If you are fitting out or upgrading a kitchen, the range of commercial cooking equipment on offer can feel overwhelming. Ranges, cooktops, combi ovens, convection ovens, fryers, griddles, salamanders, wok burners and induction units all look like sensible options until you match them to a real menu, a real gas supply and a real budget. The good news is that the choice gets simple once you work out what you cook most, how fast you need to cook it and how much space you have.

This guide walks through every major cooking category in plain language, with a one-line “best for” on each, so Melbourne cafe, restaurant, pub and takeaway owners can build a shortlist before they visit a showroom. It is written as an overview, so each section points you towards the questions to ask rather than burying you in model numbers.

What Counts as Commercial Cooking Equipment?

Commercial cooking equipment is any heated appliance built to cook food at trade volumes, day after day, in a working kitchen. It is not simply a bigger version of a home appliance. Commercial units use heavier stainless steel, stronger burners or elements, higher output controls and parts designed for constant cleaning and heavy use. When people search for commercial kitchen cooking equipment, they usually mean the hot line: the machines that sit between the pass and the prep bench and turn raw product into plated or packed food.

You will also see the same category described as commercial kitchen appliances, kitchen equipment commercial buyers need, or kitchen commercial equipment for restaurants. The names change but the job does not. Each item needs to heat reliably, hold up under pressure, be easy to clean and meet Australian gas and electrical requirements. Anything that skips those basics will cost more in downtime than it saves on the invoice.

Cooking equipment is only one part of a kitchen. Cold storage, dishwashing, prep benching and ventilation all share the same floor plan, so it helps to see the whole picture. Our commercial kitchen supplies page shows how the categories fit together.

Start with Your Menu, Not the Catalogue

The most common mistake in kitchen planning is buying equipment first and designing a menu around it. Flip that order. List your top ten dishes, then note how each one is cooked: sauteed, grilled, fried, baked, steamed, wok tossed or held hot. The cooking methods you rely on most deserve the best equipment and the most bench space. The methods you use once a week can share a multi-function unit.

Next, estimate your busiest hour. A cafe doing 60 breakfasts in an hour needs a very different line from a restaurant plating 120 mains over a Saturday night. Peak volume decides burner count, oven capacity and fryer vat size, so it pays to be honest about it. Add a modest margin for growth, but avoid oversizing, because a unit that is far too large wastes gas, power and floor space every single day.

Finally, consider your team. A compact line with sensible zones is faster and safer than a sprawling one, and staff who can reach everything without crossing the kitchen cook more consistently. Good commercial kitchens equipment choices make life easier for the person on the pass at 7pm on a Friday.

Ranges and Cooktops: The Backbone of the Line

A range combines open burners or hotplates on top with an oven below, while a cooktop is the burner section alone, sitting on a bench or a stand. Together they handle most of the everyday cooking in a restaurant: sauces, pasta, vegetables, braises and pan work.

Gas Ranges and Cooktops

Gas gives instant, controllable heat that cooks can judge by eye, which is why it remains the default in many professional kitchens. Open burner tops suit pans and pots of all sizes, while solid or ring tops are popular where you want a large, even heated surface. Look at burner output, grate strength and how easy the spill trays are to remove, because daily cleaning decides how long the unit looks and performs well.

Electric Ranges and Cooktops

Electric units suit sites without a convenient gas supply and are often simpler to install. Radiant and plate styles hold a steady temperature, which helps with simmering and long cooking. They can take longer to respond than gas, so think about the style of cooking you do most before choosing.

Best for: restaurants, cafes and pubs that cook a wide range of dishes and need one dependable workhorse in the middle of the line.

Ovens: Combi and Convection

Ovens are where capacity and consistency matter most. Two types dominate the commercial market, and they suit different kitchens.

Combi Ovens

A combi oven cooks with dry heat, steam or a combination of both. That flexibility lets one machine roast, bake, steam, regenerate and hold food, often with programmable recipes. It suits restaurants, hotels and caterers with varied menus and limited floor space, because one unit can replace several. The trade-off is a higher upfront cost and a need for good water supply and regular descaling.

Convection Ovens

A convection oven circulates hot air with a fan, giving even colour and faster cooking than a standard oven. It is the go-to for bakeries, cafes and takeaways baking pastries, cakes, pies and roasted trays at volume. Capacity is usually measured in trays, so match it to your peak output and the tray size you already use.

Best for: combi ovens suit varied menus and tight spaces, while convection ovens suit baking and steady trays of the same product.

Fryers, Griddles and Salamanders

These are the high turnover machines that keep a fast kitchen moving. Each does one thing very well, and each deserves a spot on the line if your menu leans on it.

Deep Fryers

Fryers range from compact bench models to large floor standing units with multiple vats. Key points are oil capacity, recovery time, which is how quickly the oil returns to temperature after a basket goes in, and the cool zone that collects crumbs. Gas fryers generally recover fast, while electric models suit sites where gas is not available. Easy oil draining and filtration save time and reduce oil costs.

Griddles and Chargrills

A flat griddle suits burgers, eggs, pancakes, steak sandwiches and breakfast service, while a chargrill gives that marked, smoky finish on meat and vegetables. Plate thickness matters, because a thicker plate holds heat better when cold product hits the surface. Choose the width from your busiest breakfast or lunch rush.

Salamander Grills

A salamander is an overhead grill used to finish, brown and melt: cheese on top of a dish, a crisp edge on fish, a glaze on a dessert. It sits above or beside the line and takes very little space, yet it lifts presentation on dozens of plates. If your menu includes gratin, toasties or finished dishes, it earns its place quickly.

