The first customer arrives when everything looks ready, but the kitchen started working long before that, ingredients need to be prepared, sauces made, vegetables cut, meat prepared, equipment checked and stations organized.
The team needs to know what is available, what has changed and what needs attention.
Then service begins.
And suddenly all that preparation gets tested at once, orders start coming in, tables need food at different times., something runs out, someone changes an order. The kitchen has to keep moving.
The calm dining room you see is often sitting on top of a very busy system you never see.