Do you ever go to Restaurant Supply stores? What do you buy?

15 years ago

I've just noticed two very large restaurant supply stores which I pass on the way home from my sister's house. I think they're fairly new. They've been closed when I passed by (usually at night) so I haven't been able to stop in but I'm curious about them. They aren't that far from my house so I'm thinking about checking them out some time.

Do you ever go to restaurant supply stores? What do you buy there? I don't really NEED anything... but they might have something that I don't realize I can't live without!

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Comments (35)

claire_de_luna
15 years ago
Yes, I have. I once bought a gigantic plastic salad bowl (the kind you see in salad bars) so I'd have something huge for those times when I want to mix up tons of stuff for a large crowd. The last time I went I bought two sizes of a Rubbermaid square container with/lid so I could safely brine my turkey/chickens in something more suited to their size. I've bought tongs, spatulas, dishes on occasion. It's fun to go in those places and poke around.
jojoco
15 years ago
Things I have bought at one near me:
commercial sized cookie sheets
shaker thing for cocoa to go on my lattes
decorating tips for icing
(almost bought a commercial panini machine for $250, but couldn't demote something else for the counter space).
jo
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lindac
15 years ago
Oh dear! Pots pans, spatulas, spoons, sheet cake pans....commercial stock bases....and I love to just look!
Linda c
khandi
15 years ago
Coffee maker, stainless steel box grater, large stainless steel colander, pizza pan, utensils... and can't remember anything more!
dlundin
15 years ago
Baking sheets, pizza peels, heavy-duty teflon pans, spatulas, cutting boards, tiny metal scoops for my salt, a spider... lots of things! Of the two restaurant supply stores I go to, one of them, Surfas, also carries gourmet foods. That place is dangerous. Dangerously good.
chase_gw
15 years ago
Mesuring cups, measuring spoons, aprons, dish towels, cookie sheets, food quality plastic containers, stainless steel bowls are among some of my normal purchases.

Special items, pizza paddle, pizza stone, oven fan, tomato processing Nonna machine, pasta maker, food mill, really good knives.

I need to go back soon but for what, I have no idea! LOL
teresa_nc7
15 years ago
A fun place to visit for us foodies! I've bought: instant thermometers (for work), pizza screens, dough scrapers (for Bread Camp last summer), knife blade guards, large pie plate (for deep dish pizza), and various tongs and serving utensils for the office catering kitchen.
jimster
15 years ago
Bar glass, which is inexpensive and nicer than disposable plastic for large parties. Also good for everyday use.

A large, heavy duty baking pan.

Miscellaneous commercial duty kitchen implements such as spatulas, knives, etc.

Jim
grainlady_ks
15 years ago
- SAF-Instant Yeast

- Food-Grade plastic storage containers. I also use these graduated containers (with tight-fitting lids) for dough rising buckets.

- Aprons - I've used these to make into gifts by painting or decorating them. Tuck an instant read thermometer into the pocket while you're at it (also purchased at the restaurant supply store.

- A lifetime supply of parchment paper.

Many of the things already mentioned...

I agree, it can be a dangerous place (LOL)!!!

-Grainlady
marlingardener
15 years ago
Oh, lordy, every chance we get! In San Antonio there is a great restaurant supply place, Ace Restaurant Supply, and when you buy one of something they don't look down their noses at you! We have gotten heavy-duty pots, two sizes of tongs, spatulas that don't fall apart, BIG ladles, itty-bitty bowls for individual servings of salsa, dips, etc. and the best paring knife I have ever had the pleasure of using! I love that place. After visiting the Botanical Gardens and going to the McNay Museum, Ace is our third stop, always. I have my eye on a chef's apron . . . .
jimster
15 years ago
That's the spirit, marlingardener. You said it better than anyone.

Jim
azzalea
15 years ago
I have a good bar/restaurant supply store just a few blocks from my front door.

