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Average restaurant water consumption
The Sustainable Restaurant Association reports that a typical pub or restaurant uses around 4,000 litres of water a day. For a restaurant open every day, that works out at 1,460 cubic metres a year, equivalent to ten average homes.
Most restaurants are fitted with a water meter, so you pay for water based on actual consumption. Understanding how water is used is a useful step towards reducing your bills, particularly after each April’s business water price increase.
Restaurant water consumption
Kitchen water use is usually measured per cover, meaning each diner served. At 25 litres per cover, a restaurant serving 100 covers a day would use around 2,500 litres in the kitchen alone, or around 900 cubic metres a year. Guest toilets, hand basins and bar glass washing are in addition to this.
| Type of service | Typical kitchen water use per cover |
|---|---|
| Luxury hotel dining | Around 35 litres |
| Luxury catering | Around 25 litres |
| Buffet service in function rooms | Around 15 litres |
| Efficient kitchens (best practice) | 13 litres or less |
Where restaurants use the most water
Washing up typically uses more water than anything else in a restaurant kitchen once the dishwasher and the hand rinse are counted together. The figures below cover the kitchen only, not guest toilets.
| Kitchen activity | Share of kitchen water use |
|---|---|
| Food preparation, cooking and cleaning combined | c.35 |
| Dishwasher machines | c.33% |
| Hand rinsing plates and pans before the dishwasher | Around 30% |
Water charges for restaurants
A restaurant water bill is made up of separate charges for the clean water supplied and the wastewater taken away.
Regional business water rates apply to each charge, so two identical restaurants in different parts of the country typically pay different amounts. These are the charges that usually appear on a restaurant water bill.
- Water supply: A volumetric charge for each cubic metre recorded on the meter, plus a standing charge set by meter size. A kitchen attached to a large hotel may have a larger meter, which carries a higher daily standing charge.
- Waste water: A volumetric charge on the share of supplied water assumed to return to the public sewage system, plus a standing charge. In a restaurant, almost all the water used goes down the drain, so this charge applies to nearly the whole volume supplied.
- Surface water drainage, in some regions: Charged on the chargeable area of the site to cover rainwater draining from roofs, yards and car parks. A standalone restaurant with its own car park usually pays more than a unit in a shared high street building.
- Highway drainage, in some regions: A separate charge covering rainwater that runs off public roads into the sewer. It usually applies to any restaurant connected to the public sewer, whatever the size of the site.
- Assessed or unmeasured charges: Where no meter is fitted, charges are based on rateable value or property size rather than actual use. This is more common in older or converted premises.
Reducing water bills for restaurants
The business water bills at many restaurants are paid quickly without being reviewed or questioned. Most of the savings available come from the contract and the charges applied rather than from using less water. Below, we cover the main ways a restaurant can reduce what it pays.
Moving off default rates
Restaurants in England and Scotland can switch business water suppliers, but most have never done so and are on the regional default business water tariff, which is usually more expensive than a negotiated contract. Our commercial water experts can compare business water suppliers to find a contract that matches how your restaurant uses water.
Surface water drainage rebate
Where rainwater from the roof or car park of a standalone restaurant drains to a soakaway or watercourse rather than the public sewer, surface water drainage charges may not apply. If this is the case for your business, it may be possible to claim a backdated sewerage rebate from your supplier for past charges.
Checking the bill is right
Meter reads, meter size and chargeable site area are all commonly wrong, and errors carry forward year after year. Restaurants below flats or next to other units should also confirm the meter only serves their premises, and a water bill validation can check each charge against the agreed tariff.
One contract for several sites
Restaurant groups often receive separate water bills for each site, sometimes from different business water suppliers on different tariffs. Moving every site onto one contract through water bill consolidation gives a single bill and usually a stronger position when negotiating on the combined volume.
Improving water efficiency for restaurants
Most water in a restaurant is used in the kitchen, so the largest reductions usually come from improving wash-up and food preparation processes.
Here are five ways a restaurant can reduce water consumption:
Fit a lower flow rinse spray
Older spray guns used to rinse plates before the dishwasher can run at around 15 litres a minute, while efficient nozzles clean effectively at under 6 litres a minute. A trigger that stops the flow when released prevents the spray from running between loads.
Run the dishwasher with full racks
Scraping food into the bin and waiting until each rack is full means fewer cycles for the same number of covers. When the machine is due for replacement, choose one sized to the busiest service and rated at 3.5 litres per rack or less.
Thaw food in the fridge
Thawing frozen food under a running tap can use water continuously for hours, while thawing overnight on the bottom shelf of a fridge uses none. Planning the next day’s defrosting at the end of service makes this part of the kitchen routine.
Replace older steam ovens
Steam ovens with an internal boiler can use over 100 litres an hour, much of it to cool the steam before it drains away. Boilerless models reuse the steam and typically use under 10 litres an hour.
Avoid equipment cooled by water
Some ice machines and wok ranges are cooled by a constant flow of mains water and therefore have a significant impact on water bills. Ice machines cooled by air and well-insulated wok ranges remove this use entirely.
Water supply options for restaurants
Most restaurants buy all their water from the mains as it’s the most convenient solution for drinking water. However, in some cases, some restaurants can reduce the volume they buy by using another source for tasks that do not need drinking-quality water, such as flushing toilets. The options below depend on the premises and location.
Mains water connection
A mains water connection remains the main supply for almost every restaurant because it delivers treated water at a steady, reliable pressure. A new fit-out or kitchen extension may need a larger connection to cope with peak demand.
Rainwater for guest toilets
Standalone restaurants with a large roof can collect rainwater to flush customer and staff toilets, which are typically one of the steadier uses on site. Commercial rainwater harvesting usually only pays back on larger roofs. Pipework must be kept fully separate from the mains under the water fittings regulations.
Borehole supply for rural sites
A rural restaurant on suitable ground may be able to use a borehole water supply, typically alongside a mains connection as a backup. Any borehole water used for food or drinks must be treated and tested to drinking water standards, and abstracting more than 20 cubic metres a day in England needs an Environment Agency licence.
Water monitoring for restaurants
A single water meter at the boundary shows total use only, while sub-metering the kitchen, bar and toilets with water loggers or smart water meters shows each area separately.
For a restaurant, the data typically shows the following:
- Overnight flow: Restaurants are usually closed for long periods overnight, so flow recorded after the final clean-down typically points to commercial water leaks, such as a toilet cistern or dishwasher valve that does not shut off fully.
- Which service costs most: Readings split by time of day show whether lunch, dinner or the clean-down after close has the biggest impact on the bill.
- Fewer estimated bills: Logged readings from the main meter make it easier to submit a meter reading each month instead of paying on estimates, and give evidence if a charge needs to be challenged.