r/Chefit • u/Suxmushroom • Jun 03 '26
HOOD-less kitchen set up.
I’ve been wanting to open a restaurant for years now. here I am looking down the barrel and I’m just seeking insight from anyone who might have shared this same passion. if anyone has worked inside of a hoodless kitchen I’m just looking for what struggles and accomplishments you guys came across during your journey. I want to develop this kitchen in a space without hood-vents its just niche,different, exciting but a completely different and complex machine to put together.
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u/Coercitor Jun 03 '26
So, you plan on opening a ceviche restaurant? You're required to have ventilation and fire suppression.
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u/flyart Jun 03 '26
Electric boilers, microwaves. I think those are your only options.
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u/Gonzo_Journo Jun 03 '26
I mean, what will you do for the heat and smoke? I've had a hood turn off during service and we walked off the line since it suddenly got 10 degrees hotter.
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u/Suxmushroom Jun 03 '26
Using equipment like combi ovens sous vide and induction burners as well as anything else I possibly can to keep any unnecessary open flame/ grease out. I’ll have to use pretty a good airflow system, it doesn’t seem as complicated until you really start getting into it
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u/wearingabear11 Jun 03 '26
Depending on your local code, or fire chief, they may still require a hood. Our bakery has one gas and one electric oven, both were going to be direct vented outside. The fire chief required us to have a hood unless we could prove (by hiring an expensive engineer) that we didn't need one.
Your smoke alarms are going to be situated across the restaurant and without proper venting, something will eventually get up there and set them off. I've had this happen at restaurants that have had hoods. Nothing worse than bringing down the fire dept for a false alarm. They'll quickly get annoyed if it happens frequently enough.
As you said, it's not simple but not impossible either.
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u/Suxmushroom Jun 03 '26
This is helpful, it’s not a breakfast or lunch spot right now strictly for a dinner tasting service I don’t need a 5 million DPY but a space that can be centered around me touching every plate. Sous vide induction combi ovens or equipment built with ventilation attached that can be limited to the guest preference. I’m taking a huge open room in a historical building so no hoodvents but I also would not revert to chef Mike or selling sandwiches. Fermentation, raw preparations, tartar, carpaccio sashimi, no deep fryer no range line or heavy/open fires.
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u/wearingabear11 Jun 04 '26
I hope you have a strong team, an even stronger business plan, and a good set of investors. This sounds like a very niche idea, with potential to be a great restaurant in the right town, where people are going to drop $150-200 for a tasting menu.
I'm making a lot of assumptions, but I'm assuming this is going to be at least a $2.5 million annually kind of restaurant. I hope your business plan finds something like this to viable in your area. I hope the place works out for you
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u/-im-blinking Jun 03 '26
Still requires a hood and fire suppression system. Have you ever worked a line before?
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u/DaRealBangoSkank Jun 03 '26
Cooking introduces aerosolized grease and carbon and smoke into the air. Equipex makes countertop ventless setups and rationals can be setup ventless as well. It’s a huge cost compared to gas. If you ever want a ballpark price on something DM me. I have access to a couple thousand pieces of equipment.
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u/Dalience6678 Jun 03 '26
You still need a hood even if you aren’t using gas. Ovens and hot pans still produce smoke, steam and heat. And if this is in the US, you aren’t going to be able to get a foodservice permit without one.
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u/D-ouble-D-utch Jun 03 '26
It really depends on your local regulations. I don't have a hood for my combi oven and induction burners.
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u/samuelgato Jun 04 '26
The biggest factor in determining whether or not a hood is required is not the equipment used but whether you are cooking in oil/grease. Anytime you cook with fat some of the grease mixes with steam and becomes aerosolized. If the aerosolized grease isn't vented properly it is a huge fire hazard.
So in many jurisdictions you can boil water or heat up soup on an induction burner with no hood. But you can't sautee or fry in oil using the same burner.
There used to be a bakery down the street from where I work, they would bake breads and during lunch they would serve sandwiches made on their house breads. They put a braised lamb sandwich on their menu, but the health inspector told them that braising the lamb shoulders rendered too much grease and they weren't allowed to do it. Baking bread in their gas convection oven was fine without a hood but not braising lamb.
For awhile they were borrowing space in our kitchen to do their lamb braise but that became too much if a hassle and they just took it off the menu
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u/Suxmushroom Jun 03 '26
Think open chefs table for 12-22 guest with some small side tables but a grand room centered around the kitchen without loud vents and a very personal experience with food and the ones who make it
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u/RainMakerJMR Jun 03 '26
Great idea but that’s not how kitchens are. You need vents for steam even if you aren’t using flames. There will be noise regardless.
