Introduction 1
About This Book 1
Conventions Used in This Book 2
What Youre Not to Read 2
Foolish Assumptions 3
How This Book is Organized 3
Part 1: Getting Started 3
Part 2: Putting Your Plan in Motion 3
Part 3: Preparing to Open the Doors 4
Part 4: Keeping Your Restaurant Running Smoothly 4
Part 5: The Part of Tens 4
Icons Used in This Book 4
Beyond the Book 5
Where to Go from Here 5
Part 1: Getting Started 7
Chapter 1: Grasping the Basics of the Restaurant Business 9
Getting a Feel for the Restaurant World 10
Laying the foundation 10
Setting up shop (with a little help) 11
Welcoming the world to your restaurant 11
Finding Out Whether You Have What it Takes 12
Monitoring your motivations 12
Evaluating your expectations 13
Tracking key traits of successful restaurateurs 14
Chapter 2: Deciding What Kind of Restaurant to Run 17
Figuring Out Where to Start 18
Buying into a franchise 18
Taking over an existing restaurant 19
Partnering up with your current employer 20
Starting from scratch 21
Choosing the Right Type of Restaurant 22
Dining in style 22
Kicking back casual 24
Placing an order to go! 24
Selecting self-service or fast-food 26
Running a bar with or without food 27
Providing catering and banquet services 27
Creating Your Concept 29
Positioning your restaurant for success 30
Identifying the emotional connection 31
Creating a unique selling proposition 31
Using consumer insights to develop and test your concept 32
Developing your positioning statement 33
Putting it All Together 34
Thinking about theme and concept 34
Choosing a name 35
Creating a logo 37
Signing off on signage 38
Chapter 3: Researching the Marketplace 41
Getting Your Mind Right: Profits Matter 42
Exploring the Consumers Buying Decision: The Big Why 42
Identifying and Analyzing Potential Customers 44
Figuring out who your customers are: Target segmentation 44
Creating a profile of your Superfan, or brand hero 45
Focusing your research 47
Keeping an Eye on the Enemy 48
Identifying your competitors 48
Figuring out who they think their customers are 49
Reconnaissance: Mystery shopping till you drop 50
Developing and Implementing Your Battle Plan 52
Doing a competitive analysis 52
Acting on your information 54
Adjusting to a changing battlefield 55
Chapter 4: Writing a Business Plan 57
Dont Fly Blind: Understanding Why a Business Plan Matters 58
Laying Out a Business Plan 59
Articulating the concept and theme 61
Creating your menu now 61
Analyzing your market 62
Identifying your target audience 63
The Bottom Line: Focusing on Financials 63
Forecasting sales 64
Forecasting expenses 67
Breaking even 72
Estimating profits 73
Projecting cash flow 74
Creating a balance sheet 74
Selling Your Plan: The Unwritten Part of Your Business Plan 76
Part 2: Putting Your Plan in Motion 77
Chapter 5: Show Me the Money! Finding Financing 79
Knowing How Much Money You Need 79
Calculating start-up costs 80
Opening with operating reserve 81
Looking at How You Can Contribute 81
Working with Investors 83
Looking at types of investors 83
Compensating your investors 85
Getting a Loan 87
Visiting your local bank 87
Finding government assistance 88
Chapter 6: Choosing a Location 89
Looking at the Local Real Estate Market 89
Examining Location Specifics 90
Considering access and visibility 91
Paying attention to traffic 92
Knowing which locations to avoid 93
Looking at other businesses in the area 94
Considering security 94
Factoring In Cost Considerations 95
Chapter 7: Paying Attention to the Legalities 97
Identifying the Help You Need 98
Looking at the roles to fill 98
Setting Up Shop on Legal Grounds 99
Going it alone: Sole proprietorships 100
Teaming up: Partnerships 100
Almost teaming up: Limited partnerships 100
Playing it safe: The corporate entity 101
Blend of three: The LLC 101
Knowing Your Local Laws 101
Getting Permits and Licenses 102
Acquiring a liquor license 103
Heeding health codes 105
Paying attention to building codes 106
Considering fire codes and capacity 107
Checking out other permits 107
Taking up trademarks 108
Buying the Insurance You Need 109
Part 3: Preparing to Open the Doors 111
