Short answer
Size cold storage from your deliveries and menu, not from a seat count. Estimate how much chilled and frozen product you hold between deliveries at your busiest, then allow room for airflow. Many small restaurants manage with reach-ins and refrigerated prep tables on the line, and add a walk-in when they buy in bulk or receive deliveries only once or twice a week.
Reach-ins are sold in one, two and three door sections, with capacity stated in cubic feet. That figure describes the cabinet volume; usable space is less once shelves, pans and airflow gaps are accounted for.
Put cold storage where it is used. Refrigerated prep tables, undercounter units and chef bases on the line cut trips to the main cooler during service, which matters as much as total capacity.
Plan refrigerator and freezer space separately. A menu built on frozen product needs more freezer capacity than a fresh-prep kitchen of the same size.
Updated · By Norpex