Abstract: A thin food heating unit suitable for use as a restaurant griddle includes a silicone rubber heating blanket vulcanized to the underside of a highly thermally conductive metal food warming plate for heating a food item placed thereon, a base insulated from the heating blanket and the food warming plate by a high temperature ceramic fiber insulation, insulating standoffs between the food warming plate and the top of the base, a separate power supply which supplies electrical energy to the griddle at a relatively low voltage compared to standard line voltage, and a power controller including an on/off switch which is separate from the base and which can be mounted separately in a restaurant installation.

Abstract: A food service assembly for heating and maintaining trays of food hot while food can be served therefrom has a well for holding the tray or trays of food, the well including side walls of stainless steel, a relatively thick bottom plate made of a highly thermally conductive material such as aluminum for spreading heat out within the well, a resistive heating blanket affixed to the underside of the base plate for heating the base plate, the heating blanket covering most of the underside of the base plate, a layer of high temperature insulation such as ceramic fiber mat underneath the heating blanket and within the side walls, and a layer of insulating material such as phenolic sheet material insulating the side walls from the top surface of the assembly near the well.

Abstract: A thin food heating unit suitable for use as a restaurant griddle includes a silicone rubber heating blanket vulcanized to the underside of a highly thermally conductive metal food warming plate for heating a food item placed thereon, a base insulated from the heating blanket and the food warming plate by a high temperature ceramic fiber insulation, insulating standoffs between the food warming plate and the top of the base, a separate power supply which supplies electrical energy to the griddle at a relatively low voltage compared to standard line voltage, and a power controller including an on/off switch which is separate from the base and which can be mounted separately in a restaurant installation.