Chapter 8: Creating the All-Important Menu 113
Making Some Initial Decisions 114
Matching your menu to your concept 114
Considering customers: Feeding the need with an insights-driven menu 115
Matching your menu to your kitchen 116
Cutting your chef (if you have one) in on the action 117
Figuring Out How Much to Charge 118
Determining your menu price points 118
Using food cost percentage to set prices 119
Creating dishes and recipes and then costing them 121
Dealing with price fluctuations 122
Mixing your menu to meet an overall percentage goal 123
Deciding When to Change Your Menu 124
Staying flexible when you first open 124
Revisiting your menu later on 125
Offering specials 126
Highlighting new news 126
Choosing Your Menu Format 127
Counting your main menu options 127
Considering additional presentations 130
Selling the Sizzle: Setting Up a Menu with Sales in Mind 132
Directing eyes with menu engineering 132
Getting people salivating: Considering visual representation on the menu 133
Money for ink: Using lingo that sells 134
Validating Your Menu before You Go Primetime 135
Chapter 9: Setting Up the Front of the House 137
Digging into Design 138
Identifying pros who can help 140
Getting the scoop on potential pros 141
Thinking outside the Box: The Exterior 142
Laying Out the Interior 144
Allowing space for the flow 145
Building your floor plan 145
Creating space to wait 147
Keeping Service Support Close 148
Wait stations 149
Point of sale (POS) stations 150
Tabletop settings 151
Setting Up a Reservation System 152
Taking traditional reservations 153
Accepting online reservations 154
Reviewing Restrooms 155
Providing public facilities 155
Earmarking areas for employees 156
Chapter 10: Setting Up the Back of the House 157
Planning a Kitchen with the Menu in Mind 157
Figuring out what you need to fix the food on your menu 158
Reviewing the basic kitchen stations 159
Taking control of your prep 164
Laying out your kitchen 168
Considering Your Water Supply: Why Water Quality Matters 170
Adapting an Existing Kitchen 171
Acquiring Your Kitchen Equipment 172
Deciding whether to buy or lease 173
Moving beyond name-brand equipment 175
Getting purchasing advice 176
Chapter 11: Setting Up a Bar and Beverage Program 177
Setting Up Your Bar 178
Figuring out furniture 178
Selecting equipment 179
Selecting smallwares 181
Surveying supplies 183
Keeping Your Bar Clean 184
Drawing Drinking Crowds 185
Running promotions 185
Providing entertainment 186
Offering great bartenders 187
Get with the (Beverage) Program: Providing Liquid Refreshment 188
Creating your beverage program 188
Developing a robust nonalcoholic beverage program 189
Becoming Beer Brainy 190
Winning with Wine 191
Creating your list 192
Pricing your wine 194
Storing your wine 195
Lapping Up Some Liquor Learning 196
Pour size and pricing 196
Liquor lingo: Understanding cost and quality 197
Serving Alcohol Responsibly 198
Chapter 12: Hiring and Training Your Staff201
Deciding Which Roles Need to Be Filled 201
Managing your quest for managers 203
Staffing the kitchen 206
Filling the front of the house 210
Staffing the office 213
Finding the Right People: Placing Ads and Sifting through Résumés 215
Interviewing the Candidates 216
Round 1: The meet and greet 217
Round 2: Comparison shopping 218
Bonus rounds: The inevitable re-staffing 219
Hiring Foreign Nationals 220
Double-checking the documents 220
Evaluating the E-Verify system 220
Petitioning for an employee 221
Training Your Staff 221
The employee manual: Identifying your company policies 221
Operations manuals: Understanding specific job functions 222
Creating a training schedule 223
Chapter 13: Purchasing and Managing Supplies 225
Preparing to Stock the Supply Room 225
Listing what you need 226
Considering premade items 228
Finding and Working with Purveyors 228
Finding and interviewing suppliers 229
Comparing prices, quality, and service 231
Considering the size of suppliers 232
Getting the right quality at the right price 232
Getting what you ask for the way you ask for it 233
Building an Efficient Inventory System 234
Managing the inventory 234
Reducing waste 237
