Why Is It Called A Hotel Pan

The large hotel pans are called "full-sized hotel pans". Then you have the "half hotel pan", "third hotel pan", "quarter hotel pan", "sixth hotel pan" and the "ninth hotel pan". In a kitchen, someone isn't going to ask you to go grab a "4-inch ninth hotel pan". Instead, they'll ask you to go find a 4-inch ninth pan. 

When someone says "hotel pan", its just automatically assumed that they are talking about a full-sized hotel pan. Kitchen terminology is often abbreviated, which makes sense since you're working in a fast-paced, stressful environment. It's better to keep the number of words used down to a minimum for faster, easier communication. 

In the olden days, no mom & pop restaurant would have such equipment; only hotels (think Ritz-Carlton or Waldorf-Astoria) would have the seating capacity to use such things. As to why these pans are called hotel pans, the name probably came from long ago, when hotel owners would serve their guest dinners at designated times, and everyone would eat at once, requiring the use of large pans for serving. Many hotel chefs served food in chafing dishes, as well. 

Hotel pans are usually made out of stainless steel. Some large rectangular heat-proof and food-grade plastic containers might be called hotel pans as well. They come in eight standard sizes, according to length and width.

The standard size of a hotel or counter pan is about 12 inches, which will fit in openings of a steam-table or to insert in chafing dishes.

Hotel pans are available in various depths, such as 2 1/2, 4, 6, and 8 inches deep. They are sometimes identified by their depth, with a “200” meaning a 2-inch deep pan, a 400 meaning 4 inches deep, and so on. This practice stems from the original manufacturing practice of identifying stock sizes by these numbers. Also, there are smaller sized pans that are called half pans, quarter pans, etc. based on their relationship to the standard sized pans. There are even pans that are 1/6 the size of the standard pan. 

Standard Food Pan Sizes

Food pans are available in several standard sizes, some of which are more common than others. Their precise dimensions vary slightly between different manufacturers, but they're all named according to their size compared to a full-size pan:

· A full pan measures roughly  20-3/4″ X 12-3/4″. A full-size food pan is often used for cooking large batches and serving popular items, especially entrees like fried chicken, burgers, and salad greens.

· A two-thirds pan measures roughly 13-7/8″ X 12-3/4″. A two-thirds size pan will fill two-thirds of a full-size cutout and leave room for a third size pan or a combination of smaller pans.

· A half pan measures roughly 12-3/4″ X 10-3/8 ″, so two half pans can fill the same space as one full-size pan. Half pans are commonly used for side dishes, salad toppings, and smaller entrees on food bars.

· A third pan measures roughly 12-3/4″ X 6-7/8″. Three third pans can fit in a full-size cutout. A third pan is a good choice for serving side dishes on hot food bars.

· A quarter pan measures 10-3/8″ X 6-3/8″, so four can fill the same space as a full-size pan and two can fill the same space as a half-size pan. Quarter pans are popular for holding side dishes and salad toppings.

· A sixth pan measures 6-7/8″ X 6-1/4″, so it takes six to fill the same space as a full-size pan and three to fill the same space as a half-size pan. Sixth pans are commonly used to hold soups, dressings, and toppings for salads. This is the size that's most often used on salad and sandwich prep tables.

· A ninth pan measures 6-7/8″ X 4-1/4″. Ninth pans are the smallest of the available steam table pan sizes. They're commonly used to hold small quantities of seasonings, spices, garnishes, toppings, and condiments.

Reference:

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