August 2006
EQUIPPING 'ZA BISTRO!
By The Editors

A GOOD-LOOKING AIR DOOR
Berner’s Aristocrat model air door keeps flying pests out and cold air in at ‘Za-Bistro!’s service entry. The unit’s base measures 13”H x 12”D, and you can choose from five lengths: 36”, 42”, 48”, 60” or 72”. It looks good, too: You have a choice of a white aluminum or stainless cabinet, and a three-speed switch comes standard. With a 10’ or lower mounting height, the Aristocrat also works for patio openings, drive-through windows and walk-in coolers. It comes with a 5-yr. parts warranty.
Berner Int’l. Corp.
800/245-4455
www.berner.com

THE BIG CHILL
To back up ‘Za-Bistro!’s “assemble to order” menu, kitchen designers chose an undercounter blast chiller by Randell. The BC-5E holds five pans and chills up to 55 lbs. per batch. The unit features an automatic cooling system operated by a food probe. On-board printers let you record HACCP logs if necessary. The machine will hard-chill, soft-chill or freeze your food, and will hold it at a preset temperature at cycle’s end. Cross-cabinet airflow lets you chill food with covers on the pans, says the maker. The BC-5E uses a 3/4-hp condenser and 115V.
Randell/Unified Brands
888/994-7636
www.unifiedbrands.net

GET CAUGHT UP IN CONNECTIONLESS STEAMING
 Groen’s Vortex steams along happily, no water hook-up required. This pressureless, connectionless unit uses a powerful side-mounted blower to distribute steam throughout the cavity and between pans of food. You’re ready to cook in less than 20 minutes from a cold start. The unit sports a generous 4-gal. water reservoir—and it’ll sound an alert when the reservoir runs low. If no one responds, it shuts itself down as a safety precaution. The easy-open door with its push-up latch is field-reversible. Capacity: four hotel pans/ 12 sheet pans.
Groen/Unified Brands
800/676-9040
www.unifiedbrands.net

SOUPS AND SAUCES AND ROASTS, OH MY!
‘Za-Bistro! uses a stove/convection oven for sauces and to par-cook foods to be blast-chilled, then finished as needed in the stone hearth oven. Southbend’s 436A unit gives you six 33,000-Btu non-clogging cast-iron burners, a 4” s/s front rail and a removable one-piece drip tray under the burners. Below, the convection oven has 32,000--Btu, porcelain and s/s interior. The heavy-duty rack has five sets of rack guides for maximum flexibility. An on-off switch lets you turn off the blower fan to operate the convection oven as a regular oven if needed.
Southbend/Middleby
919/762-1075
www.southbendnc.com

KEEP THE HEAT
Soups, sauces and hot foods stay at or above the magic 140°F mark with APW’s W-3V Food Warmer unit. The W-3V features a serpentine-shaped element to evenly distribute heat, ample insulation to keep countertops and surroundings cool. The unit is meant to be used with water, but it won’t be damaged if it happens to run dry. Holds up to 22 qts. in a stainless steel pan and housing. Optional adaptor plates let you convert the 12” x 20” opening so it can hold two, three or five round pans. One-year P&L warranty.
APW Wyott Foodservice Equipment
800/527-2100
www.apwwyott.com

A REAL MOUNTAIN OF AN OVEN
One piece of equipment to handle some 80% of the menu items: that’s the challenge put to—and surpassed—by 'Za-Bistro!’s 7-ft. diameter, 6,000 lb. stone hearth oven. Wood Stone’s Mt. Rainier provides a generous 31 sq. ft. of cooking surface, roomy enough for even 20 items at a time during crunch-time. The single-piece floor and dome of the Mt. Rainier are each 4" thick and made from specially formulated high-temperature refractory “stone.” A guaranteed floor temperature insures consistent cooking zones and consistent product throughout the day. On a busy day, the oven can bake more than 200 12” pizzas per hour, based on 5-min. bake time at 550°F.
Wood Stone Corp.
800/988-8103
www.woodstone-corp.com

“S” STANDS FOR BENEFITS IN THIS MACHINE
Manitowoc has built sanitation, savings, serviceability and sound (or lack of it) into its latest S-Series icemakers. That’s a lot of sibilant salubriousness to pack into one machine. Antimicrobial AlphaSan molded into plastic components provides increased sanitation. Savings come from the energy-efficient air-assist ice removal system that cuts ice harvest time in half. Quick access to the innards through a hinged front door makes the S-Series very serviceable. As for sound, there’s not much of it—compressors are mounted on their own platforms and interiors are injected with foam for insulation.
Manitowoc Ice Inc.
800/545-5720
www.manitowocice.com

FOOD WASTE GOES HERE
Salvajor puts your food waste down the hatch—a corrosion-resistant, waste-mixing hatch, to be precise. The Food Waste Disposer Model 300, the type used at 'Za-Bistro!, features a corrosion-resistant aluminum alloy body, a sturdy 3-hp fan- and water-cooled motor (with a Teflon seal that protects the motor’s innards from water damage), and a 9-in. diameter rotor with four cutter bars made of hardened carbide alloy. An oversized mixing chamber gives the perfect mix of water-to-waste for optimum flow.
Salvajor Co.
800/821-3136
www.salvajor.com

CONVEYING WATER SAVINGS
For a space-, water-, and time-efficient door-type dish machine, check out Jackson’s TempStar machines. Using only 1 gal. of water per rack, the unit’s fully automatic cycle lasts 58 seconds. You get to choose between a 40°- or 70°-rise booster heater. Other plusses: a built-in pressure regulator and gauge, a front dress panel and electromechanical controls. Dimensions: 25-1/4”H x 25-1/4”D x 64-3/8”H. Optional accessories include a 36-compartment rack, combination rack, a drain quench system, flanged feet and a safety door interlock, among others.
Jackson/Enodis
888/800-5672
www.jacksonmsc.com

HOLES KEY TO CAPTURE AND CONTAINMENT
What isn’t there is as important as what is, with Captive-Aire’s front perforated supply plenum hood accessory. The company’s Model ND ventilation hood features a signature “triangle” on the front of the hood’s C-shaped capture area, giving much better capture and containment of the effluent plume than traditional models. Since 80% of the hood’s makeup air is delivered through the PSP, you’ll get more energy efficiency on the HVAC system and more comfortable kitchen temperatures for workers. A 4’ hood, like the one used at 'Za-Bistro!, can operate at flow rates of 150 cfm/ft. or 600 total cfm. The hood is rated for 450°F, 600°F and 700°F cooking surface temperatures.
Captive-Aire Systems
800/334-9256
www.captiveair.com