I'm in and out there usually at least once a month. I love buying good quality kitchen gizmos. And I buy deli containers. Good place to get bowls, boxes, other containers for when you have to take food to a gathering and don't want to have to worry about collecting the container at the end of the get-together. Kitchen prep gloves. ArcoRoc. Commercial-sized rolls of plastic film, foil.

I could go on and on. I'm just delighted that there's an even better restaurant supply store near the new house we'll be moving to. As I told my husband last Christmas, restaurant supply stores to me are like shoe stores to other women. He got most of my stocking presents in the restaurant supply store, and it was the best Christmas stocking he's EVER made me.
wizardnm
15 years ago
We buy big bags of lump charcoal at the one near us. Also many paper products, deli containers, big jugs of peanut oil and many of the things already listed above. And of course parchment paper...1000 full sheet pan sized at a time.

Nancy
lindac
15 years ago
Oven fan? Nonna machine?
Do I need them....whatever they are???
Linda C
kandm
15 years ago
I have bought spider strainers for frying, commercial lipped baking sheets 1/2 sized and 1/4 sized, cooling racks of various sizes, storage containers, stainless steel spoons, wooden spoons, creme brulee pots, french onion soup bowls, bar ware, wooden salad bowls, more stuff I'm sure. I love kitchen supply stores.
colleenoz
15 years ago
Toys........lots and lots of lovely toys............... :-)
artsyshell
15 years ago
Baking pans, differant sized ice cream scoops, as they are good for muffins and cookies as well. Shakers,ladles,tongs,strainers,isi cartridges..
Wish the one I went to carried gourmet food. Unfortunately the one I go too isn't very large. They sell more commercial sized appliances. One of these days I will have to try some of the ones in the city.

Shelley
Lars
15 years ago
I used to drive by Surfas every day on my way to work and back, and so it was impossible not to stop there, although I would usually go on Saturdays, so that I would have more time. If I went after work, I would have less than half an hour to shop.

I doubt I could list everything I bought there, but the list would include thermometers, pizza screens, pizza stone, ladles (of all sizes), high-heat nylon spoons, high-heat spatulas, toques (like I really needed that!), aprons, measuring spoons (the last sets included 2 tbsp, 1-1/2 tbsp, and 2 tsp, plus one with 2 tsp 1-1/2 tsp (aka 1/2 tbsp), 2/3 tsp (haven't used that one yet), 1/8 tsp, and pinch (0.312 ml - haven't used that yet either). I also bought strainer/ladles for pasta (extremely useful), a Chinoise (with wooden reamer), a pyrex turkey baster (my plastic ones melted), and various food items. One year I bought a huge quantity of dried mushrooms for cheap (cheap by the pound, that is), and they lasted me two years. I also bought some extremely good balsamic vinegar(Fondo di Trebbiano, which they no longer have) that cost $48 for an 8.5 oz bottle (It now costs almost twice that much). The last bottle of balsamic I bought there cost $30, and is Gran Riserva Romantica brand - still very good but nowhere nearly as good as the Fondo di Trebbiano. If you haven't had 8-12 year old balsamic vinegar, you really should try it. Fortunately, Surfas has bottles open for tasting, and so I was able to sample quite a few. I was able to determine from this that the ones I liked best were the most expensive, and the prices always reflected the degree of how much I liked them. The $30 bottle is the cheapest that I find acceptable. I wish I had bought more of the Fondo di Trebbiano when it was only $48.

Lars
chase_gw
15 years ago
LOL Linda...!!

Oven fan is more correctly called a range hood! I bought a gorgoeus black semi circular one with a long chimney for the cottage. I love it!

