Hygiene has always been very important in the catering industry.
Just think about how many events a single plate, knife, or fork takes part in. When hired from a professional catering company, they’ll have passed through the hands of thousands of people.
It’s why professional cleaning is just as important as professional hire.
But there is a bit of a misnomer about this, and it can lead to you spending more than you need to on catering hire.
Do you really want to wash up after your event?
Washing up at home is nothing like a professional clean. And, at home, that’s generally fine; your family all live together, you’re used to occasionally spreading the odd germ, and everyone does their bit to keep things as hygienic as possible.
But when you’re dealing with cutlery, glassware, and plates that are obtained from a hire company, it’s a different matter.
As noted earlier, items that have been supplied by a catering firm will be used at countless events throughout the year. That means they pass through a great many hands, conditions, and types of food. This is why they need thorough, professional cleaning to achieve the greatest levels of hygiene.
Besides, do you really want to wash up after your big event? Why not leave it to the professionals instead - even if you have to pay a bit for the privilege (we’ll get onto that in a moment)?
The pandemic factor
Although you may be fed up with hearing about “the new normal”, it’s impossible to cover any hygiene-related topic these days without mentioning COVID-19.
The pandemic has, understandably, put an even greater emphasis on cleanliness and hygiene in hospitality and every other industry.
Any surface on which a virus or bacteria can live needs to be cleaned thoroughly, and that’s nigh-on impossible when left to the customer. It’s why catering companies continue to raise the bar in terms of cleaning services and their attention to detail.
Paying for professional cleaning
There are two types of catering firm when it comes to cleaning. The first will make it clear on their quotes that cleaning comes at an additional fee.
Plato sits in that camp. We prefer to be ultra-clear and honest with customers. Nothing comes for free, after all, and cleaning is an incredibly important service which requires the time of experienced hospitality professionals and top-end equipment.
Then, there’s the catering firm which suggests that cleaning is “included as standard”. This is never the case. Their standard hire prices will simply be inflated to account for the cleaning fees.
It’s basic economics. Cleaning is a significant task, and a cost to any catering firm, therefore it has to be paid for somewhere down the line. As the customer, you’ll always get the bill, one way or another.
Often, this will result in the customer paying an artificially higher price, compared to a catering firm which adds the cleaning fees on top.
So, always read the small print!
What to expect from catering cleaning
You’ll want complete peace of mind that the items you’re hiring from a catering firm have been thoroughly cleaned.
Pick the right supplier, and that’s exactly what you’ll get. Any tableware you hire will have been intensely cleaned and disinfected using industrial dish washers.
What’s more, they’ll almost certainly wash everything, even if it returns from the previous event seemingly spotless.
Hygiene has never been more important. But that shouldn’t mean you have to break your budget for the best catering hire. So, get in touch with Plato today to find out how we can help you avoid spending too much for your next event’s tableware hire.