A cafeteria is a self-service food service location found in institutions like offices and schools. Customers select food from various food stalls or counters and pay at the end of the line. Cafeterias are mainly classified as traditional or free-flow. In a traditional cafeteria, customers move down a straight line of counters selecting food. In a free-flow cafeteria, counters are arranged in various layouts allowing customers to choose which station to visit first to select their food.

1. Cafeteria
Presented By:
Shubham Kumar

2. What is a Cafeteria?
• A cafeteria is a type of food service location in which there is little or
no waiting staff table service, whether a restaurant or within an
institution such as a large office building or school; a school dining
location is also referred to as a dining hall or canteen.
• It is a Self service
• Instead of table service, there are food-serving counters/stalls, either
in a line or allowing arbitrary walking paths.
• Customers take the food that they desire as they walk along, placing it
on a tray.

3. Types Of cafeteria
• The cafeteria is mainly classified into two types:
• Traditional Cafeteria
• Free-flow Cafeteria

4. Traditional Cafeteria
• It consists of a straight line of counters containing a variety of hot &
cold Dishes.
• The customers starts from one end of the line, picks up a tray and
moves along the length of the counter as he selects dishes he wants
to have.
• The cashier, at the end of the counter makes the bill and collects the
payment(not required if meal is pre paid).
• Normally the service hall is away from the dining area.

5. Flow of activities in Traditional Cafeteria.
Guests Enter Picks up tray
Joins queue at
the counter
Picks up dishes
of his choice
Pays to cashier
Picks up
Cutlery &
Napkins
Goes into
Dining Hall
Gets seated
and have his
food

6. Free-Flow cafeteria
• In ‘free-flow cafeteria’ system, counters are segregated according to
the type of dishes offered-hot or cold, appetizers, soups, breads,
sandwiches, entrée, salads, pastas and so on.
• Trays and other essential service equipment are kept on tables at
convenient places.
• Guests pick up trays and go to counter of their choice and select
whatever dishes they want and exit through the payment point at the
entrance of the dining hall.

7. Free-flow Cafeteria Contd….
• In this system counters are not arranged in straight line, but in shapes
such as hollow-square, U, echelon, or saw-tooth, and so on,
depending on the number of dishes on offer and shape and size of
area available.
• The two main layouts are:
• Hollow Square - counters are placed around three sides of service area, each
with counters of different dishes.
• Echelon – counters are positioned at such angles that customers can flow
within free flow area and also to save space. A customer reaches the counter
of his choice to help himself.

8. Flow of Activities In A Free-Flow Cafeteria
• Guests Enters
• Picks Up Tray
• Goes To Counter Of His Choice
• Picks Up Dishes
• Pays To The Cashier
• Picks up Cutleries &Napkins
• Goes to Dining Hall To Eat