The "Nonna Machine" is a tomato sauce maker. You put tomatoes in one end and sauce comes out the other. It spits the seeds and skin out one way and the juice and pulverized pulp the other way. I can do a bushel of tomatoes in 20 minutes. I call it a Nonna machine because all the Italian Mommas around here have one, mind you they do 500 jars at a time!
nan_nc
15 years ago
I absolutely LOVE restaurant supply stores! Cheap chef aprons which can be personalized with a little fabric paint for gifts (and yes, an instant-read thermometer in the pocket); great knives; outsized ladles, spatulas, and tongs; industrial-strength butter dishes; cheap glassware; all sorts of things. The only one in our area is some 40 miles away, across a city with HORRENDOUS traffic. I only get to go when DH needs to be somewhere over there, as I don't do traffic that well. It's been several years. Sigh....I need to replace my favorite paring knife, which he declared beyond saving.
lowspark
Original Author
15 years ago
WOW!! OK, I'm going, I'm going! I just have to figure out when they're open. I'm off on Thursday..... FIELD TRIP!! Boy I can't wait!! Thanks for all the ideas!!
eileenlaunonen
15 years ago
I belong to one called Restaurant Depot you have to have a tax id to buy anything. I get clams and mussels really cheap I buy fresh mozzarella and lots of other things like cheap soup spoons for my annual soup party etc!
donnar57
15 years ago
If Smart & Final is included in this thread's subject, then yes. My normal purchase in there used to be 2-1/2 lb bags of coffee beans - the coffee was delicious. Unfortunately, since DH switched to Decaf, we don't go in there any more - that same brand does not come in Decaf, and the only kind of Decaf they carry is ground (rather than whole beans).

I don't get up there very often anyway - only when DD and I go up to the junior college to pick up her books, or I "need" to go to Fry's Electronics (which is out S&F's back door).

DonnaR/CA
petaloid
15 years ago
Donna, I think Smart & Final definitely counts. We get the whole-bean French roast decaf coffee there.

Lars and Diana already raved about Surfa's gourmet restaurant supply, and I love it too. Yes, it is a dangerous place. They have every kind of rice you can think of. That Louisiana-style coffee with chicory that I like. Frozen duck. I got a good oven thermometer there. Different kinds of olive oil. Flavorings. Fancy pasta. Aprons.
rhome410
15 years ago
We have only one that I know of anywhere near us, and it's 45 minutes away, so I don't get there often...Probably a good thing.

Things I've gotten there: 16" wok, knives, large stainless bowls, and all sorts of utensils. They are the only place I can find my favorite Rubbermaid rubber spatulas any more.

My latest thing, though, is my 'portable salad bar.' I would have loved to fit one of those sandwich/salad bar appliances they sell there into my new kitchen. But I got a large box and fit it with a dbl layer of their plastic containers instead. We keep precut veggies in it, then move it out to the island for lunches, etc. Hope you don't mind me sharing photos, cuz I haven't participate in this forum much yet...It's just that it's one of my new 'organization' things I'm excited about. I'm hoping it promotes more veggie eating around our house.
dgkritch
15 years ago
We have one called Cash & Carry.

Oh. My.

They carry much of the stuff already mentioned (knives, thermometers, gadgets, bowls, etc.) plus lots of restaurant sized packages of food. Basics like flour and sugar, frozen soup bases, a whole aisle of barrista supples, spices, produce, dairy and MEAT!!

Boy, oh boy the meat!! Last summer I bought a whole BONELESS prime rib for $4.99/lb. Yeah, it was over $70, but it was not frozen so I came home and cut it into about 4-rib sized chunks and froze them. I can regularly get boneless pork loin for $.99-$1.59/lb. Baby back ribs, 5# blocks of cheese for around $15. The list goes on and on.

Big bag of Panko---$4.00
1 gallon of "Just OK" olive oil for around $20 (no guilt in using for everyday cooking).

Yep, dangerous place. Very, very dangerous!

Deanna (anybody wanna come visit??? grin)
ysop1016
15 years ago
Chase,
What is the name of the machine that you call Nonna and where did you get it?
TIA
bri29
15 years ago
I love Cash and Carry... It's more dangerous than costco for me. I go in there and I just wander the aisles looking for things I "need." Last time I went I ended up with pastry bags and tips, a bench scraper and a bunch of frozen vegetables. I would have come out of there with sheet pans, pan liners, cake pans and a whole bunch of stuff, but they didn't have everything I wanted so I figured I'd come back another time. Saved myself $75 with that close call! :)
Bri
Cloud Swift
15 years ago
My favorite restaurant supply store find is my measuring scoops. I gave a set to Diana in the my favorite things swap - you can see a picture on that thread. Restaurant supply stores are good for getting substantial stainless steel measuring cups and spoons instead of the wimpy aluminum ones that bend or dent. Or the big thin spatulas that can be used for tasks like lifting a layer of cake after you have split it horizontally to add fillings.

