Hi All,
I attended a cookery class the other week and whilst there I took some
time to have a look around the kitchen to see what kind of equipment
was being used in a professional kitchen.
One thing that struck me was that the pots and pans were all simple
single ply stainless steel with aluminium bases. There wasn't an
all-clad or le creuset to be seen, and when I checked on-line, it
appears that similar pans could be bought on-line from catering /
restaurant suppliers for a fraction of the cost of many of the brands
that are often recommended for amateur/home cooks. For example, it
seems that a professional might buy a fry pan at a cost of about £20
from a catering supplier, whereas an amateur might buy an all-clad
which costs £135 here in the UK.
It was a different story for food processors. A serious amateur might
pay £200 for a Cuisinart food processor; the professional kitchen used
Robot Coupe food processors which cost around £700.
It was interesting to see how the spending priorities for a
professional kitchen appear to be quite different than in the kitchens
of amateurs like myself. I do love good cookware, my Mauviel saute
pan is my pride and joy, but I can't afford to continue buying pans
like that. Buying cheaper pans from catering suppliers seems like a
good option to have. They're not 5-ply or copper, but if they're good
enough for professionals, then they should be more than good enough
for an amateur like me.
I was wondering what other people think, and whether anyone has any
experience with buying from catering suppliers and the brands they
carry.