3 players
Captain (build + manage) / oven / runner (pass, bus, phone)
Tightest config. The captain calls it like a menu recital: "two pepperoni, one capricciosa."
FILE MENU-06
Co-op Kitchen
Six players, one kitchen, zero excuses. Role splits that survive the Friday rush.
Team Sizes
4 players
prep / build / oven / floor (pass + cleaning + orders)
The value optimum. One lane each, zero crossed hands; the rush runs like clockwork.
6 players
prep ×2 / build ×2 / oven / floor
Max theoretical throughput. But six voices without station ownership is chaos worse than solo.
Four Iron Rules
§1Station ownership
"whoever is closest" is co-op trap #1. Spend the first 30 seconds assigning lanes; chaos drops by half.
§2The runner has a mic
The runner is the shop's eyes: rats, flames, queue state all report from the floor. A muted runner blinds the team.
§3Phone orders go on the wall
Verbal tickets get lost. The Auto Order Screen ($4,000) is worth double in co-op.
§4In a disaster, hold your station
Everyone rushing the extinguisher = nobody at the oven = fire #2. Only the designated firefighter moves; everyone else keeps cooking.
“Best six-player night ever: the viral rush hit and we were shouting "DOUGH!" "SAUCE UP!" "PASS IS CLEAR!" like an actual kitchen line. Everyone was late for work the next day. Zero regrets.”