How to succeed at running your own restaurant

There is more than one avenue to owning a restaurant; you could save up and buy one, you could get a loan to build or you could buy a franchise and enjoy all the benefits that come with being a franchisee.

But once you have your restaurant, you will soon realize you are only half way there. There is the day to day running of the business and doing it the wrong way can lead to failure.

Having been in business for years and grown to a number of branches, Tahini’s has tips to share on how you can run your restaurant successfully.

Focus on food

A lot of things come together to make a successful restaurant but none is more important than a good chef & quality food. People will after all come for the food.

A good chef doesn’t just cook food well, they innovate dishes. If you are running a Middle Eastern restaurant for instance, your chef should not only have mastered the cuisine, they should be confident enough to create interesting versions of the food. Shawarma poutine anyone?

Remember that a good chef is not only good at cooking, they are a good leader too. It definitely helps to offer your chef some management training. If you are the chef and owner, don’t neglect getting some training for yourself either.

Follow restaurant industry regulations

A cornerstone of running a successful restaurant is following any rules and regulations that you are mandated to.

These include having the right permits or licenses and having them up to date, adhering to safety and sanitary requirements, and following laws that protect and support your employees.

Falling short on regulations will open you up to fines, risk your reputation with customers, and in the worst-case scenario, lead to closure of your restaurant all together because of a health issue.

Cash flow is king

This is a cliché for a reason. Always ensure that you have enough cash to run your business for a number of months in advance.  

This will help your business keep afloat even in times of unexpected downturns.

Without steady cash flow, you will not be able to pay salaries on time, pay suppliers or meet your regular expenses. That is the fastest way for your restaurant to fail.

According to experts from Investopedia, More businesses fail from a lack of cash flow than they do from 

Don’t compromise on record keeping

One thing that will help you manage and predict your cash flow is meticulous record keeping.

Record keeping doesn’t just help you keep track of the money, which is important, it helps you keep track of inventory.

You will be able to tell when supplies will get finished, what items you need more of and other details that will help you in running your restaurant successfully.

Record keeping will also help you notice trends like when the numbers of clients are high or low and when a certain dish is popular. This enables you to plan for and exploit these periods.

While it can be rewarding, running your own restaurant is not an easy task. You need all the help you can get and as a franchise owner, you will be given the support necessary to help you succeed.