5 Factors To Consider When Opening a Restaurant 

Owning and operating a restaurant is a dream for many. You may want to become a cornerstone of your community offering savory homemade recipes, open a franchise that spans the globe, or design an exclusive eatery creating innovative dishes that redefine fine dining. Whatever your goal is, there are five factors you may want to consider to guarantee you are ready.

1. Costs

Restaurants are expensive. The estimated median costs of opening a restaurant are $275,000 a year. This number can fluctuate a great deal depending on where your restaurant will be, the design, size and menu. You also need to factor in the cost of staffing and that typically a restaurant will not start turning a profit until the three-to-five-year mark. In fact, statistics show that 60% will fail in their first year. Rather than letting this deter you from your dream, use this information to make an informed choice about your restaurant and help you prepare your finances accordingly. 

2. Location

When opening a restaurant, remember the phrase location, location, location. A restaurant in a great spot will turn higher profits. To pick the perfect location to open a restaurant, you need to consider a few factors, including foot traffic, zoning, competition, accessibility and, most importantly, your customers. You want your customers to be able to find your restaurant. You also need to check that your restaurant stands out. For example, if you are looking to open a burger joint, don’t pick a spot where five others are within walking distance. This will create unnecessary competition making your success more difficult. 

3. Menu

One of the most exciting parts of opening a restaurant is designing your menu. As you plan your menu, consider access to the ingredients you need, the versatility of the items and local preferences. To start, you don’t want to design a fresh seafood menu without access to fresh seafood. Also, consider the different uses for the item. For example, if you plan to serve a grilled lamb burger. You can also use the lamb meat for a lamb ragu, ensuring the lamb is used and does not have time to go to waste. Finally, you want to create a menu people in your community will eat. 

4. Equipment

As you pick your restaurant design and menu, you need to consider what equipment you need. You want to ensure that you take advantage of true manufacturing refrigeration for food safety, a stovetop and oven that can cook your dishes, and overall storage space for ingredients. The equipment in the kitchen needs to be up to par for inspections, large enough to cook for your restaurant capacity and able to help you create the dishes you want to serve. Keep these factors in mind as you start to purchase your kitchen equipment. 

5. Staffing

Finally, you want to start planning how you will staff your restaurant. Different restaurants have different staffing needs. A fine dining restaurant will need not only a head chef and sous chef but a great manager to run the front end and a host to welcome guests. Alternatively, a small restaurant would only need a few servers, a chef and a manager. As you plan your restaurant, keep in mind how many people you need to hire to guarantee your restaurant’s success.

Congratulations on pursuing your dreams. With a little preparation, your restaurant will prosper.