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How to Know If a Restaurant Really Cooks From Scratch

Author: Kevin Smith
by Kevin Smith
Posted: Apr 13, 2017

Believe it or not, not every restaurant actually cooks all of its food in the restaurant. Many, especially those that are part of large, national brands, simply heat up pre-prepared foods for customers. Other restaurants rely on a combination of premade food and freshly cooked items. There is also a made from scratch restaurant in Tampa, FL, that truly make their own food from fresh, high-quality ingredients. This leaves consumers having to wonder how they can know when the restaurants they visit actually are made fresh onsite.

They Say So -- And Back It Up

The simplest way to know whether or not a restaurant prepares their menu from scratch is that they advertise themselves as a from scratch restaurant in Tampa, FL. Of course, you need to take any advertisement or marketing with a grain of salt. Therefore, you want to ask some questions to see whether or not they really do make everything from scratch. You can ask about the ingredients used in the different meals and where they are sourced. If they use mostly locally-grown and fresh items, then it is more likely that they really do make their items from scratch.

Know The Definition of From Scratch

There is no central definition of from scratch, so it can be difficult to know exactly what a restaurant means. Some places make items from scratch, but then freeze them and simply reheat them when someone orders the item. Other places make each item completely from scratch the moment it is ordered. A lot of this depends on the menu and size of the restaurant, as well as the number of chefs. Some items might be prepared ahead of time, or even purchased pre-made, such as bread and pastas. It is best to inquire as to how the restaurant defines that their items are prepared to order.

In France, a recent law makes it much more clear. To be considered a from scratch restaurant there, you cannot use any ingredients that have been marinated, heated or assembled ahead of time; however, it can be frozen. There is not a similar law here, but it might provide a guideline for you to use to you if a restaurant really is making items from scratch.

The Food Takes Some Time to Arrive

Although this is not a hard and set rule, if your food comes amazingly fast, then there is a chance that is it not freshly made from scratch. Even salads take some time to prepare, and anything more complicated will need time. This does not mean that you should expect your meal to take forever to arrive; many chefs have shortcuts, such as constantly preparing items on the menu, even when they make items to order to cut down on time. However, if you order and minutes later your meal arrives, then it might just have been premade in some form or fashion.

There are many places that might declare itself as a from scratch restaurant in Tampa, FL, and other restaurants want you to believe that they actually do the cooking onsite. However, it is important to know when you are getting high-quality meals made from fresh ingredients are prepared on site when you order them, and when you are simply getting something reheated.

About the Author

Kevin Smith is a writer and an avid reader. He writes about business, marketing, health, pets, or relationships etc.

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Author: Kevin Smith

Kevin Smith

Member since: Dec 15, 2016
Published articles: 437

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