How to Start a Restaurant

Here's some food for thought on opening a restaurant.

Instructions

Difficulty: Easy

1. Decide what type of food you want to serve at your restaurant. Do you want to specialize in a specific cuisine such as Italian, Mexican, Chinese or American?
2. Learn to cook. Even if you won't be doing the majority of the cooking, it's good to have an idea of what is required to prepare the food.
3. Determine how much room you'll need for your restaurant. Will you require specialized seating such as outdoor seating or seating at a bar?
4. Contact a commercial real estate broker to help you locate a suitable location. Restaurants need to have good roadside visibility and plenty of parking.
5. Determine if you will serve any alcohol and what type - beer and wine or a full bar. Check on the requirements for a liquor license.
6. Get a business license. Make sure all local government rules and regulations are adhered to.
7. Contact the department of health to see what specific requirements it has for opening a restaurant.
8. Sign the lease. Most leases are triple net, where the tenant (you) pays for all the operating and maintenance expenses as well as taxes and insurance for the business.
9. Work with an architect to design the layout of your restaurant. Have a general idea of how you want the restaurant to look and function.
10. Hire a licensed contractor to do the remodeling work.
11. Create a delicious menu that will attract customers and keep them coming back.
12. Advertise your restaurant to merchants in the area and in local newspapers with a coupon.
13. Get cooking!

Tips & Warnings

• Check out your competition. There's nothing wrong with having two similar restaurants in an area - just make sure they're not right next to each other.
• Add light menu items for the health-conscious eater.
• Get some experience working in a restaurant to learn the ins and outs of the business before investing your time and money in your own restaurant. Learn from other people's mistakes.