In addition to what others have mentioned, they often have the cake pans with straight sides instead of sloped which is nice when making layer cakes.

Around here there are two kinds - the ones that sell mainly food with a bit of equipment and the ones that sell mainly equipment - everything from utensils to major appliances. Smart and Final and Cash and Carry are the food kind - they are under the same ownership but Cash and Carry is bigger with more specialized food. For example, our Smart and Final has a few kinds of Torani syrup but the Cash and Carry has the full line plus some other lines of flavoring syrups.

The equipment ones aren't all equal either. The area that has Cash and Carry has about 3 of the non-food restaurant supply stores. One carries nicer more varied stuff than the other two. But all have at least the basics like the stainless steel sheet pans, good cooling racks and lots of utensils.

All the ones around here are open to the public. You don't have to be a restaurant or have a tax ID.

Here is a link that might be useful: Link to thread with picture of the scoops
chase_gw
15 years ago
ysop, I live in Canada and got mine from a local restaurant supply store. I've attached a link to a picture of my machine and the store I got it from.

However if you Google "Electric Tomato Squeezers" you'll find lots of American Suppliers.

Here is a link that might be useful: Electric Tomato Squeezer
chase_gw
15 years ago
ooops sorry ysop...

The link takes you to a page with a pic of a manual squeezer, mine is electric. Click on "electric tomato squeezers". Mine is the model 2121.
ysop1016
15 years ago
Chase,
Thank you a bunch for the info. That is one heck of a machine. I bought a manual food mill which does not do the job. Is your electric#2121 easy to clean?
chase_gw
15 years ago
For the most part very easy, the grinder rod itself is a bit annoying to clean, but for the time it saves me, and the product it delivers, I'm OK with it !

I must also say I mispoke about the time it takes me. I buy my Italian tomatoes by the peck not the bushel. It's a peck that takes 20 minutes, maybe 30 tops. The end result is a very smooth and pure tomato sauce, no seeds, etc. I love it!
lowspark
Original Author
15 years ago
I went yesterday to three different restaurant supply stores. I'm sorry to report I didn't buy a thing. I was tempted on a few items but then, really thinking about it, I didn't need them really. I've come to the realization that I have pretty much what I need in my kitchen, and there just wasn't anything there that I didn't already have or couldn't live without. Plus, although there were a few good prices, I didn't find them to be all that much cheaper than regular stores.

I did see the Lifetime Supply of parchment paper sheets, but I couldn't bring myself to spend $48 for it. I don't know if I'd use 2000 sheets in five lifetimes! I do love to bake but I just don't bake enough to justify that. A regular roll of the stuff lasts me for years so buying that much at once just doesn't make sense for me. Maybe if I could find 20 people to split it with.... LOL!

They didn't have any food at all so no possibilities there either. I did notice the aprons and chef's hats so I'll keep that in mind for the future. It was fun in any case!
Ideefixe
15 years ago
My husband's a chef, and we have a fair amount of stuff from professional supply houses, but I'd never use Surfa's or any other fancy-schmancy place for things I can get cheaper elsewhere. I don't want all my money tied up in cases of cans of tomatoes. Or $40 jars of saffron.

Smart and Final isn't as useful to me as Costco, but it's closer, and I like their coffee.

I think the most useful things are large plastic or metal bowls, 10 gal. plastic storage bins (I keep flour in mine), spatulas and other metal utensils, commercial sized rolls of plastic wrap or foil. But storage of large quantities can be such a headache.

Do you ever go to Restaurant Supply stores? What do you buy?

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