Commercial Kitchen Trolleys

Start from what moves and how far. Trays of product between an oven and a rack call for a racking trolley; cartons from a dock to a store call for a platform trolley; plated or hot food to a function room calls for a catering or bain marie trolley.

A professional kitchen trolley bought for the wrong job gets used once and then parked, so it is worth matching the trolley to the movement rather than buying the general-purpose one.

Diameter first. Larger castors roll over thresholds, floor wastes and door tracks that stop small ones dead, and they are easier to push with a load on. Then brakes on at least two, and swivels on at least two so the trolley can be steered.

Non-marking castors matter in front-of-house areas. If the trolley crosses a tiled kitchen floor with drains in it, tell us, because that is the single most common reason a trolley becomes hard to push within a year.

It is set by the individual trolley and listed on its product page, and it assumes the load is spread rather than piled on one corner. Our specifications page explains how we present the figures.

The practical limit is often the person, not the trolley. A trolley loaded to its maximum on a sloping floor is harder to control than most people expect, so size up rather than loading to the limit.

Measure before you order. The width of the trolley, the width of the narrowest door, and the internal dimensions of the service lift are the three numbers that decide it, and a trolley that cannot get to where it is needed is useless however good it is.

Allow for hands on the handles as well as the trolley itself. If the route includes a lift, send us the lift dimensions with your enquiry and we will check the options against them.

Stainless where there is heat, grease and a daily washdown, and where the trolley works in the kitchen itself. See stainless steel catering trolleys.

Plastic where the trolley is lighter, quieter and working front of house or in housekeeping, and where knocks against walls and furniture matter. See plastic catering trolleys. Many venues use both, in different parts of the building.

As many as you will fill without making the top shelf unreachable or the load unstable. Two or three shelves suits general use; a tray rack with many levels suits bakery and oven work where every level holds the same thing.

Tall and fully loaded is the configuration that tips. Keep the heaviest items on the bottom shelf. The gastronorm trays and gastronorms and containers ranges cover what sits on the levels.

No, and treating it as one is how trolleys get overloaded and left in walkways. A trolley moves things; a bench is where work happens. Prep on a trolley is unstable and it blocks the aisle it is standing in.

Where you want a mobile work surface, that is a specific product rather than a trolley with a flat top. Fixed stainless steel benching with an undershelf is the better answer for most stations.

Wiped down daily with a neutral detergent along the grain for stainless, and washed down for plastic. The parts that get skipped are the castors and the underside of the lowest shelf, which is where food debris and wrapping collect.

Check the castors monthly and clear anything wound around the axles. Keep the right products at hand from cleaning supplies, and see trolley accessories for replacement castors and handles.

Sometimes. Where a standard trolley will not fit a lift, an alcove or a specific tray size, fabrication is an option and it is more common than people assume.

Our custom refrigeration and stainless steel appliances page covers that work. Send the dimensions and the job, and we will check the stainless steel equipment range for an off-the-shelf fit first.