Best for: fryers suit takeaways and pubs, griddles suit breakfast and burger trade, and salamanders suit restaurants that finish plates to order.

Wok Burners and Stock Pot Burners

Wok cooking needs fierce heat that a standard range cannot deliver. A purpose built wok burner, often with a chimney or a duck-bill style, reaches the temperatures needed for the smoky flavour of authentic stir fries. Water cooled and waterless versions are available, so ask which suits your plumbing and cleaning routine. You can browse the current wok and stock pot burner range to compare formats.

Stock pot burners are the heavy lifters for soups, stocks, noodles and large batch cooking. A single high output burner under a tall stock pot gives the sustained heat that a normal cooktop struggles to maintain. Two examples on the MRCE site are the Cobra waterless stock pot burner and the Luus single hole stock pot burner.

Best for: Asian restaurants, noodle bars and any kitchen cooking stocks, soups or sauces in large volumes.

Induction Cooking

Induction heats the pan directly using a magnetic field, so very little heat is wasted into the kitchen. That makes it fast, precise and comfortable to work beside, with surfaces that cool quickly and are easy to wipe clean. It is increasingly popular in cafes, hotels, catering kitchens and open plan venues where heat and safety are concerns.

The limits are simple. Induction needs compatible, magnetic cookware and a suitable electrical supply, and it behaves differently from a flame when you want to char or toss food. Many operators pair one or two induction units with a gas range, using each where it performs best.

Best for: front of house cooking, small kitchens, catering and any site that wants speed, safety and a cooler workspace.

Gas or Electric? How to Decide

Fuel choice shapes your whole kitchen, so settle it early. Gas heats quickly, responds instantly and keeps working in a power outage, which is why many chefs prefer it for open burners, wok cooking and fryers. Electric is often simpler to install, easier to keep clean and well suited to ovens, steamers and sites with no gas connection. Induction sits on the electric side and adds speed and efficiency.

Check the practical details before you commit. How much gas can your meter supply, and what size is the pipe run to the cookline? Does your switchboard have spare capacity for a three phase oven or a bank of induction units? Is there room to ventilate properly? If you are not sure, ask a licensed gas fitter and electrician to assess the site first, because retrofitting capacity after the equipment arrives is expensive.

Gas appliances must be installed and maintained to Australian standards by licensed people. Energy Safe Victoria publishes guidance on gas safety and compliance, and the Energy Safe Victoria website is a good starting point for operators who want to understand their obligations.

Ventilation, Safety and Compliance

Heat, grease and combustion gases all need somewhere to go, so every cookline needs proper extraction. A canopy sized for your equipment, with correct make-up air and regular filter cleaning, protects staff and reduces fire risk. Plan the canopy at the same time as the cooking equipment, because the burner and fryer layout drives the ventilation design.

Clearances matter too. Many appliances need a set distance from combustible walls and from each other, and heavy units need a level, solid floor. Staff safety is a legal responsibility, and the WorkSafe Victoria website has useful guidance on hot surfaces, manual handling and safe workplace design.

Food safety also touches cooking equipment. Cooked food must reach safe core temperatures and be held at the right temperature afterwards, and the Food Standards Australia New Zealand website explains the national requirements. Choosing equipment that is easy to clean and calibrate makes compliance easier day to day.

New or Second Hand Cooking Equipment?

Both paths can work. New equipment offers a full warranty, current features and the longest working life, which suits a venue that plans to run the same line for many years. Browse our new equipment range to see what is available.

Second hand or refurbished equipment can cut your starting costs, which helps new businesses and sites adding a second line. Condition varies, so inspect burners, seals, doors and controls, ask for a test run and get any warranty in writing. See our second hand commercial kitchen equipment in Melbourne page for current options.

Prices vary widely with size, fuel type and features, so we do not publish a single figure here. Prices shown on the MRCE site are inclusive of GST, and our team can quote a complete package for your line.

Planning the Whole Line

The best kitchens treat cooking equipment as a system rather than a shopping list. Start from the pass and work backwards: what does the plate need, which machine produces it and what has to sit next to that machine? Group hot equipment together under one canopy, keep fryers away from water sources, and leave clear walkways so staff can move safely with hot pans.

Think about workflow between zones. Prep should flow towards cooking, cooking towards the pass, and dirty dishes away from all of them. Cold storage should be close to the line so cooks are not walking across the kitchen for every ingredient. Our commercial kitchen setup checklist walks through the whole process from layout to fit-out.

When you are ready to buy, compare suppliers on advice and after-sales support as well as price. Our commercial kitchen gear page and our buy commercial catering equipment page show the wider range, and you can browse everything in the MRCE online shop. Many operators start with a handful of commercial kitchen equipments and expand the line as the business grows, so it helps to leave space and utility capacity for the next piece of equipment.

Brand and model availability changes, so we do not name particular models here beyond the stock pot burners linked above. Ask the MRCE team to confirm current stock and lead times for the items on your shortlist.

Forty Years of Hospitality Expertise, Since 1984

Since 1984 we have supplied the hospitality industry with professional advice, reliable equipment and excellent customer service. We have a wealth of experience in all types of projects ranging from international hotels to large and small pubs through to suburban restaurants and takeaway outlets. All our staff are equipped with the knowledge, expertise and creativity to add value to your project.

Choosing the right cooking line is one of the biggest decisions in any fit-out, and we have helped many Melbourne kitchens get it right. Read more about who we are on our about page.

When you would like advice on the right cooking equipment for your kitchen, get in touch with our team. It is free, there is no obligation, and there is no pressure.

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