlery not just clean and shining but also properly sanitised. For this, it has to be heated to 82.5°C to prevent any chance of bacteria. Any less and the cutlery just won't be sanitised. Warewashing is becoming ever more important."