The right serving equipment can help operators take control in strong headwinds.

Mounting supply chain issues, price hikes, and labor shortages continue to take a toll on the restaurant industry. Chronically reduced staffing numbers and an inconsistent availability of ingredients are forcing operators to make do with less—while often facing increased customer demand. It’s a uniquely challenging environment, to say the least.

With no short-term solution on the horizon, restaurant operators have learned to adjust to this stream of shifting challenges by adapting a level of flexibility like never before. But as operators rethink processes on a weekly or even daily basis, they may come up against a recurring stumbling block—the limitations of their existing food serving equipment. 

“Operators and chefs are creative people—they are going to serve something, so they make it happen, no matter what,” says Chance Hunt, product manager at LTI, Inc. “What an establishment is serving today could be very different from what is served a few days from now. But their equipment should not restrict them when it comes to service time. They need to be able to write the menu based on the food they have available, not the equipment on the other side of the wall.”

There is a solution to rapid-fire menu changes. LTI’s QuickSwitch serving well technology allows operators to serve hot and cold items right next to each other. Limited-time offerings can rotate in and out, regardless of temperature. Assembly of foods like sandwiches, salads, and bowls can become more configurable and more efficient. 

“QuickSwitch gives you maximum flexibility with your menu,” says Mike Purcell, vice president of sales and marketing at LTI, Inc. “It also saves space and helps you make do with fewer employees. A lot of places have typically had one employee handling the hot food, one handling the cold food. With QuickSwitch, you can have one employee who’s able to handle both right there in front of them.”

The independently controlled and convertible wells can also switch from hot, cold, or frozen in an hour or less. If the restaurant runs out of an item, the empty spot in the line can be filled relatively quickly—either hot or cold.

QuickSwitch technology fits neatly into LTI’s UD-Wall stainless steel serving counters. The UD-Wall serving counters are also designed to address the unique challenges operators face. The stainless steel construction is more sanitary than the plywood used to construct many custom fast-casual and quick-serve restaurant serving counters. The counter is also open in the back, making it easier to keep clean. It arrives on-site pre-assembled, costs less than a typical front wall, and can be installed in a few hours.

“You can assemble the UD-Wall in half a day, whereas you’re probably going to wait a week for a carpenter to build a front wall,” Purcell says. “You cut down on construction time, and you get a consistent, sanitary, easy-to-assemble piece of equipment.”

The UD-Wall hands the control of front wall construction back to operators and sets them up for long-term success. “Operators get more control over the construction process with the UD-Wall,” Hunt says. “With QuickSwitch technology, they have the ability to lead with the menu rather than trying to figure out the menu around the limitations of the equipment. LTI really understands our customers’ environments and what they need for support.”

To learn more about QuickSwitch technology and the UD-Wall, visit the LTI website.

By Kara Phelps

Sponsored Content