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Crowell's
Consultants ®
Opening of your restaurant
Opening a restaurant
takes time, patience and plenty of work. Deadlines must be
met, and your efforts must be set towards meeting your budget and
creative specifications. But with the right planning, getting everything
done in a timely manner can be accomplished with minimum frustration.
What should I know before
opening
a restaurant? Since your first priorities will be to the building your business will
be located in, and to the supplying of your restaurant, you need to work
closely with your contractor to ensure he or she fully understands the
operation of your establishment and has fulfilled your needs in return.
This includes, among other things, assurance that you have received all
the licenses pertaining to your area and knowledge that you have applied
for federal, state and local tax numbers. In addition, make sure your
contractor is aware of your responsibilities to your lease before,
during and after construction. Most importantly: Don’t assume
anything. Put everything you want done in writing!
Also, for the sake of organization, set up a storage area so you can
store equipment, small wares, supplies and such as you receive them. This
way, you won’t have to coordinate with your contractor to receive
items at the site.
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Steps we will take in the weeks leading
up to the
opening of your restaurant.
Naturally, each restaurant is different. But every one still has to
undergo certain procedures to ensure a successful opening. The following
eight-week plan offers a time-tested process that can be expanded (to 12
weeks, for example) or shortened (to 6 weeks) depending on your needs.
It also gives us plenty of time to cover our tracks and plan ahead, just
in case the unexpected occurs.
Eight weeks before
opening
a restaurant: Get the preliminaries out of the way.
First thing first: Prepare your pre-opening budget and start envisioning
what sort of image you would like to convey for it. This will carry us
through the rest of the process and set a visual goal of what you’d
like to accomplish.
Then, set out on obtaining the necessary background materials and
legalities. Evaluate local broad line distributors and consider
specifics, like scope/lines of products available, delivery
times/frequency, prices on key products; credit terms; electronic or
Internet ordering options; and other support services offered,
such as business reviews, consultation, staff training. Also, establish
your insurance policy and apply for the necessary licenses from the
health department, the food manufacturer and the water department. Also,
determine local certification requirements (HACCAP training), check
local health codes and ordinances, determine requirements for your
alcoholic beverage server, and make sure your business and liquor
licenses are in order and that you’re set up correctly for sales and
use tax.
In addition, ordering your cooking equipment,
small wares and tabletop
items, like flatware, tableware, glassware, sugar caddies, small wares
and kitchen utensils, salt and pepper shakers, table vents, vases and
the like. Also, order your beverage service, point-of-sale (POS) system
and store décor; order menu boards, exterior signage, office equipment
(copied, fax, computer, calculators), and office furniture (desk, chair,
filing cabinet, etc.).
Seven weeks before
opening
a restaurant: Following up on what we started. Things should be beginning to take shape now, so we make it a priority
to follow up on timelines and get you organized. Arrange for a
moving company, if needed, for furniture and such. Check the statuses of
your licenses with the health department, food manufacturer and water
department, as well as with your business license, liquor license and
sales and use tax. Also, check the status of your sales, federal, state
and local tax numbers.
In addition, establish your banking system and accounts and obtain bids
for local trash pick-up, grease removal, extermination services,
laundry, appliance repair, fire extinguishers, music system, security
alarms and security systems, knife and blade sharpening, window washing
and dishwasher service. Furthermore, determine emergency plans, exit
procedures and create maps, finalize your POS decision and acquire your
software needs for your office (MS Office, scheduling, food management
software, etc.).
Also, select a pre-opening site to conduct interviews and start
organizing your pre-opening parties, such as events for the press, VIPs
and contractors. You will be surprised how quickly everything will fall
together in the coming weeks, so it’s best to be prepared.
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Six weeks before
opening
a restaurant: More preparations.
You should be receiving your tax numbers now, so with the ball rolling,
start preparing for D-Day. Order “Opening Soon” and “Now Hiring”
banners for your windows, and a “Grand Opening” banner for the front
entrance. Also, order plastic engraved signs for pertinent information (“Ladies,”
“Men,” “No Smoking,” “Delivery Hours,” etc.), and set up
order books, a maintenance and cleaning calendar and an inventory
system. Also, conduct a walk-through with the contractor to make sure he
or she is familiar with those systems as well, and retain a full set of
building and equipment plans for operational files.
Check inspection dates and acquire mandatory posters and children’s
amenities (high chairs, boosters, crayons, etc.). Set up communications
for your office, like a fax machine, pagers, and hostess station
equipment. Set up credit card merchant accounts, and select an
accounting service or in-house bookkeeper and acquire the appropriate
software. Also, obtain menu materials - covers, inserts, to go menus,
catering, children, and order restroom accessories, like hand towels and
air dryers, soap dispensers and trash receptacles.
In addition, start thinking about your staff and events. Prepare “Help
Wanted” ads and get employee nametags and uniforms. Identify what your
staffing needs will be exactly, and then develop an action plan for
meeting those needs. Also, order a valet stand and key control system,
acquire entertainment permits, and craft a list of potential
entertainers (including an invitation list for pre-opening parties and
order invitations).
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Five weeks before
opening
a restaurant: Yet even more preparations.
