BOH
BOH is an acronym for Back of House and refers to all the behind-the-scenes areas of a restaurant that customers don't see, including the kitchen, dish pit, storage rooms, walk-ins, prep areas, and employee spaces where food is received, prepared, cooked, plated, and cleaned.
BOH stands for Back of House and refers to all the behind-the-scenes areas of a restaurant where customers don’t go—the kitchen, dish pit, storage rooms, walk-ins, prep areas, and employee spaces. This is where raw ingredients arrive, get prepped, cooked, plated, and where dishes get cleaned before cycling back to service. If FOH is the stage, BOH is the engine room making everything happen.
Core BOH Areas and Functions
The kitchen is command central, but BOH encompasses much more. You’ve got the main prep stations where prep cooks break down ingredients following mise en place principles. The cooking line is where tickets get fired and dishes come together. The dish pit—with its three-compartment sink and pot sink—handles the constant flow of dirty cookware and serviceware.
Walk-in refrigerators and freezers store perishables at proper temperatures, while dry storage holds everything from flour to canned goods. Employee break rooms, manager offices, and receiving docks round out the BOH footprint. The pass marks the boundary where BOH hands off finished plates to FOH servers.
BOH Staff and Roles
BOH staff includes everyone who transforms ingredients into meals. Executive chefs and sous chefs lead the brigade. Line cooks work specific stations—grill, sauté, fry, garde manger. Prep cooks arrive early to dice vegetables, portion proteins, and make stocks. Dishwashers keep the operation moving by ensuring clean plates, pans, and utensils are always available.
Pastry chefs often work in separate BOH areas making desserts and baked goods. Kitchen managers handle scheduling, ordering, and BOH operations oversight. Some restaurants include administrative staff working in back offices as part of BOH team. Cross-training between BOH and FOH builds stronger communication and operational understanding.
BOH Communication and Kitchen Calls
BOH has its own language built for speed and safety. Cooks call “Behind!” when moving through tight spaces and “Corner!” at blind turns. The expo calls “Fire” to start cooking items and tracks “all day” counts across tickets. When something’s urgently needed, the call is “on the fly.”
Orders get confirmed with “Heard!” When inventory runs out mid-service, items get 86’d. If the kitchen falls behind, they’re in the weeds. This shorthand keeps information flowing without breaking concentration during the dinner rush.
BOH Equipment and Layout
BOH equipment varies by concept but typically includes ranges, flat-tops, ovens, combi ovens, fryers, and salamanders for finishing dishes. Prep areas need tables, sinks, mixers, and food processors. The dish pit requires commercial dishwashers, chemical dispensers, and sanitizer buckets.
Layout directly impacts efficiency. The flow should move logically from receiving to storage to prep to cooking to plating to dish return. Equipment placement considers workflow—frequently used items go within arm’s reach, high-temperature equipment needs proper ventilation, and floor drains handle the constant water and cleaning.
Food Safety and BOH Operations
BOH operations must follow strict health codes and food safety regulations. Time-temperature control ensures foods stay out of the danger zone. Date labeling and FIFO rotation prevent spoilage. Preventing cross-contamination requires separate cutting boards, proper handwashing, and designated storage.
Health inspectors focus heavily on BOH practices—food storage temperatures, sanitation procedures, pest control, and employee hygiene. A line check before service confirms everything meets standards. HACCP protocols guide critical control points in food preparation from receiving through cooking.
Common Uses
BOH is used universally across the restaurant industry to distinguish operational areas and staff roles from customer-facing FOH (Front of House). Managers use "BOH" when discussing staffing needs, equipment purchases, or layout planning. During service, FOH staff might say "I need to check with BOH" when verifying ticket times or special requests. In job postings, positions are clearly labeled BOH or FOH to set expectations. Kitchen managers discuss "BOH efficiency" when analyzing workflow and speed of service.
The term appears in operational discussions about health inspections ("BOH needs deep cleaning before the inspector arrives"), inventory management ("BOH ordering is due today"), and scheduling ("We're short on BOH staff this weekend"). Training materials distinguish BOH procedures like proper food storage from FOH service standards. During shift meetings, issues are often categorized as BOH concerns (equipment breakdown, prep delays) versus FOH concerns (guest complaints, server sections).