Restaurant opening and closing procedure
Opening and closing are the two points where a restaurant is most exposed and least supervised. They usually run on what the longest-serving person remembers, which breaks the moment they are off shift. Written down, they also produce the temperature and cleaning records an inspector asks for.
- 1
Opening Manager unlocks, disarms the alarm, and checks the premises for overnight issues: leaks, pest signs, failed equipment, forced entry.
Opening Manager
Walk it before anything else is switched on. Finding a fridge failure now is a supplier call; finding it at service is a day of lost stock.
- 2
Kitchen Lead records the temperature of every refrigerator and freezer and logs the reading with the time.
Kitchen Lead
Log the actual number, not a tick. A tick tells an inspector nothing and tells you nothing about a unit drifting over weeks.
All within range: go to step 4
A unit is out of range: go to step 3
- 3
Kitchen Lead isolates affected stock, records what was affected, and escalates to the Opening Manager for a disposal or transfer decision.
Kitchen Lead
Do not serve from a unit that failed until someone has decided in writing. Record the decision and who made it.
Resolved, unit back in range: go to step 4
Stock disposed: go to step 4
- 4
Kitchen Lead checks deliveries against the order and the required temperature on arrival, rejecting anything outside spec.
Kitchen Lead
Check on arrival, in front of the driver. Accepting first and checking later means the problem is now yours.
- 5
Opening Manager counts the float, records the opening figure, and confirms it against the expected amount.
Opening Manager
Float correct: go to step 6
Discrepancy: go to step 12
- 6
Opening Manager confirms the front of house is service-ready: cleaning complete, tables set, allergen information current, hand-wash stations stocked.
Opening Manager
- 7
Kitchen Lead confirms prep is complete against the day's forecast and records anything short.
Kitchen Lead
- 8
Closing Manager records closing temperatures for every refrigerated unit.
Closing Manager
The closing reading is what tells you whether a unit struggled during service. Skipping it loses the more useful of the two readings.
All within range: go to step 9
Out of range: go to step 3
- 9
Kitchen Lead completes the close-down clean against the cleaning schedule and signs the record.
Kitchen Lead
Signed against a named schedule, not from memory. The schedule is the part an inspector reads.
- 10
Closing Manager reconciles takings against the till report, records any variance, and secures the cash.
Closing Manager
Reconciles: go to step 11
Variance beyond tolerance: go to step 12
- 11
Closing Manager switches off and secures equipment per the shutdown list, sets the alarm, and locks up.
Closing Manager
A written shutdown list, because the item that gets forgotten is the one that causes an overnight incident.
Closed: the procedure ends
- 12
Closing Manager records the cash discrepancy with the amount, the shift, and who was on till, and escalates per the cash-handling policy.
Closing Manager
Record every discrepancy including small ones. A pattern is only visible if the small ones were written down.
Escalated and recorded: go to step 11
Change these before you use it
- Replace the temperature ranges with the ones your food safety regime requires. This template deliberately states none, because they vary by jurisdiction and by product.
- Attach your actual cleaning schedule and equipment shutdown list. Those two lists are what make steps 9 and 11 followable.
- Set your own cash variance tolerance in step 10 in writing, before you need it.
- If you hold a licence with specific conditions, add the checks those conditions require as explicit steps.
- This is a starting point, not food safety or licensing advice. Have it reviewed against the rules that actually apply to you.
This is a starting point, not compliance advice. It is written to be adapted, and a procedure that touches access, money, or customer data needs to match how your business actually operates and whatever rules apply to you. Use it as a first draft to edit, not a policy to adopt.
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