This Is How To Make Your Restaurant Business Successful
Want your restaurant business to thrive? Then check out our expert-researched tips in the detailed post below.
Invest in good quality equipment
To run even the smallest commercial kitchen you will need a significant amount of equipment from a large refrigerator and freezer to cooking hobs, an oven, and stainless steel preparation areas. You will also need correctly color-coded chopping boards and knives to ensure compliance with food safety regulations as well as any specialist equipment you may need to cook your dishes like a bon Marie, panini press, or ice cream maker.
Equipment however can be costly, and it's often tempting to choose cheaper items and make immediate savings. The problem with doing this is that it's usually a false economy, and will end up costing you more money down the line because you will have to replace the item more frequently. Additionally, when a piece of equipment in your kitchen fails you can lose a significant amount of money because you will not be able to continue with your service until it's fixed or replaced. To that end, choosing higher quality equipment that will ensure this happens as infrequently as possible is always best.
Source ingredients locally
Another great way to make sure your restaurant business succeeds is to source your ingredients locally, and where possible seasonally too. This is because seasonal and local ingredients are held in high regard within the culinary industry, both for their improved flavor and quality and because they are kinder to the environment as well.
What this means is that customers will look for both seasonal and locally sourced items on your menu, and are much more likely to frequent your establishment if you serve them.
Be consistent with the food and the service
Diners love consistency when it comes to restaurants. They want to know that their hard-earned money will be rewarded with a positive experience and great food. That is why it's so vital to ensure the experience that you provide them is a consistent one.
The good news is you can ensure consistency in your restaurant business in several different ways. One option is to offer training to all employees so they know precisely what is expected of them. Another is to make sure you employ enough people both front and back of the house to make sure they can pay attention to your customers and to the little details that will improve their experience. Finally, investing in good-quality ingredients from suppliers that also offer consistency will also help you provide dishes of a high-quality time and time again to your customers.
Keep your menu small
Ever walked into a place only to be greeted with a five-page fold-out menu that's as big, if not bigger than the table you are sitting at? If so you probably already know that the food associated with such establishments tends to be of a lower quality. After all, how can a kitchen be an expert in cooking hundreds of different dishes to perfection?
Instead, when it comes to your establishment it's much better to keep your menu small and focus on offering a few dishes cooked to a very high standard with great-quality ingredients. Indeed, many restaurants have found much greater success by operating in this way, and once you are established you can keep a core menu and then offer daily, weekly, or seasonal specials to change things up for the kitchen staff and entice new customers in.
Do the math
Everyone thinks that success in the restaurant business is about being able to cook great food. However, that is only half the equation. The other half is that you have to be on top of the numbers at all times, because you can’t be successful if you don’t make a profit, and you can’t make a profit unless you know exactly how much each dish is costing you to make.
To that end, before you add any dish to your menu you will need to have your chef properly cost it up, as well as demonstrate the portion sizes, and how to avoid waste when making it.
Get all the right licenses
If you want your restaurant to be successful, you must ensure that it's compliant with all the rules and regulations in your area. Otherwise, you run the risk of being shut down. First of all, you must train all your staff to the necessary levels of food safety, and handling, and those that need it have the proper food safety certifications.
Additionally, if you want to be able to serve alcohol, as most restaurants do you will need to make sure that you have the proper alcohol seller permit for your location. For example, in Utah, you can get the E.A.S.Y. certification online. It's valid for three years, and the course is available in both English and Spanish which makes it convenient for people of all backgrounds to ensure they are properly licensed to sell alcohol.