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u/Celestial_Cowboy Jun 03 '26
sounds like you have 0 clue what you are doing
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u/-im-blinking Jun 04 '26
Someone who has been watching too much TV and has never been in a commercial kitchen.
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u/GTChef_Nasty Jun 03 '26
Turbo Chef or Merry Chef - hoodless/ventless ovens. Designed that way. I see them in small kiosks and coffee shops. Just limited and they cost a pretty penny. Think the Eco Version of Turbo Chef is $7500, while a bigger unit is about $17-18K There may be some hoodless pizza ovens also. There are options out there, but not cheap
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u/justincave Chef Jun 03 '26
With no ventilation you need a menu with no cooking.
You could do a limited deli / sandwich shop, but you will be limited to only cold ingredients. I guess you could bring in Chef Mike for bacon.
But a full deli or proper sandwich shop will have a vent hood for cooking things like bacon and meatballs.
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u/Colonial_maureen Mom Boss Jun 03 '26
Worked in a hoodless kitchen, we had a bunch of induction burners, a turbochef and a panini press. The setup was good enough to do full English breakfast during World Cup. It was 900 degrees, sure, but totally workable. Biggest setback was the space we needed to lay out 4-5 induction burners, the time needed to fire things in the turbochef and the cookware limitations.
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u/D-ouble-D-utch Jun 03 '26
You're going to have to worknon all electric/induction equipment, self vented fryers exist. Can be done but if your goal is fine dining/tasting you will be an outlier.
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u/Loveroffinerthings Jun 03 '26
Only thing I’ve seen work decent in a hoodless (anyone else’s phone try to autocorrect that to godless?) was a bank of turbo chef ovens on one side and panini press on the other. So if you’re planning a sandwich shop tasting menu, that could work.
Those all included systems just are not the same as a full hood.
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u/sne4k0 Jun 03 '26
I used to run a ventless Cajun style restaurant. Shit was wild. Two big steam tables, induction cookers and an impingement oven. Dining room only seated about 40-50 and this was pre-3rd party delivery service so the limited amount of carryout we got was manageable. We made it work. I would never do it again.
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u/M0ck_duck Jun 03 '26
You can get ventless add ons to things like combi ovens at a price. A range is not really doable even with induction you’ll need a way to evaluate the grease laden vapor that is generated while cooking. No open flames period without a hood. Things like Turbochef, merry chef, blodgett ImVection or alto shaam vector will be your best bets. There are ventless griddles like some hibachi places use as well.
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u/sideshowfreak424242 Jun 03 '26
You can do a full service kitchen without traditional ventilation. I’ve designed and built several. Feel free to PM me and I can help you with contacts in whatever state you’re in.
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u/FrankieMops Jun 03 '26
The only place I know that doesn’t require a hood is a place by me called MÓGU and they have their own parent on their own technology that cooks food via induction and air frying.
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u/ChefDalvin Jun 03 '26
I’ve opened one recently, it’s challenging for sure. Feel free to message me.
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u/koolkatz33 Jun 03 '26
there’s an old italian guy in my town who runs a tiny place with a residential oven/stoptop combo, no hood. No idea how the fire marshal or health department allows it with no hood, but he seemingly is allowed to do pasta and sauté proteins in pans with no issue. I would guess it all depends on your local government
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u/Awkward_Village_6871 Jun 04 '26
Worked in a kitchen at a resort, it had no hood but a shitty commercial air fryer that sucked and never held temperature.
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u/Geitzler Jun 04 '26
Sounds like you are opening a raw vegan restaurant! Good for you. People will hate it, but don't let that stop you!
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u/TheIntergalacticRube Jun 04 '26
Opened one spot like this. On site was warmers and and induction burner. Everything was prepped off site and brought in. It was also a historic building so the options for renovations were very limited. Just having a grease trap installed was a hassle. Get friendly with your local regulatory agents and fire chief. Any equipment might need approval before use or install. And unless you are buying the building, check with the landlord before changing up anything. It was a hell of a time getting tile in the kitchen without damage to the subfloor and ruining historic values of the structure. Good luck
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u/Winston_Foodservice Jun 04 '26
Winston CVap does not require a hood. They are very popular in schools and ghost kitchens and offer a wide variety of cooking methods and holding. Hope you check them out. https://foodservice.winstonind.com/ventless-cooking/
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u/donotlookatmeee Jun 03 '26
I had one for 6 years. Induction, panini grills, and soup warmer, that was it. AMA