Continue planning and set-up work, to ensure small issues won’t become
larger problems later on down the line. Set up your equipment
maintenance log book. Order office and miscellaneous supplies. Finalize
vendors for food/paper products and set up delivery schedules with them
(and commissary) – include backup vendors. Set up fire and health
inspections. Label valves, switches, compressor and breakers and check
for accessibility. Also, acquire bids and select vendors for décor,
like interior plants and landscaping. In addition, acquire janitorial
equipment (wet floor signs, mops, buckets, vacuum, trash receptacles).
While doing this, continue your staffing plans. Place your “Help
Wanted” ads, purchase training materials for food safety training,
develop deposit procedures (establish armored car service or other),
finalize food and supply orders for training, mock shifts, and opening
week. Also, setup an employee filing system, acquire a first aid box,
create a seating chart and wait staff sections, setup a petty cash
system, acquire tip trays, and check presentation folders, if not
provided from merchant account provider.
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Four weeks before
opening
a restaurant: Time to start setting up.
Around this time, you should be receiving your case work and furniture,
including your counters, cabinets, menu board frames, tables, chairs and
barstools. So that will need to be installed. Also, by this point, you
should also have a number of candidates in mind for staff positions. To
accommodate, start scheduling and preparing interviews and prepare a
training schedule for those you will hire. Also, set up your POS or
register for training your management and crew and create job aids
(pictures of menu items, procedure steps, etc.) for the kitchen staff.
This is also a good time to determine your emergency equipment shutoff
procedures and start thinking about your opening week schedule--make it
heavy, since you really want to test yourself and see what you can and
cannot accomplish reasonably.
Other important tasks to consider: Acquire an internet service
provider, a kitchen clock, tools and a tool kit, and linens. Also,
get your parking lot striping and handicap space requirements, and
select your services for local trash pick-up, grease removal,
exterminator, laundry, appliance repair, fire extinguishers, music
system, alarm and security system, knife and blade sharpening, window
washing and dishwasher service. Also, review your review OSHA
requirements with management.
In addition, continue to think about opening night. Send out your
opening party invitations and press releases to local media.
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Three weeks before
opening
a restaurant: Getting into gear.
Timing becomes crucial at this point. You need to make sure several
smaller tasks get completed while still keeping your larger projects
moving.
First and foremost, you’ll be interviewing and hiring possible
employees and getting them trained as soon as possible. That means you’ll
have to have your training sessions finalized and assign your hired
employees for HACCAP training and certification. In addition, you’ll
need to get employees certified for alcoholic beverage service and
conduct alcoholic beverage and wine service training. Also important:
Assemble your new-employee supplies, such as applications, uniforms,
employer-employee agreements, W-4 & I-9 forms, cash register
policies, and employee handbook and more. Also order your initial food
for training, as well as your first paper goods order. To make sure
everything is accounted for, create detailed inventory worksheets or
count sheets and prepare your delivery schedule for your vendors.
To ensure training commences smoothly, you will need to have your
beverage service and POS system installed and ready to go. In addition,
obtain bags and night deposit keys, deposit stamps and slips, coin rolls
and bill bands.
On top of this, the final load of your supplies and equipment should be
coming in, such as your small wares, ice machine, janitorial supplies,
Ansul System, alarm system, fire extinguishers and more. You will
need to install these items and then ensure everything meets your
satisfaction. Obtain sub-contractor’s Contact numbers in case
repairs are needed, and set up all equipment maintenance and repair
instructions in designated spots in case fixes must be done in-house. In
addition, create a control system for padlocks for cooler doors and
conduct a safety audit.
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Two weeks before
opening
a restaurant: Interior design.
By this point, you should have received nearly all of your equipment and
furniture, including your tables, chairs, table tops, benches, canopy
awning or canvas and more. That means it’s time to make sure
everything fits, works and looks like it should.
Test all of your equipment. Check the walk-in and refrigeration
temperatures. Calibrate the temperatures for your fryers and griddle,
oven and stove. Also, set up and organize your supply stations,
including shelving for walk-in and dry storage (which also must be
labeled), and get your hostess stand supplies (reservation book, call
clock, pencils, notebook) in order. While you’re at it, also post
signs for your personnel, as well as the required posters for OSHA, FLSA,
ADA, EOE, the Heimlich Maneuver and safe lifting. Also, finalize your
hiring and get your employees into training.
Start a construction punch list in case final work needs to be done, and
begin to clean and sanitize the walk-in area. Also, set your exterior
signage light timer, place your initial alcoholic beverage order and
determine light levels and label for each period of the day.
One week before
opening
a restaurant: Crunch time. No task is too small during this stretch. Granted frustration will be
high but if all preparations have been met beforehand, you should be
able to sail into a successful and well-prepared.
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First and foremost, get your décor and equipment ready. Hang inside
décor, wash windows, install plants, clean all equipment, small wares,
and stainless steel, complete equipment warranty cards and run the ice
machine, empty it, sanitize it and refill it. All the while, continue
updating your construction punch list.
In addition, hold your final inspections, receive your certificate of
occupancy, finalize your opening week schedules, finalize the clean-up
of interior and exterior, complete your pre-opening checklist, take open
inventory on all food and beverage items, and buy and receive your
change from the bank.
In the meantime, also conduct your training, finalize your training
certification and conduct a practice run (dress rehearsal) of opening
night. After that, you will be ready for business.
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CORWELL'S REGIONAL
OFFICE
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3001 West Indian
School Road, Suite
#308
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Phoenix, AZ
85017
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Tel: (602) 449-0779
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