Timber bench tops in commercial kitchen

I'd like to hear about wooden bench tops in commercial kitchens, it seems to be fairly common in the US, I don't think I've ever seen it in a commercial kitchen in Australia.
I've seen in Salty's videos he cuts directly on the bench top. Is that common?
I'm not sure if it's legal in Australia, but if there are arguments for the positive aspects of wooden bench tops I'd like to hear them.
Also what materials are commonly used.

Thanks in advance

Huw,
First of all it depends on the mercy of the Health officer in your local region . I know they have started a war against anything timber here in the valley for the last 3 years ( platters , pizza boards etc )
Wood has proven to be safer than plastic in many cases and mankind has used them for thousand years without getting sick or poisoned from them as long as they are cleaned like any other tool .
I would recommend if you get one at least it is removable rather than glued on the table
Shrinkage and splitting maybe a concern for large pieces and the areas you chop constantly will start to carve out eventually, you will haves and the surface to even it out and get rid of the deep cuts where it may harbour bacteria and food residue .
Taking a piece wood out and getting it surfaced is easier than trying to move your prep bench out or someone doing it in your kitchen and covering the place on wood dust

Von blewitt said:

I'd like to hear about wooden bench tops in commercial kitchens, it seems to be fairly common in the US, I don't think I've ever seen it in a commercial kitchen in Australia.
I've seen in Salty's videos he cuts directly on the bench top. Is that common?
I'm not sure if it's legal in Australia, but if there are arguments for the positive aspects of wooden bench tops I'd like to hear them.
Also what materials are commonly used.

Thanks in advance

Click to expand...

The food standards do not explicitly state that you cannot use wood but
(3) The food contact surfaces of fixtures, fittings and equipment must be –

(a) able to be easily and effectively cleaned and, if necessary, sanitised if there is a likelihood that they will cause food contamination;
(b) unable to absorb grease, food particles and water if there is a likelihood that they will cause food contamination; and
(c) made of material that will not contaminate food.

The argument against wood therefore would be that it absorbs grease and water.If the wood were sealed then there may be a justification but the sealant would possibly be prone to chipping and be viewed as a contaminamt.
It will also depend on your local Council EHO laws.

Fairly common here, I've built out several kitchens with wood prep surfaces with the health department not batting an eye. We don't usually prep on them much, never meat or seafood, but do chop veg on them and sanitize as you would any surface. The blocks I've put in have all been hard maple for durability and cost, all finished with Osmo. Holds up much better than the constant mineral oiling game you otherwise have to play. Resurfacing is pretty simple with a ro sander hooked to a vacuum.

From my experience, pastry and bread production cooks prefer wood tops to steel as it is more forgiving to poinding/kneedeing/portioning with a dough card.

Had a huge wooden table at my last club. It may have been 12 feet long at least. You were supposed to put a cutting board on top to work on but there's always that one employee. The table was so old it had numerous warps and divots from knife work being done over the years.

Every off season we would take it outside and belt sand it clean. One year we took it apart and brought it down to a local furniture making company and had them run it through a giant lathe. Came back completely flat and true like it was brand new again. That table can easily get another 75 years worth of work out of it now.

ThEoRy said:

Had a huge wooden table at my last club. . . . One year we took it apart and brought it down to a local furniture making company and had them run it through a giant lathe.

Click to expand...

Or maybe a planer.

Where u work in Connecticut we have wooden table to top in the bakery but are not suppose to use it as a cutting board. Is Is used occasional my when some one is lazy. Although they allow is to roll out all sorts of bread and pastries on it. What is comes down to is the health inspectors feelings on wooden cutting boards as theere is no hard set rule on them but health inspectors can interput the guide lines as they see fit.

larrybard said:

Or maybe a planer.

Click to expand...

Yup, that's what I meant.

larrybard said:

Or maybe a planer.

Click to expand...

ThEoRy said:

Yup, that's what I meant.

Click to expand...

If you go down this route Huw, make sure to befriend the local cabinet maker so you can use his drum sander to clean it up.

Would be a shame if our health regs stop you given from all the readings i have done. Wooden or plastic or steel it all comes down to cleaning process rather than material

mine was a 12 foot 2 inch thick 32 in wide maple butcher block. cut on it, rolled dough, butchered on it got drunk on it. it was about 60 years old. we had no warpage. once every couple years a light sanding and some mineral oil and you were good to go. scrub it, once in a while some bleach water if it stained, mineral oil and done.