Restaurants & QSR
Refrigeration for cloud kitchens
A cloud kitchen often runs three to six delivery brands — biryani, North Indian, rolls, Chinese, desserts — from one compact unit, frequently in a basement or a back-lane commercial space with little natural ventilation. There is no dining room, so every square metre goes to cooking, storage and packing. Orders arrive in sharp bursts around lunch and dinner, and the kitchen has to turn them out in minutes to keep its delivery-app ratings. Refrigeration in this setting has to be compact, cope with poor airflow and high room temperatures, keep different brands' ingredients organised, and stay out of the way of a packing and dispatch area where riders queue at the counter.
What the equipment has to cope with
- Basement and enclosed units trap heat. With ranges, fryers and several compressors in one room, the air around the cabinets can sit well above the room temperature the owner expected.
- Several brands share one kitchen, so storage must be organised by brand or by station, or ingredients get mixed up and stock counts drift.
- Order volumes spike at mealtimes, so line cabinets are opened constantly for short, intense periods and must recover between waves.
- Floor space is the main cost, so every refrigerator has to earn its footprint; tall units and worktops are preferred over cabinets that only store.
- Packed food sits waiting for riders, and cold items such as desserts, raita and drinks need a place to stay chilled until pickup.
Typical temperatures
| Raw chicken and mutton for biryani | +1 to +4 °C |
|---|---|
| Marinated meats and paneer | +1 to +4 °C |
| Cooled gravies, rice and noodles | +2 to +5 °C |
| Raita, salads and chutneys | +2 to +5 °C |
| Packaged drinks for orders | +3 to +8 °C |
| Frozen momos, fries and parathas | −18 °C or colder |
| Ice cream and frozen desserts | −18 to −22 °C |
Equipment
What to buy, and why.
A typical cloud kitchen runs one upright reach-in as the shared bulk store, with sections or shelves allotted per brand and raw non-veg kept separate. Each cooking station — biryani, tandoor or grill, wok, rolls — gets an undercounter or worktop unit, which doubles as the prep surface the cramped room needs. One or two chest freezers in the store corner hold frozen momos, fries, parathas, frozen meat and ice cream. At the packing counter, a small glass-door cooler holds bottled drinks, desserts and raita cups so the packer can complete an order at a glance without opening the back fridges. Because the space is often enclosed, exhaust and fresh-air ventilation are planned with the refrigeration, not after it.
- +2 to +8 °CUndercounter RefrigeratorThe station fridge and the work surface in one: holds each brand's service ingredients under the counter where they are cooked and packed.Set-up guide
- +2 to +8 °CReach-in RefrigeratorThe shared bulk store for all brands: raw meat, prepped bases, dairy, vegetables and the next day's mise en place.Set-up guide
- −18 to −60 °CDeep FreezerFrozen stock for momos, fries, parathas, frozen meat and ice cream used by dessert brands.Set-up guide
- +2 to +10 °CGlass Door Refrigerator / Visi CoolerA dispatch cooler at the packing counter for bottled drinks, dessert cups and raita, so packers can complete orders at a glance.Set-up guide
Questions
- What is the minimum refrigeration a small cloud kitchen needs to start?
- For a single-brand starter kitchen, a two-door reach-in for bulk stock, one undercounter or worktop unit at the main cooking station and one chest freezer cover most menus. Add a small glass-door cooler at the packing counter if you sell drinks or chilled desserts. Plan for a second brand from the start by leaving space and a power point for one more undercounter.
- My cloud kitchen is in a basement. Will that affect refrigerators?
- Yes. Every refrigerator dumps its heat into the room, and in an enclosed basement that heat has nowhere to go, so the room warms up and every cabinet works harder. Plan fresh-air supply and exhaust that remove heat from the whole room, keep front-breathing units in counter runs, and do not stack freezers into a closed store room.
- How should a multi-brand kitchen organise shared cold storage?
- Organise by food type first and brand second. Raw non-veg, veg and dairy, and cooked items each need their own section regardless of brand, for food safety. Within each section, use colour-coded or brand-labelled containers with dates, so stock checks and FSSAI-style hygiene inspections are straightforward.
Before you buy
All guides- Commercial Refrigerator Buying Guide (India)9 min read
- Reach-in vs Undercounter Refrigerator: Which to Choose6 min read
- Commercial Refrigerator Maintenance Checklist6 min read
- Types of Commercial Refrigerators Explained6 min read
- Reach-in Refrigerator Guide for Hot Indian Kitchens6 min read
- Reach-in Freezer Guide for Commercial Kitchens5 min read
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