Can Restaurants Wash Dishes by Hand?

While the big, silver box dishwasher is a common sight in restaurants all over the world, not every shop can afford to own and maintain one. If they cannot afford a dishwasher, can restaurants wash their dishes by hand or is that prohibited by law?

Washing by hand in certain smaller restaurants is allowed by the FDA if they properly wash, rinse, and sanitize the dishes according to FDA guidelines. More extensive facilities should use a commercial dishwasher. What are FDA guidelines for hand washing dishes?

If you wonder when it is legal for a restaurant to hand wash their dishes and whether it is safe, read below for more information to explain it.

How Do Restaurants Hand Wash Dishes?

Unless using a commercial dishwasher, the fastest way to wash dishes in a restaurant by hand is to use the three-sink method. Most health departments and the FDA have approved the three sink method as the preferred method to hand wash dishes in a commercial setting. 

While this method works for cleaning and sanitizing dishes, smaller establishments that cannot afford a commercial dishwasher are the only ones that should use it.

Restaurants with a large volume of dishes to wash would have problems using this method because of the time needed to scrape, wash, rinse, sanitize, and air dry the dishes. Another problem is the space needed to dry them. 

When using a commercial dishwasher, you scrape the dishes and place them in the racks, then rinse them off with a high-pressure sprayer before sending them through the dishwasher. Once done with the cycle, they can be pushed out to the other side to air dry quickly before being put up while washing another rack of dishes. The entire process is rapidly achieved. Hand washing dishes takes a lot more time and energy to accomplish.

What is the Three-Sink Method?

You may have heard of the three-sink method of washing dishes. Have you ever given any thought to how many dishes a restaurant uses in a day? If you have ever worked in a restaurant during peak times, you know that even if you are using a dishwasher, it is hard to keep up with the demand. But if you are washing them by hand, is it even possible to manage to keep caught up. 

Most health departments throughout the United States require commercial kitchens to have a three-bin sink installed in the kitchen. Part of the thinking behind that is the three-sink method of hand washing dishes. But, what is the three-sink process?

If you want to know more, read on below for the rest of the story.

Prepping the Dishes to Wash

Just like you wouldn’t take the plates of food off your table at home and immediately set them in the sink with food still on them, you cannot do it at a restaurant either. 

First, you have to prep the plate to get it ready to wash it by scraping the remaining food into the trash. You will want to make sure the sink area is empty and clean before starting your session of washing dishes. 

Some restaurants may have a four-section sink and have food disposal in one. If so, you can scrap the food into it and use the disposal to get rid of the food products.

Washing the Dishes

Using the first bin in the sink should be filled with the hottest water you can safely stand combined with soap and degreaser. Usually, the temperature must be between 95 and 120 degrees to meet health department standards. You should regularly check with a thermometer and change the water once it starts cooling off or getting too dirty. 

You will wash each dish in the water before moving it to the next compartment.

Rinsing the Dishes

The rinse water should be around 120 degrees to meet most standards from the health department. Fill the second compartment with very hot water to rinse the dishes. After washing the dishes, place each one in the second compartment to rinse them. You will move them to the next sink to sanitize them before use.

Sanitizing the Dishes

Sanitizing the dishes is the most crucial step in the process. This process kills any remaining germs, and the dishes are safe to use again. You can either use chemical sanitation or hot water sanitation.

You can achieve chemical sanitization by using a chemical solution to kill any remaining germs with very hot water. You will need to check with your health department to make sure you use a chemical they approve of and the correct water temperature. 

Typically each dish will have to soak in the solution between seven and thirty seconds before being removed. You can purchase EPA-approved tablets to put in the sink to sanitize the dishes. You can use chlorine test strips to confirm you have achieved the correct level of concentration. 

The second way to sanitize dishes is hot water sanitization, requiring a sanitizing sink heater installed to get the water temperature to around 171 degrees Fahrenheit.

Drying the Dishes

FDA guidelines require dishes to always air dry. Never use a towel. You must have a self-draining drainboard to prevent water from accumulating. It can be hard to keep up in busy restaurants unless you have ample space to accommodate enough dishes drying at a time. 

Using the three-sink method can be effective but is probably not feasible in larger establishments that require large amounts of dishes done quickly. Commercial dishwashing machines only need a few minutes to be ready to use the dishes again compared to dishwashers you might use in your home and can handle large volumes of dishes to go through them each hour. 

The high temperatures used to run them help the dishes dry almost immediately once they are out of the washing compartment.  

To Conclude

Restaurants who want to use the handwashing method instead of purchasing a commercial dishwasher must use a safe procedure that ultimately kills germs, such as the three sink methods. The dishes must be washed, rinsed, and sanitized using an FDA-approved method to assure that they kill all germs that could cause bacteria so that they can use the containers again. 

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