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Restaurant Opening Checklist

Jan 31
Posted by Daniel in Restaurant, Restaurant Furniture, restaurant seating, restaurant tips and advice

Before you open a restaurant it’s important to have everything in order. When those doors open, it’ll be too late and you’ll get stuck on “putting out fires” instead of moving your business forward. For a smooth restaurant opening menus need to be set, ordered, the seating needs to be arranged, staff needs to be hired and prepped, etc.

To help you get a good start here’s a quick checklist of things to do before the grand opening:

  1. Create a menu. Before opening, the restaurant should offer certain types of food or cuisine. Some restaurants allow people to offer menu names on social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter. This is an easy way to outsource the task of naming items on the menu and a great way to publicize a grand opening. The menu should have, depending on your type of cuisine, appetizers, drinks, specials, main dishes, side items, desserts, and other courses if necessary. Depending on when you will be open, you should include breakfast and lunch sections. In one of our next posts we will discuss tips and ideas for creating successful menus.
  2. Arrange seating. The seating will depend on the size of the restaurant and the ambiance required. If it’s a laidback bar style, dining booths, bar stools and high-top tables are appropriate. If you have a patio, choose outdoor patio furniture that fits the desired atmosphere. For example, a country-style restaurant would have picnic tables instead of bistro tables for two. The walkways need to be wide enough for trays of food and people to pass by. You want to make seating comfortable, not cramped, so have tables and seats a set distance apart to allow people to get up and sit without disturbing one another. The tables should also be large enough for the plates, drinks, and flatware. Seating should be arranged in linear rows or a pattern which will make it easier for staff to work with, and more comfortable for customers as well. (more…)
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How to Have a Full Restaurant on Valentine’s Day

Jan 27
Posted by Daniel in fun, Restaurant, restaurant tips and advice

Now that you know how to create a romantic atmosphere for Valentine’s all you need is the customers.

The following tips are a great place to start if you want to save money on large scale advertising and still reach enough clients to ensure a fully booked evening.  These tips will work on any given occasion, but some of them I would advise to use mainly before big holidays or for special occasions once in a while. Just as you don’t pay attention to all year long “special prices” neither will your customers after a while.

Ok. Now for the tips:

  • Use your staff as walking adverts. Let your employees know that their friends can have a special discount if they book a place in advance for a romantic couple’s dinner. (more…)
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Kids Friendly Restaurant

Jan 25
Posted by Daniel in fun, Restaurant, restaurant layout, restaurant seating, Restaurant Seating Design, restaurant tips and advice

Today when people are busy working all day long they feel like they have less time to spend as a family during the work week. This is why many families like to go out with their children for dinner. This way they are saving time preparing the meal at home and spending it with the kids while also letting the kids have a fun outing as a family.

But this means that the restaurants they choose to visit must be kids friendly.

So, what things would be found in a restaurant that was family oriented?

Firstly, ask yourself what would a family expect to get in such a restaurant.  What kind of seating outlay would there be?  It would have to have plenty of space in between the table, chairs and booths so that the parents can move freely between their place and their children. Also kids like to run around and move from place to place so needs to taken into account as well. And don’t have floors with carpets, it will get way too dirty. However if kids are able to freely run around then a soft  indoor-outdoor carpet should be used, as that is very easy to clean.

This is where the seating outlay would come in.  Try to plan out where the seating will go before putting anything in the place.  There should be a section for big families with loud kids and ones that are small and quiet.  Also think about using restaurant booths for a kid friendly atmosphere.  A mix of dining booths and restaurant chairs and tables is the optimal idea when trying to cater to a mixed crowed. (more…)

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Creating a Romantic Valentine’s Restaurant Setting

Jan 20
Posted by Daniel in Booths, fun, Restaurant, restaurant layout, restaurant tips and advice

Like I promised last time, this post is about easy inexpensive ways to turn your restaurant into a fun, romantic venue for your loving customers.

  1. Pink and red paper hearts. Have your staff make Valentine’s Day hearts and decorate them. You can encourage them to bring in supplies and bring a few from a craft store. Lace, glitter, glue, markers, pens, scissors, silver Sharpies, and construction paper will make this a fun thing your staff can do at home, before work, or after work to brighten up the dining area.
  2. Private and candlelit seating layout. You can wait until Valentine’s Day to rearrange the restaurant chairs and tables, but try to make smaller 2-seaters more isolated and use candles on the table to create a romantic atmosphere. If you can, separate a small section of the restaurant reserved for couples and place a small room divider between it and the rest of the restaurant. You can have a few tables and booths in here that are candlelit.
  3. “Percussion, winds, words.” Take a hint from Sebastian and set up some music that really sets the mood. Find a small band that will play soft, classic romance songs. If you can’t find one that fits your budget, just use a playlist that provides classics like Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Andrea Bocelli. (more…)
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Bar Stools Fun

Jan 17
Posted by Daniel in bar stools, fun

So… this post was going to be about how to easily and cheaply get your restaurant ready for Valentine’s Day. It’s coming up soon and you don’t want to be left behind. After all, when it comes to restaurants and romance we all know this is one event you absolutely can’t miss. But, that can wait a few days for our next post because I just learned something funny and fun about bar stools.

Really.

Did you know that in the state of Wisconsin there is a winter sport called “Bar Stool Race”? Apparently it happens every February in the town of Drummond.

The race consists of two contestants sitting on a bar stool that is attached to skis being pushed down a hill by a team member. The first one to finish (or the one that managed to remain on the bar stool all the way down) is the winner of that round. Eventually one team (and their bar stool), get to go home with a trophy.

I don’t really know what the rules are but I know that having a bar stool is a must. I also think that a swivel bar stool is probably not a good idea in this case.

From what I could see this looks like a really fun, although somewhat unconventional, activity. So if you have a spare bar stool or two and are planning to visit Wisconsin this winter why not give it a try?

Here is a link to some pictures of last year’s bar stools race.

By the way, can you guess what the next post will be about?

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Tips for a Great Restaurant Atmosphere (part 2)

Jan 10
Posted by Daniel in Commercial Seating, Restaurant, restaurant layout, restaurant tips and advice

On our previous post: Tips for a Great Restaurant Atmosphere (part 1) we emphasized the importance of  design, lighting, music and comfort.

To complete the list here are the rest of our tips for a great restaurant aptmosphere:

  1. Seating layout needs to be spacious, yet optimized. Spacious seating will allow servers and customers to walk through the dining area without hitting tables, chairs, and other customers. Make sure you optimize the space you have though. Find a seating layout that allows you to have as many tables as possible without sacrificing walking space. (more…)
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