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SOP · Accept, hold, or reject

Restaurant Receiving and Rejection Log

The useful receiving decision is not “looks okay.” It is a recorded accept, hold, or reject decision tied to the product, condition, invoice, responsible employee, and next action.

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Direct answer

Before moving food into storage, confirm the approved supplier and order, inspect packaging and labels, measure temperature where the approved process requires it, match quantity and substitution, and record the result. Accept only when requirements are met; hold when a qualified person must decide; reject when the approved criteria fail.

What this page covers

  • Scheduled food and beverage deliveries
  • Packaging, condition, temperature, quantity, labels, and substitutions
  • Invoice, lot, photo, credit, and escalation records

What it does not decide

  • Universal acceptance temperatures for every food
  • A legal determination for every province
  • A reason to leave held food mixed with usable stock

Operating sequence

Step 1

Prepare before the truck arrives

The receiver needs the order and a clean path, not a surprise at the door.

  1. 1Schedule a trained receiver with access to purchase order, specification, calibrated equipment, hold area, supplier contacts, and manager escalation.
  2. 2Clear the receiving area and protect food from chemicals, waste, pests, raw-to-ready cross-contamination, and extended exposure.
  3. 3Know which items require immediate temperature or seal checks and which substitutions need approval.

Step 2

Accept only when the record agrees

Acceptance connects evidence, not impressions.

  1. 1Match supplier, item, brand or approved equivalent, quantity, lot or invoice, packaging, labels, condition, and agreed delivery window.
  2. 2Take product temperatures according to the restaurant’s approved method and record the value, device, time, and item—not only “cold.”
  3. 3Move accepted food promptly into approved storage and preserve the receiving label or record needed for the operation.

Step 3

Hold when the receiver cannot safely decide

Hold prevents a rushed guess from becoming inventory.

  1. 1Identify the item, keep it segregated, mark “HOLD—DO NOT USE,” and control it under the appropriate temperature and contamination safeguards.
  2. 2Record the unresolved fact, supplier contact, photos if useful, and the qualified person who owns the decision.
  3. 3Set a decision deadline. A hold without an owner or time becomes hidden inventory.

Step 4

Reject with specific evidence

A clear rejection protects the restaurant and the supplier conversation.

  1. 1Name the failed criterion: damaged seal, contamination, condition, temperature, wrong item, unapproved substitute, missing required information, or quantity.
  2. 2Record quantity returned, driver acknowledgement where available, credit or replacement reference, and the menu or prep consequence.
  3. 3Do not send food back into commerce in a way that conflicts with the approved process or authority direction.

Step 5

Close the loop after service

Receiving records should change purchasing and prep decisions.

  1. 1Review repeated holds, rejects, late delivery, substitutions, credits, waste, and emergency purchases by supplier and item.
  2. 2Update the supplier scorecard, backup plan, menu availability, prep schedule, and next order when the evidence supports it.
  3. 3Escalate a possible recall, illness, contamination, or unsafe condition through the restaurant’s emergency and authority process.

Shift-ready files

Print the log or adapt it in a spreadsheet

The PDF keeps a stable print layout. The UTF-8 CSV is editable for the restaurant’s approved process.

Download printable PDFDownload UTF-8 CSV

Sources and limits

The official sources below support the visible claims. Always verify the scope with the authority responsible for the activity and jurisdiction.

Frequently asked questions

Is 4°C the acceptance temperature for every delivery?

No. Health Canada’s refrigerator guidance is a useful safety boundary, but product, process, transport, frozen state, provincial rules, and the approved specification can require a different receiving decision.

Can a receiver accept a substitution that seems equivalent?

Only within the restaurant’s approval rule. Ingredients, allergens, pack size, preparation, menu promise, price, and food-safety controls may differ.

What is the difference between hold and reject?

Hold segregates an item while a qualified person resolves an uncertainty. Reject records that the approved acceptance criteria failed and the delivery will not enter usable stock.

Does the log replace the supplier invoice?

No. Link the log to the invoice, purchase order, lot, photos, credit, and supplier communication needed for the decision.

Continue the operating file

Supplier qualification scorecardAvocado batch and waste guideRefrigeration corrective action SOP
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