Opening a Restaurant (Phase I): Project Planning

1) Establish a food service business plan. Envision your future business with bold ideas and rethink each one carefully. Listed below are some sample questions you may want to ask yourself:

1. What kind of food do I want to serve?
2. What major cooking equipments do I need? Do I need a char broiler? A convection oven?
3. How many people do I want to serve? Do I want to seat 50 or more? Do I just want to serve to-gos? Do I want to deliver?
4. How do I want the place to function? Do I want a full service bar? A decorative bar? Open kitchen? Eating counter? Any VIP room?
5. Do I want to serve breakfast, lunch and or dinner? Do I want to close the place up in the afternoon?
6. How many employees do I need?
7. What kind of clientele am I after?
8. What’s an average priced meal per customer?
9. How fast do I want to serve the food? How long do I want each customer to stay?
10. Do I want to incorporate any other means of entertainment? Live music band? Plasma T.Vs?
11. Do I need speakers? Do I need an office?
12. Do I want to put any emphasis on history, culture, type of food, special service or any new concepts?

2) Conduct research on your location and analyze whether it’s adequate for your proposed use. Below is a checklist you may find handy for selecting the right site.

If it’s an existing restaurant:

1. Is the exhaust hood still in good condition? Is the size good enough to serve your future business? Note: changing the exhaust hood is costly and can eat up a good portion of your budget.
2. Are the restrooms up to ADA code? (Building new ADA restrooms is costly; finding existing spaces with ADA restrooms could save you a lot of money.)
3. Is there already a grease trap?
4. Ask a Health department inspector to write up a report for a list of issues to be addressed before a health operational permit can be issued. If the changes are minor, you may not need to remodel the kitchen at all. Check the report carefully and see if any major change is required.
5. Contact the landlord and negotiate for a good lease. Most landlords are willing to offer 3 months of free rent period for remodeling and an upgrade to the existing store façade.
6. Check the neighborhood for its demographic, culture and clientele to see if it’s an ideal location for you.

If it’s a new empty space:

1. Check with the landlord and the city’s planning department to see whether the space is zoned for restaurant use and or bar use.
2. If the space is too big for your intended use, check with the landlord to see if the space is divisible.
3. Check the neighborhood for its demographic, culture and clientele to see if it’s an ideal location for you.
4. Hire a licensed General Contractor to survey the site for you to see if the existing electrical and plumbing conditions are suitable for restaurant use.