Opening a successful restaurant is challenging, especially if you don’t have experience running one. With good planning and design, the restaurant business can be very lucrative. It’s imperative to prepare well before opening your doors to the public. Consult an expert for approval of your restaurant before you get it started. It’s possible to make a ‘client friendly’ restaurant if one carefully follows some common guidelines when thinking of opening a restaurant with no experience.
First, you need to identify the site and structure for your new restaurant. It could be an existing building or a new one. You may need to do several things to turn it into your dream restaurant. Ensure you do it with experts because much of the work requires expertise and experience. Here’s a step-by-step guide to opening a restaurant without experience.
1. Install a New Floor
The floor is one of the most noticeable parts of a building. Your restaurant will require an attractive floor plan that can interest clients at first sight. It is one area you’ll need to work on professionally. If you’re opening a restaurant with no experience, proper flooring will make everyone think you’ve been in the business for a long time.
Customize the floor to match your taste. Think carefully about how you want the floor to look. Consult different flooring contractors for advice and eventually hire the one with the idea you connect with the most.
Be careful not to hire an incompetent professional because correcting faulty installations can be costly. A reputable flooring contractor will help you remodel it using appropriate materials. Ensure it doesn’t have parts that hold water. Make sure it’s not bumpy or has any loose joints.
2. Upgrade Your HVAC
A restaurant must always have a comfortable indoor temperature flowing with fresh air. People want a place to relax as they have their food and refreshments. The temperatures in the seating and dining areas should be well-moderated to create an all-weather aroma of freshness. You want your restaurant to be where people always look forward to visiting, whether it’s hot or cold outside.
Choosing and installing the correct HVAC is a non-debatable issue when planning a restaurant venue. If you’re opening a restaurant with no experience, research the best method of ensuring that your restaurant is properly ventilated and maintains favorable temperatures. Here, you’ll need the services of a reliable HVAC Contractor. This must be someone who understands the different types of HVACs to advise you on the best type for your establishment.
They should be well-versed in the technical installation of the device. A restaurant is where many people can assemble at one particular time. Therefore, the air circulation needs to be well regulated at such times. HVAC systems help prevent dampness and maintain a balanced level of air quality for your restaurant.
3. Remodel Your Kitchen
A restaurant kitchen isn’t the normal domestic one in your house. It’s custom-made for commercial purposes with many pieces of equipment installed. When considering opening a restaurant with no experience, you can start by remodeling the kitchen to make it suitable for the demanding nature of a restaurant.
Depending on the size, you must know the number and size of equipment, cooking apparatus, and storage cabinets you’ll need. A kitchen speaks a lot about one’s likes and tastes. Make yours an expression of yourself by customizing it to reflect your personality.
Hire a good Custom Cabinet Designer to assist you in designing your kitchen cabinets. Ensure you install a set you admire because you’ll see it more than you’d like. Choose the material and color you want with a professional’s help.
4. Add Outdoor Seating
Your restaurant needs to have a variety of seating spaces to give the customers more choices about where they prefer to sit. Add outdoor seating arrangements to give your restaurant more space for your clients. Many restaurants attract customers mainly because of the outdoor seating space’s general outlook.
Outdoor spaces give one a sense of being in touch with nature, making it a good idea to think of when planning a restaurant. Your idea of opening a restaurant without experience should push you to visit existing restaurants to better understand how they approach seating. Decorate your outdoors with good furniture designs and add green foliage like grass and other flowery plants. This adds the fragrance of nature’s beauty.
Find local deck contractors for good planning and modeling of your outer area. Let them advise you on the best design type that adds to your outer area. Your outer compound should be clean and neat. Make it attractive for customers to want to return to your restaurant. Most people detest unkempt compounds.
Also involve concrete patio companies to help install the concrete patio floor. Remember, the outer area of your restaurant is always open, and rainfall can damage floors and other installations if improperly made. A concrete patio is one of the most ‘damage-resistant’ and cheap options on the market that can be used for an exterior open area.
5. Renovate Your Bathrooms
A clean bathroom is a major sign of a clean place. Dirty bathrooms create the impression of a neglected place. This is an instant turn-off for many clients. A restaurant is one place that you should never allow to create such a negative image, as this might cause some customers to never come back after the first visit.
Whether you’re opening a restaurant with no experience or you are an experienced restaurant owner, keeping the bathrooms clean is highly recommended. Before you commence your restaurant business, consider investing in a bathroom remodel to meet the standard of cleanliness.
Another important reason you need to work on your bathrooms is to upgrade the public standard of the restaurant. You’ll need spacious bathrooms with urinals, gents, and ladies’ rooms. You’ll also need custom-designed bathrooms to serve children and people living with disabilities.
Water piping should always be reliable. When selecting plumbers, ensure the one you pick is good for the job so you have water flowing and waste cleaned efficiently. You can’t take chances with the water supply and waste clearance. Clogged washrooms will cause a foul smell, which is bad for your business.
