One of the most vital elements to a successful restaurant is its location. The location of a business is designed not just to attract a patron base, but also to draw the right kind of employees: chefs, hosting staff, servers, cooks, bartenders, and bussers. The location of a restaurant always tends to lead its identity, because each neighborhood has its own reputation, no matter how modest or lavish.

Restaurant owners can choose to place their business in a distinctive area, or agglomerate alongside other restaurants in highly trafficked thoroughfares. The decision will forever affect the brand and the popularity of the establishment. When deciding where to open a restaurant, there are a few pros and cons to consider. Research has proven that the location of a restaurant is one of the most important factors for success.

Even though you may be familiar with particular neighborhoods, you may need to perform additional research to determine whether or not you have selected the right location. Here are some key points to consider.

Zoning and Grandfathered Laws

It is very important to learn if the place you are inspecting has the required zoning and legal allowances for your intended operation. Do not assume that you have clearance simply because you are inheriting a grandfathered location whose rights may not pass to you as the new owner.

As an entrepreneur, it is your duty to prove in writing which municipal laws govern your ability to develop or modify your location. The sustainability and profitability of your restaurant is at stake. There are different resources to examine for local ordinances and legal codes, based on your region. Every local authority has its own governing councils which control the operations of restaurants in their jurisdiction. Consult a local attorney who is familiar with restaurant law within your desired location.

Pedestrian Security

Especially for dine-in establishments, it is important to consider pedestrian safety. Consider not only your immediate surroundings, but also the full walking patterns of your target customer areas. You want a safe environment for your customers- especially important if you plan to maintain late evening operating hours. Choose a street where customers already shop and feel comfortable to make it easier for them to patronize your establishment.

Visibility

If customers fail to realize that your restaurant exists in the first place, your business will quickly fail. Most successful businesses are in highly trafficked areas so that both vehicle passengers as well as pedestrians can easily see the establishment. The restaurants in these areas tend to be more successful than others that are in remote areas. Restaurant owners should consider enhancing their storefront and signage so that their establishment is clearly visible from both directions of automobile traffic.

When conducting market research, analyze trends and match population-based goals to decide where to invest your time building a restaurant. One common calculation is the number of cars that pass by your location per week. Many municipalities publish these statistics for main road thoroughfares.

Note that agglomeration alongside other restaurants can actually help your business attract more clientele. Competition also stimulates innovation and motivates you to think differently. After all, competition is the essence of entrepreneurship.

Accessibility and Parking

Choose whether parking space availability during your busiest times will create complications for your restaurant. Maximizing your business opportunity is essential, especially during peak hours. If your patrons are forced to drive around your street or parking lots numerous times to locate a parking spot, that might frustrate them and incentivize them to search for a comparable business more ample parking facilities.

Just like managing guest seating, accessible parking and entryways are particularly important for elderly and disabled customers. Ensure that ingress and egress from automobile to table complies with Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) guidelines. If your restaurant plans to offer valet, ensure that your attendants also follow ADA best practices.

Conclusion

They say that there are only three rules in real estate: location, location, location. When choosing a building for your restaurant, take your time to fully research, organize, and prepare. Location is possibly your most important decision as a restaurant owner. Follow some of this advice, and ensure that you speak to local business owners and attorneys before settling on your final decision.

Photo by Ethan Hu on Unsplash

Dining areas are experiencing rolling closures across the country. Takeout and delivery services are the new lifeblood of the restaurant industry. Maintain your five-star rating with customers by exceeding their quality expectations. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has identified several new practices with updated guidance.

Six Feet Flattens the Curve

Maintaining at least six feet of physical distance between all people in your restaurant is critically important to prevent the spread of COVID-19. If you employ line cooks, ensure they can work within their own six foot radius. For the benefit of your clientele, use velvet rope or X tape marks on the floor to direct customers into safe areas for takeout order retrieval.

Six feet of interpersonal distance helps everyone flatten the curve, but it takes creative floor planning. Consider installing a temporary food preparation line to accommodate for extra cooking space. Remember that customers are prohibited from sitting in dining rooms in many restaurants, therefore some non-essential functions can be relocated from the kitchen to the dining room.

Any Mask Is Better Than No Mask

Respiratory droplets are produced when an infected person sneezes, talks or coughs. When these droplets contact the mucous membranes of other people (eyes, mouths, noses, or lungs after inhalation), the virus infects that person. Unfortunately, today’s novel coronavirus may be spread by people who are not showing symptoms due to its long incubation period of up to 14 asymptomatic days.

