Top Considerations for Restaurant Linen Service
Learn what restaurant owners should consider when planning their restaurant linens.
Linens are an important part of a restaurant business because of the power they have to impress upon your customers. But to ensure that that impression is a great one, you must first consider several things. What types of linens will you need and how many of each? How will you care for and maintain the quality of your linens?
You’ll also need to consider whether to purchase your linens or to leverage the expertise and experience of a linen rental service provider that knows how to both handle these products as well as walk you through the entire process.
There’s certainly a lot to think about, but let’s explore the options.
The Purpose of Restaurant Linens
We know that 81% of people notice the way a table is set in a restaurant1. Restaurant linens serve an important role in your restaurant operations, and the most common (yet sometimes underappreciated) linen is the tablecloth. Restaurant tablecloths help to cover up your bare tables, dressing them up to look more formal, a clean slate that allows your dishes to shine. Tablecloths enhance the aesthetic of your restaurant and give you a bit more control over that style since linens can be quickly swapped out for a new color, whereas tables aren’t quite as easy to change on a whim.
With tabletop linens, it’s also easier to keep your tables looking sharp and surfaces protected, thus improving hygiene at your facility. If a tablecloth linen becomes soiled, you can simply replace it with a fresh one.
Tablecloths can also improve the comfort of your patrons. Spills become absorbed by the soft fabric instead of pooling or running off the table onto diners.
Napkins are the other restaurant linen superstar. Many restaurants opt for disposable napkins instead of linen, but reusable restaurant napkins are much more environmentally friendly and offer a boost to your identity.
Reusable cloth napkins and tablecloths and project a certain type of professionalism. In fact, 72% of consumers agree that cloth linens help create a better dining experience in a restaurant2.
1. Types of Restaurant Linens
When mapping out what linens you need for your restaurant, start by thinking about the types of linens you will require, both practically speaking and what perception you’d like to impart upon your guests.
Napkins
Cloth napkins have an advantage over disposable paper napkins because they are more environmentally friendly, and, with a linen rental program, you don’t have to keep re-buying napkins that will just fill up your trash cans and dumpsters.
When planning for napkins, consider the quantity and sizes you will need for each. Vestis offers different sizes and types of linen napkins to suit your needs:
Tablecloths
In a recent survey, 61% of consumers preferred professionally laundered tablecloths over disposable ones in a restaurant3. Freshly laundered tablecloths help to elevate the dining experience for your customers. With tablecloths, it’s important to understand the variety of table sizes you have at your restaurant to understand the quantity and types of table covers you’ll need. Vestis offers multiple sizes and colors:
2. Quantity of Restaurant Linens
The number of restaurant linens that you require is not rocket science, but it does take a bit of planning to make sure you have the right amount. The last thing you want is to run out of tablecloths, or worse, napkins, during a busy seating.
It’s not just about how many tables you will have. It’s also about how many times those tables will turn over in a day, in a week. With napkins, it’s about how many place settings you will need during a given timeframe. Will every table need a tablecloth? Do you need different quantities for different sizes? Do you have disposable napkins in certain parts of the restaurant and reusable in others?
3. Replacing Linens
When your linens begin to show signs of wear, it’s important to replace them so they don’t negatively impact your guests’ experience. If renting your linens, your service provider will replace linens as needed. Rental service providers like Vestis monitor your quantities and quality and replace any worn out items.
Vestis can also ensure that those replacements will match what you currently have, whereas if you are purchasing your own linens, you run the risk of those items being discontinued. This can cause an issue when trying to match new linens to your current items.
Vestis has a large supply of linens on hand to support customers during busy times, or when replacements are needed. And with style standardization, these linens will match what you currently use.
4. Laundering Linens
How are you going to keep your linens fresh and clean? Do you have a method for removing tough stains like grease or tomato sauce?
It’s actually a lot to manage washing several loads of linens each and every day to keep up with the demand at your establishment. Linens typically require a more intensive wash process to keep them free from contaminants and germs since they may have direct or indirect contact with food. This is certainly worth considering when planning out your linen program, especially if you intend to purchase your linens.
A rental service partner will wash your linens for you using a specialized restaurant linen wash process designed to get stains out of these items without wearing them down prematurely.
Restaurant Linen Service: The Vestis Advantage
As a rental services provider, Vestis provides high-quality restaurant linens to food service establishments, allowing you to reap the many benefits of experienced professionals managing your linen program for you. Renting linens is cost efficient because you don’t have to pay for all the tablecloths and napkins up front or the supplies needed for daily launderings. This is all included in your rental program.
Soiled linens are picked up from your facility, and fresh linens are delivered weekly, or more frequently based on your specific needs. Inventory management is handled by Vestis since we monitor your linen inventory levels during each visit and we can provide additional linens during periods of high demand. This supply flexibility can be crucial during busy seasons or special events.
Contact Vestis to check linens off your list, for good.
1, 2, 3Source: Consumers surveyed who agree. Study completed by Big Village, commissioned by Vestis, May 2020.