Preparation and service

An approved kitchen release gives the kitchen the reviewed scope. Kitchen Lead checks the approved recipe revision and prepares against the meal lines. A preparation time shows when the kitchen work happened. The meal order moves through preparation and readiness as the team works. Its planned service time remains visible beside the actual service time, allowing the service team to spot a commitment that needs attention.

For a party whose meal is prepared in stages, the kitchen can complete some lines before the rest. The service team should record the portions actually delivered to guests on each line. An order may have a prepared dish held back or a dish that is never served. Later cancellation or correction must preserve those facts and account for waste separately. The order’s served state follows the actual service result.

• Preparation record. Meal line preparation time and the approved recipe basis support the kitchen’s actual work.
• Service record. Served portions on each line and the order’s actual service time identify the guest outcome.
• Movement record. Ingredient movements show consumption and waste associated with the source meal line.

Agree when the kitchen marks a line prepared, who confirms served portions and how service time is entered. Define the procedure for a partly served order when another line is cancelled. The team should agree the units and timing for ingredient movements so that physical use and waste can be reconciled to prepared scope. Decide who resolves a discrepancy between a ready order and a missing guest service record.

The kitchen and service teams should rehearse an order that contains both a prepared line and an unprepared line. That is the most useful case for testing the handoff because the cancellation path must preserve the first line while changing only eligible remaining work.

Take an approved ticket for an accepted order with several meal lines. Kitchen Lead records preparation time on one line and the ingredient movements for that work. Service Lead then records fewer served portions than the line’s ordered portions and the actual service time. Compare the line’s ordered portions, preparation time and served portions before completing the order. If the unserved portion is cancelled, confirm that waste is accounted for separately and that the served history stays intact.

• Served Meal Lines — Lines with an actual served portion count for service review.
• Open Meal Orders — Accepted, preparing and ready orders grouped for the shift.
• Meal Order Board — A status view for the service lead and kitchen lead handoff.

Use preparation and service for the full handoff. When the remaining scope changes, follow correction and reconciliation.