Unfortunately, NIOSH certified masks are nearly sold out nationwide. Demand for N95 and N100 certified masks remains elevated due to the global pandemic.

However, any mask is better than wearing no mask at all. Restaurant owners need to do their part to slow the spread of the virus by purchasing any type of mask that is available in their local market and supplying them for free for their workers.

“In many cultures around the world, wearing a mask is just part of the culture. It is a socially accepted act of kindness,” said the Governor of Ohio. “Wearing a mask should not scare people. It is a good thing. It is a considerate thing. It is a courageous thing.”

Gloves Are Doubly Helpful

Vigorous hand washing practices for at least 20 seconds must be reinforced by management. Food workers must wash their hands prior to touching food, each and every session. Express empathy for the difficulty of compliance, but sternly reinforce CDC regulations.

To assist with cleanliness, gloves can be helpful for two reasons. Firstly, sterile gloves guarantee a clean working surface for food contact. Secondly, workers who are wearing gloves are physically reminded that they should not touch their face or unsanitary surfaces while working.

Fortunately, gloves are far less expensive and not as difficult to purchase as masks. All restaurant owners should strongly consider increasing their stock of sterile food preparation gloves.

Sanitize and Seal

Surfaces and food equipment must be regularly sanitized. Follow elevated practices beyond normal cleanliness routines. Insist on periodic sanitization of all food-touching surfaces using a one hour rotation, for example. Supervise workers and assist them with understanding the importance of reducing food contamination.

Once food is prepared, ensure that it is properly sealed. Recall that many customers are transporting food a long distance before consumption. Likewise, couriers must carry food across several distances before placing the food on the customers’ doorsteps. Do your part as the restaurant owner to ensure that clean food remains clean during the entire delivery process.

If we all do our part, we can help slow the spread of this deadly disease and reduce the strain on our life-saving hospital beds. Stay safe and protect your customers.

Photo by Nathan Dumlao on Unsplash

Better to survive than perish? Upscale restaurant chain Vapiano with six U.S. locations filed for bankruptcy this month. Across the country, the National Restaurant Association expects the industry to lose revenues exceeding $225 billion by this summer. The trade association forecasts at least 5 million temporary job terminations.

Consider the following developments from Las Vegas, home to the highest number of Michelin star restaurants per capita of any U.S. city:

• Black Box Meats, which supplies meat for high-end restaurants like STK and Jean-Georges, is now offering public home delivery for the first time in its existence.
• Thomas Keller operates several Bouchon restaurants in Las Vegas and is the Michelin starred chef of Per Se and The French Laundry. Keller sued his insurance company The Hartford for COVID-19 losses this month.
• Celebrity chef Wolfgang Puck operates dozens of restaurants around the world, but he currently only has only two U.S. locations open: Spago in Beverly Hills, and Puck Players Locker in Summerlin, Las Vegas. Puck is joining other Vegas restauranteurs Daniel Boulud and Jean-Georges Vongerichten in a federal lobby for an industry bailout.
• Las Vegas’ Golden Nugget casinos and restaurants are offering interest rates exceeding 15% to lenders in a new $250 million debt offering this week.
• Penn National Gaming listed its entire Tropicana casino and restaurants for sale this week at $307 million, which is 15% less than its $360 million purchase in 2015.

Coping with the pandemic is possible, even for fine dining. Restaurants that can prove compliance with CDC guidance when preparing meals — sanitizing surfaces regularly, washing hands, social distancing, avoiding cash payments, and ensuring that sick employees do not work — are generally allowed to create accounts with food delivery services like GrubHub, DoorDash, Seamless, UberEats and Postmates.

Bakeries and caterers with stocked pantries are selling extra flour, yeast and other hard-to-find consumer staples to the public. High-end gastropubs are now delivering pizzas on newly created UberEats and DoorDash accounts.

“Electric bill will be due and food will spoil,” says restaurant owner Scott Keys. “10 years of fighting tooth and nail will end with a whimper. It’s so sad.”