6. Renovate Your Dining Room
If you are opening a restaurant with no experience, it’s advisable to give the dining room some attention. It should be attractive and appealing to customers. Make it as beautiful as possible because this is where your customers sit. Decorate and customize it to give it a theme that reflects your service.
Bar and restaurant renovation contractors are experienced in designing such places. They should be able to give you some of the best ideas for making your dining room attractive and relevant. They will help you design it to suit your theme.
Let the seats, walls, and floors speak to your clients through the designs you have included in your dining room. Another reason you should renovate your dining room is that you’ll be able to give it a customized outlook. This enables you to express the vision and taste you plan to offer to your clients.
7. Find a Waste Removal Solution
Having a waste removal solution isn’t negotiable for restaurant settings. Many people are coming in, and lots of food is prepared continuously. The bathrooms and kitchen have many activities, leaving a lot of waste that needs to be disposed of. Before opening a restaurant with no experience, a good idea is to establish a reliable waste management solution. Your restaurant will need an operation license, and the licensing authorities might not give you one before you prove your waste removal preparedness.
You need a good local dumpster rental for your waste disposal plan. Establish the size that’s suitable for your restaurant. Many people opening a restaurant with no experience ignore this and end up with a littered environment which can lead to the venue’s closure by relevant authorities. Ensure you rent the right size and quality dumpster for your restaurant; the professionals can be helpful here.
A dumpster will help you manage and control waste in your restaurant’s interior and exterior spaces. The parking lot, the kitchen, and the bar and restaurant present a waste management problem. Therefore, take your time to identify a reputable supplier for your rental dumpster.
8. Fix Your Parking Lot
A restaurant is a public area where you expect many clients to visit. This means you’ll also have many cars entering and leaving the premises. Planning for a good parking space that can handle many cars is wise. Good roads and parking space floors are components of a good parking lot.
Sometimes, people opening a restaurant with no experience forget to create suitable parking spaces, which is a turn-off for many would-be customers who leave due to unfavorable parking conditions. People want safe and clean parking for their cars. It is important then to fix your parking lot before opening it to clients.
A bumpy or rocky parking lot will make many customers shun your restaurant. That’s the last thing you want when you open up for business. Make sure to have a smooth and ‘potholes free’ parking area
Get good Paving Contractors to do the job for you. They know the best type of roads and sidewalks that your parking lot requires. They will help you make a strong and weather-resistant parking lot. Your parking lot should also be easily accessible without causing stressful experiences for your clients entering or exiting the compound.
9. Add Art and Decor
One thing you should know when opening a restaurant with no experience is the importance of art in food and beverage joints. You need to think about the food you will be offering and then make it real by painting artistic pictures of the various meals you serve. Add art and decor if you want your clients to desire your food as soon as they enter the restaurant.
Let the walls speak to your customers. Let them see delicious food and drinks on the walls and tables in your restaurant. Make them eager to taste your delicacies as soon as they enter the restaurant.
Consider investing in wall mural installations to make the restaurant walls and furniture ‘appetizing.’ These will make customers feel hungry whenever they enter your restaurant. You can decorate your restaurant with customized murals to make the space more personalized.
Art and decor are understated in making a restaurant business successful. It is, therefore, one of the most important things you should include in the plan for your new restaurant business.
10. Plan Your Budget
Opening a restaurant without experience isn’t easy. However, with good planning, you’ll soon get to your goal. It is important first to have a considerable and accurate budget plan. Know how much you will need for the renovations, furniture, and equipment.
You also need to plan for the purchase of the opening stock. Get a good accountant to do the estimates for you so you don’t end up with unfinished work. Know the cost and only hit the road when ready. Starting a restaurant without all the necessary information and installations might lead to huge losses. Be sure you know the amount you need and only start work when you have everything.
11. Find a Site and Location
The location is among the most important decisions when starting a restaurant business. It must be an accessible and safe place. Restaurants do best in busy areas, especially in towns. However, sometimes they can do well in a secluded location, but for those clients who prefer secluded places only. So, decide early on the type of clients you want to serve and choose a location that’s convenient for them.
It’s advisable to start with the site and location first if you are opening a restaurant with no experience. Insecure locations, e.g., bushy, crime-infested areas, will keep prospective customers away. The safety of your clients should come first.
The success of a new restaurant business will depend on how prepared you are even before you get started. Seek all the information you may need. Visit established restaurants to get a good idea about them. Carry out more research on the Internet to acquaint yourself with the restaurant business.
If you do due diligence to get enough advice and understanding of the restaurant establishment, you will discover that experience is not acquired in classrooms but through first-hand ‘on-the-job learning.’ Within a short time of careful planning and research, you’ll soon have your restaurant business up and running.