Eliminating spoilage 238
Chapter 14: Running Your Office 241
Deciding Where to Put Your Office 241
Creating a Communications Hub 242
Counting on your computer 242
Picking up the phone 243
Using e-mail and online services 243
Tracking sales with a point-of-sale system 244
Interfacing your different systems 246
Hardware (the Old-Fashioned Variety) 246
Processing Payments 247
Credit and debit card transactions 248
Gift cards 248
Contactless and proximity payments 250
Preparing for Payroll 250
Farming it out or doing it in-house 251
Deciding on a payroll period 252
Choosing salaries or hourly wages 252
Choosing a method of payment 253
Saving, Storing, and Protecting Your Records 254
Chapter 15: Getting the Word Out 257
Defining Your Message 258
Focusing on the consumer and tailoring your message 258
Communicating your concept 259
Keeping up with the competition 259
Getting tactical 261
Building Public Relations 262
Planning for the good and the bad 262
Your PR campaign: Going it alone 263
Getting some help with PR 265
Creating an Advertising Plan 266
Creating a Compelling Restaurant Website 268
Sounding Off on Social Media 269
Investigating your options 270
Responding to reviews both positive and negative 275
Part 4: Keeping Your Restaurant Running Smoothly 277
Chapter 16: Managing Your Employees 279
Selling Employees on Your (or Their) Restaurant 279
Educating your employees 280
Motivating your staff 281
Making Staff Schedules 283
Adding it all up: How many workers you need 283
Putting names to numbers 285
Setting Up Policies to Live (or Die) By 287
Scheduling and attendance 287
Smoking 288
Drinking or using illegal drugs 289
Uniforms and grooming standards 289
Social media policies 290
Disciplinary measures 292
Offering Benefits 293
Looking at health insurance 293
Considering other benefits 293
Chapter 17: Running a Safe and Clean Restaurant 295
Making Sure Your Food is Safe 295
Blaming bacteria and viruses 296
Battling illness: Time and temperature 297
Preventing cross-contamination 299
Monitoring food safety outside the kitchen 299
Monitoring food safety outside the restaurant 300
Critical control points: Following HACCP guidelines 301
Staff education: Picking up food safety tools 301
Implementing proper hand-washing procedures 302
Keeping the Restaurant Clean 302
Getting cleaning supplies 303
Scheduling your cleaning 304
Opening and closing procedures 309
Taking Precautions to Protect Your Customers and Staff 310
Food allergies and other dietary concerns 310
First aid 312
Exits: In the event of an emergency 312
Providing a Pest-Free Place 313
Handling the Health Inspection 314
When the inspector arrives 315
During the inspection 315
Avoiding a bad inspection 316
Chapter 18: Building a Clientele 317
Understanding Who Your Customer is 318
Meeting and Exceeding Expectations 319
Turning Unsatisfied Guests into Repeat Customers 321
Recognizing unsatisfied guests 322
Making things right 324
Making Social Media Work for You 325
Chapter 19: Maintaining What Youve Created 327
Evaluating Financial Performance 328
Daily business review 328
Income statement 330
Cash flow analysis 330
Evaluating Operations 332
Menu mix analysis 332
Purchasing and inventory analysis 335
Evaluating and Using Feedback 337
Paying attention to customer feedback 337
Responding to professional criticism and praise 339
Listening to employee feedback 342
Part 5: The Part of Tens 343
Chapter 20: Ten Myths about Running a Restaurant345
Running a Restaurant is Easy 345
Ill Have a Place to Hang Out 346
I Can Trust My Brother-in-Law 346
The Neighbors Will Love Me 347
Ive Been to Culinary School, So Im Ready to Run the Show 347
Im Going to Be a Celebrity Chef 347
My Chili Rocks, So I Should Open a Place 348
I Can Cut the Advertising Budget 348
Wraps are Here to Stay 348
Ill Be Home for the Holidays 349
Chapter 21: Ten True Restaurant Stories That You Just Couldnt Make Up 351
Déjà Vu All Over Again 351
Priceless 352
Free Pie Guy 352
Rat-atouille 352
Frosty the Newbie 353
Drinks are on Me 353
You Like My Tie? 353
Chefs Behaving Badly 354
Radio Fryer 354
(Coat) Check, Please! 354
Index 355
