How to Set Up the Perfect Office Kitchen

The office kitchen is a central social hub for the whole company. It’s the one space where people from all departments can come together to huddle around a single microwave. Or a single kettle or to wait quietly until it’s their turn to reheat their leftovers or make their cheap instant coffee. 

There’s a lot that can be done within the space of a typical office kitchen that will help boost productivity and keep people inside the building instead of running down the street for takeaway.

Here are some common office essentials and some great optional extras to really make your office kitchen be the best it can be. 

Coffee Machine

Coffee fuels businesses. A good office coffee machine that’s easy to use can help your staff stay indoors and stop heading out to the nearest cafe every few hours.

The best coffee machines are the ones that use real beans. This will match the taste and texture of the barista coffee that your staff crave. Don’t buy a pod machine as they create too much waste and tend to break easily.

It is possible to rent office coffee machines in Melbourne and most other cities, which can be great as the company will deliver fresh beans regularly and perform repairs and maintenance on the machine. 

Most coffee machines also come with a regular hot water tap. This means you won’t need a kettle anymore. Waiting for a kettle to boil is a waste of time if you have instant boiling water on demand. This will keep people at their desks rather than waiting around a kettle. 

Microwaves

If there’s one kitchen appliance that always gets a queue in any office kitchen, it’s the microwave. Depending on the size of your office, you should consider buying a number of these in order to get everyone fed as quickly as possible and back to their desks. 

Sandwich Press 

You’d be surprised at how many things you can cook on a sandwich or panini press. Wraps, souvlakis, toast, burgers, waffles, crumpets and lots more. This is a great way for people to make their own lunch or reheat their food. To keep the machine clean you should supply baking paper and cooking spray oil. Then they can just throw the paper away instead of making a mess on the hot plate.

Sufficient Cutlery & Crockery

Make sure there’s plenty of cups, plates, knives and forks for everyone. People will often hoard a stash of dirty coffee cups at their desks. Having a lot of extras is useful for when you have staff that do this. It’s also handy for the inevitable breakages that will come. 

The same goes for knives and forks. Some offices have a problem with cutlery disappearing. Be sure to keep a stash of extras and to make up for the cutlery that inevitably goes missing. 

Dishwasher

When left to their own devices, office workers will often try and avoid washing their own dishes by hand. A dishwasher is a far more hygienic and water-saving solution that will make your workers who do wash up spend less time away from their desks. Just be sure that someone remembers to turn it on each night and empty it each morning, or else there will be trouble! 

Good Kitchen Storage

Ensure your kitchen area has practical kitchen storage. By having everything neat, tidy and organised, it is easy for everyone to find what they need and to also put it away afterwards. Additional shelving and cupboards is a great start. Don’t forget to have both regular rubbish and recycling bins nearby as well. 

Benchtop Mini Oven 

Most offices won’t have room for a conventional oven, but there are smaller ones that can be fit on a benchtop. Logistically, this does take longer than a microwave, but with a timer, someone could set their food to be ready in time for lunchtime without the risk of it being soggy. 

So which should you get first?

Unless you’re a brand new business, you should already have a few of these items, as well as other essentials such as a fridge and freezer. To really ensure everyone is happy, set a budget and let your team vote on what they want the most within that budget!