Cooking Equipment

Commercial cooking equipment for Australian hospitality venues — the full hot-side department in one place, covering gas ranges and ovens, fryers, griddles and chargrills, benchtop and induction units, and specialty cookers. The two biggest categories sit one click away: gas oven ranges for the centrepiece of the cooking line, and commercial deep fryers for everything crumbed, battered or chipped. If you're still working out what your kitchen actually needs, the sections below map the whole department so you can shortlist by equipment type first and compare models second.

Who this equipment is for

Every food business that cooks on site buys from this department — what varies is the mix. A café bistro might run a 600mm four-burner cooktop, a griddle and a single-pan fryer. A pub kitchen adds a chargrill and a bank of fryers to keep schnitzels and chips moving on a Friday night. Fish-and-chip shops live and die by fryer recovery times, and Asian restaurants spec dedicated wok burners with heat output no domestic stove can approach. Food trucks and market stalls lean on compact LPG and benchtop gear, while ghost kitchens in all-electric sites are increasingly going induction from day one. The common thread is commercial duty: heavier burners, thicker plate and components rated for service that runs all day, every day.

What's in scope

Ranges and ovens

The backbone of the line. Gas ranges pair open burners with a static or fan-forced oven base, while standalone ovens run from convection and pizza deck models through to combi steam ovens that steam, roast and bake from a single cabinet. High-speed ovens and commercial microwaves round out the category for quick-service reheats and snack menus.

Fryers

From single-pan benchtop units handling a café's side orders to multi-pan gas floor models built for takeaway volume. The range spans tube-style gas burners, electric element models and induction fryers, with oil capacities from a few litres up to serious production units — and recovery speed, not just capacity, is what separates them in service.

Griddles and grills

Flat-plate commercial griddles cover breakfasts, burgers and toasted sandwiches; chargrills add the sear lines and char flavour that sell steaks; and salamanders mount above the pass for melting, gratinating and finishing plates on the way out.

Benchtop and induction

Counter-height versions of nearly every category above — cooktops, fryers, griddles and grills — plus the induction and infrared cooking range, which suits venues without a gas supply, front-of-house cooking stations, and kitchens looking to cut both the heat in the room and the energy bill.

Specialty cooking

The harder-to-find gear lives here too: Asian-style wok ranges with high-output burners, pasta cookers, kebab machines, rotisseries and tandoori ovens. These are the categories where buying genuinely commercial matters most, because there's no domestic substitute that survives a real service.

How to choose commercial cooking equipment in three steps

With sixteen-odd equipment types in one department, the quickest path to a shortlist is to settle three things in order.

Step 1 — Settle the fuel type

Natural gas is the traditional pick where the site has supply — strong, visible heat that most chefs know — but every gas appliance must be installed by a licensed gasfitter. LPG covers food trucks and sites without mains gas. Electric is the simplest install for ovens, griddles and fryers, and induction delivers the fastest response with the least waste heat. Whichever way you go, confirm whether the unit runs from a standard 10-amp outlet or needs a three-phase connection before you buy.

Step 2 — Size to your peak throughput

Spec for your busiest service, not the average Tuesday. Count covers at peak, work out what share of the menu comes off each appliance, and pay attention to recovery — how quickly a fryer climbs back to temperature after a frozen basket drops, or how evenly a griddle holds heat across the full plate. Undersized gear stalls the whole line; oversized gear burns energy and bench space you'll want back.

Step 3 — Fit the footprint and the ventilation

Measure the position before you fall for a model. Floor units need clearances and service access; benchtop units need a bench rated for the weight and the heat. Most commercial cooking appliances also have to sit under a mechanical exhaust canopy, so confirm canopy coverage and your ventilation requirements with your certifier early — it's far cheaper to plan around than to retrofit.

Popular picks: two department staples that show what commercial duty looks like are the Cobra C6D 600mm four burner gas cooktop for the centre of a compact line, and the Pitco SG18S three-basket gas fryer for venues where fried volume drives the menu.

Frequently asked questions

What counts as commercial cooking equipment?

The category covers the powered appliances a food business cooks on: ranges and cooktops, ovens (convection, combi, pizza deck, high-speed and microwave), deep fryers, griddles, chargrills, salamanders and induction units, plus specialty gear like wok ranges, pasta cookers, kebab machines and rotisseries. It differs from domestic equipment in burner output, build weight and duty cycle — commercial units are designed to hold temperature through hours of continuous service.

Should I choose gas, electric or induction?

Gas suits venues with mains supply and menus built around open-flame cooking — wok work especially. Electric is easier to install and does the job for most ovens, fryers and griddles. Induction is the most energy-efficient of the three, heats fastest and keeps the kitchen cooler, though it needs induction-compatible cookware and, on larger units, a three-phase connection. Plenty of kitchens mix all three across the line.

What's the difference between a commercial range and a cooktop?

A range combines burners with an oven in the base, so one footprint does two jobs — the classic centrepiece of a small or mid-size kitchen. A cooktop is burners only, sitting on a stand or bench, which makes sense when you'd rather pick your oven separately — a combi or convection model, say — or when you simply don't need more oven capacity.

Do you sell commercial air fryers?

Domestic-style air fryers aren't built for commercial duty cycles, so you won't find them in a serious kitchen. The same job — fast, fan-forced cooking with little or no oil — is done at venue scale by convection ovens and high-speed ovens, both of which we stock. And where the menu calls for genuinely fried texture at volume, a proper commercial deep fryer remains the right tool.

Do commercial cooking appliances need an exhaust canopy?

In most cases, yes. Australian ventilation requirements (AS 1668.2) mean cooking processes that produce heat, smoke or grease-laden vapour generally need mechanical exhaust, so plan the canopy alongside the equipment rather than after it. Gas appliances also require installation by a licensed gasfitter with a compliance certificate. Your local council or building certifier can confirm exactly what your fit-out needs.

Do you deliver cooking equipment Australia-wide?

Yes. Commercial Kitchen Store delivers nationwide, covering Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth metro plus regional freight routes. Floor models ship on a pallet to a ground-floor point, so check doorway and corridor clearances before ordering — or call our Australian-based team on 1300 111 901 and we'll help you spec the right unit for your kitchen and your site.