Keeping Food Fresh: Let CRS Guide You Through Your Commercial Refrigeration Needs

You put a lot of valuable food items in your fridge, so choose wisely.

When you're designing your dream commercial kitchen, the commercial refrigeration decisions need to sit near the top of the list, because expensive food has to live in those units and picking the right one matters more than people realize. It sounds simple enough, but as soon as you're choosing between a walk-in or an under-counter fridge, weighing whether a refrigerated prep table makes sense, or scrolling through display fridge styles for the front of house, it pays to bring in some expert advice. Fortunately, the team at Canadian Restaurant Supply (CRS) has been guiding kitchen creators through these decisions for over two decades, helping operators land on refrigeration that keeps the kitchen humming and staff and customers healthy.

With the kind of end-to-end service you'd hope for, the CRS team starts with your kitchen layout to talk through the logical places for a refrigeration unit (or units) to sit. Honest tip from someone who's seen this go sideways: fridge condensers give off a surprising amount of heat, and a busy kitchen really doesn't need any more of that, so sometimes the smartest move is to situate those condensers outside.

Choosing the right type of commercial fridge

There's no single "best" commercial fridge, just the right one for what you're actually doing day to day. We've watched operators fall in love with a glass-door reach-in for the look, only to realize it's a back-of-house unit that nobody's going to see, and we've watched others squeeze a walk-in into a footprint that really wanted an under-counter setup. Here's a quick rundown of the most common options and where each one tends to fit:

Fridge type	Where it works best	What to think about
Walk-in cooler	High-volume kitchens, bulk storage, multi-unit operations	Floor space, condenser placement, building access
Under-counter fridge	Tight prep stations, small kitchens, satellite stations	Limited capacity, but fits where nothing else will
Refrigerated prep table	Sandwich, pizza, salad, and line stations	Speeds up service, but takes a chunk of counter space
Reach-in (solid door)	Back-of-house storage where temperature stability matters	Better energy retention than glass-door
Reach-in (glass door)	Front-of-house, grab-and-go, beverage display	Looks great, uses more energy, lighting matters
Display fridge	Bakery cases, ready-made food, bottled drinks	Aesthetics drive the choice as much as performance

CRS consultants will work with your budget and offer recommendations on fridge brands, but if you've already had success with certain brands before, we'll happily explore those options with you instead of pushing our own preference. We'd rather you end up with a fridge you're confident in than one we technically prefer.

What to figure out before you buy

Beyond the type of fridge, there's a longer list of details that quietly make or break the decision, and most of them are easier to think about now than after the unit shows up:

1. Size requirements. Will full-size bun pans need to fit inside? Worth knowing before, not after.
2. Door style. Solid, full glass, or half glass? Each has its place, but they're not interchangeable.
3. Mobility. Does the unit need to roll, or is it staying put?
4. Energy efficiency. Some units have noticeably higher efficiency ratings than others, which matters for your operating cost and your carbon footprint.
5. Warranty terms. What's covered, for how long, and by whom?
6. Delivery timelines. How fast (or slow) does it need to arrive? "Next week" and "next month" are very different conversations.
7. Aesthetics. If it's front of house, it has to look the part.

There's one more consideration that surprises operators all the time, and it has absolutely nothing to do with the fridge itself.

The mistake nobody plans for: getting the fridge into the building

This is the one that costs people real money. The commercial kitchen consultants at CRS spend a lot of time helping restaurant owners avoid mistakes that happen long before service ever starts, and building access is the one that gets forgotten the most. A new fridge unit might fit perfectly in its desired spot, but it may not fit on the elevator, and it may not fit through the front door, and we've seen poorly planned purchases result in fridges arriving in pieces or being delivered by crane. Both are expensive ways to learn that lesson, and neither is a story you want to tell at your grand opening.

If you're not sure, measure twice. Or call us, and we'll measure with you.

Cleaning and condenser maintenance

Once the fridge is in and running, the CRS team can also walk you through best practices for keeping your commercial refrigeration unit parts in good shape, because honestly, it's not something most of us think about for our personal fridges at home. Need some condenser maintenance tips? CRS has a cleaning document for that, and it's the kind of small habit that quietly adds years to expensive equipment.

Keep it cool and confidently nail the refrigeration needs of your kitchen. Work with the very best in commercial kitchen design services and supplies, and reach out to the CRS team today for expert advice and guidance!