While having great food is a cornerstone to running a successful restaurant, it is surprisingly not enough. How your restaurant looks, and how it makes people feel is just as important. You have to create an atmosphere that is welcoming, and is in line with the type of cuisine you are serving; you need to clearly define what type of restaurant you have and what people can expect when dining here. This can be harder than it sounds. Here are just a few thing to chew on when coming up with the concept for your restaurant.
Make Sure Your Concept Stands Out Just Enough
Chances are, no matter what type of restaurant you are opening, there are plenty of other ones like it. And that’s okay—you don’t need to reinvent the wheel here. But, you must design a concept that makes your restaurant stand out in some way, compared to your competitors. If you are thinking about a type of restaurant that is already abundantly available in your area, and you really can’t think of way to make it unique, you might consider going in another direction.
Don’t Be Too Different
While you want to be unique and find a way to stand out from the rest, don’t go so overboard that you create a concept most people just won’t get, or that is very out of line with the average clientele in the area. You may think the town could use a vegan raw-food eatery, but if this style of eating is not popular in the area, consumers will not feel inclined to check it out.
Make Sure Prices are In Line with the Average Consumer
When designing a concept, it is important to keep the locale in mind, and the majority of people frequenting the eateries in the area. No matter how great your concept may be, if the costs of your dishes are way beyond what a person in the area would normally spend, it doesn’t matter. You have to make a decision here—either rework your vision, or look for a different spot. You must give careful thought to menu prices.
Clarify Your Vision
Before you start putting together the tangibles, like interior design and your menu, you have to give some thought to the essence of your establishment. What is your vision for your restaurant? What sort of atmosphere are you hoping to create? Do you want to create a happening, flashy Vegas-style eatery with displays of liquid fireworks, a formal, upscale environment, or something more laid back and casual. Once you have a clearer idea of your goals for the eatery, you will be more successful in pulling together the different elements necessary to bring it to life.
Consider Trends, but Not Fads
A good concept will build on trends, but not fads. It is important to distinguish the difference. For example, the growing interest in healthy eating is here to stay, it is not something that will all of a sudden fall out of favor in exchange for yucky, unhealthy food. Identify these trends and find ways to incorporate them into your menu and overall restaurant conce
Make a Menu that is Not too Complicated or Expensive
When putting together your concept, you have to consider the average cost of the items which you want to include, and how complicated it is to prepare the various dishes. You want to be able to keep food costs as predictable as possible. You want a list of items that is relatively easy to prepare to keep efficiency in the kitchen running high, and prevent customers from getting too antsy waiting for their food because of back ups behind the scenes.
No matter what type of concept you design, perhaps the most important thing to consider is whether you personally love it. Running a successful restaurant takes a lot of work, and if you don’t feel passionate about what you have created, you will be missing a very important element for success.
