Nothing beats a meal cooked entirely from scratch. The fresh ingredients, the rich flavors, the sounds and smells of food sizzling in a pan. The whole experience brings out a sense of nostalgia for childhood meals at grandmother’s house. Scratch Kitchen Restaurants bring the experience of meals made entirely from scratch to their customers, and they seem to be popping up everywhere. We’re glad they’re catching on.
Many scratch kitchens pride themselves in making something particular. Whether it’s fresh baked bread, cheesemaking, brewing, roasting, curing, fermenting, whatever, this specialty acts as a compliment to everything else on the menu. We want to shine a spotlight on this process. The tradition of “from scratch” cooking adds value, notoriety, and garners respect from your customers.
The problem with a world full of mass-produced ingredients is that we see a lot of similarities. If everyone is using the same ingredients we’re not going to see as much variation in the recipes. It’s not exciting. Scratch kitchens, on the other hand, require their own special recipes for absolutely everything. This makes the experience of eating their unique, and we love knowing how much care went into each and every bite.
Food made from scratch is often a lot healthier for you. It’s not always healthier, but when you have access and knowledge of every ingredient in the meal you can make better choices. You can also pronounce the ingredients, which is always a bonus. The food is free of preservatives and color dyes that many consumers are trying to avoid, and rightfully so! When you know exactly what’s going into your food it’s a lot easier to avoid the unhealthy stuff.
When you’re making an entire meal from scratch it’s not just for giggles. You’re putting in the work because you care about the food. You believe in quality over quantity. It’s no surprise that Scratch Kitchens put the same care into sourcing their ingredients that they do into preparing them. Chefs that work in scratch kitchens usually buy produce and other ingredients from local farmers and local businesses because they can build relationships and trust in the quality of food they’re getting.
If you want to know about how to source ingredients from local farmers, click here.
Scratch Kitchens have the opportunity to educate their customers and provide a hands-on appreciation of the craft. Often, we’ll see authentic Italian scratch kitchens make their own pasta, mozzarella, and cure their own meats. You can take time to open up your restaurant for classes on how to do these things. This can foster a sense of community around your restaurant and make people have a deeper appreciation of the work that goes into the food you prepare.
It may seem intimidating to take on the work of starting a scratch kitchen. The extra cost of this kind of venture is significant. But the higher costs also means higher quality of food, and your customers are willing to pay that premium. Scratch kitchens can absolutely be financially healthy restaurants.
The next time you know of a place with a scratch kitchen, pay them a visit. You won’t regret it!
What do you cook from scratch? We’d love to hear about it! Don’t forget to share in the comments below or on any of our social media accounts. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube!
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