Some Michelin star restaurants are taking the current opportunity to offer delivery services for the first time, including the following highest rated locations:

• SingleThread, Sonoma — Michelin 3 Star
• Alinea, Chicago — Michelin 3 Star
• Atelier Crenn, San Francisco — Michelin 3 Star

These additional Michelin starred restaurants have joined the delivery and takeout movements:

• Cote, New York
• Sushi Noz, New York
• Sushi Ginza Onodera, Los Angeles
• Acadia, Chicago
• EL Ideas, Chicago
• Entente, Chicago
• Harbor House Inn, Mendocino
• Masseria, Washington C.
• n/naka, Los Angeles
• Atelier Crenn, San Francisco
• SPQR, San Francisco
• Vespertine, Los Angeles
• Dialogue, Los Angeles
• Marea, New York
• Blue Hill at Stone Barns, New York
• odo, New York

“The risk is contact with the respiratory droplets of other people,” reminds the Salt Lake County Health Department. “Dine-in service is prohibited, but takeout is not. It’s not the food or the environment, but the gathering of people.” Utah Governor Gary Herbert has encouraged delivery and takeout as a way to support local restaurants, as long as customers maintain a 6-foot distance from anyone while accepting their takeout order. Most major delivery services have defaulted to a contactless, “leave at door” option for food deliveries.

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Has your restaurant or small business applied for the government’s new “forgivable loan” (a loan that may convert to cash that you do not have to repay)? It’s called the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), and banks are accepting applications this week. This direct cash incentive is part of the $2 trillion CARES Act stimulus package recently signed into law on March 27th, 2020. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), this is the first week to apply.

You may want to immediately consider filing out the application form to submit as soon as possible. A quick disclaimer: The information in this article is current as of publication and is subject to change, as updates are arriving almost by the hour. All information here is not financial or legal advice.

You should first consider applying directly with your existing bank or lender. Unlike the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) which was launched for coronavirus relief in early March, applicants for PPP may not apply directly to the SBA.

Friday, April 3, 2020 was the opening day for PPP applications. However, the only major bank accepting applications as of April 3rd was Bank of America. (President Trump thanked Bank of America for being first.)

More banks are accepting applications by the hour. Check this list of the most active SBA lenders in the U.S. by lending volume as of last year. Many of these institutions will continue their SBA participation rates this year by offering PPP loans.

Here are some highlights and bank updates of the morning of Monday, April 6, 2020:

• Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) announced that it expects to open applications Monday afternoon.
• First Republic is currently accepting applications for existing customers via email only.
• Mercury plans on accepting applications for their customers and submitting them to the SBA this week.
• Chase has started collecting callback information from interested clients and is working on launching a full application.
• Bank of America has relaxed some of its requirements so that you can apply even if you do not have a lending relationship already (but you do still need to be an existing bank customer).
• Radius Bank has indicated that they might accept PPP applications for non-customers while capacity lasts; non-customers must call to request pre-approval.

Many lenders are only servicing their existing customers, especially those business owners who had active business checking accounts as of Feb 15th, 2020. If possible, start the PPP application process directly with your own bank or lending institution.

Obviously, application numbers are exploding across the country. Here are some statistics just from Friday, April 3rd:

• The SBA has processed over $1.8 billion in PPP loans alone.
• Bank of America received 145,000 applications on Friday totaling over $30 billion in loan requests.

Application Tips

To begin applying, prepare the following documents and ensure they are signed and ready for submission:

• Completed official SBA Loan Application
• Payroll information
• Final 2019 financial statements or tax returns
• IRS form 941s for each quarter of 2019
• IRS form 940 for year-end (December 31, 2019)
• Articles of Incorporation, Articles of Organization, Partnership Agreement, or Trust Agreement
• Corporate Bylaws/LLC Operating Agreement
• Passport or driver’s license for anyone owning more than 20% of the company

One quick note regarding Form 2483: Make sure to use the most updated version of this paper, as the SBA just updated this on mid-morning, April 3rd. This new form may reduce processing time by the SBA.

When applying, remember to only base calculations on IRS Form W-2 wages. Do not include payments you made on IRS Form 1099-MISC to independent contractor recipients. Under today’s SBA guidelines (which again, are changing almost daily), independent contractors must apply for PPP on their end, under their own application, to prevent “double dipping” per the SBA.

Therefore, if you did not declare wage payrolls in the fourth quarter of 2019, you may not be eligible for the program. All processing is subject ultimately to federal SBA and bank processing criteria.

Here is the current link to SBA’s PPP application forms (Please check as they keep updating the version almost daily.) More Information and facts about the program can be found directly on the on the SBA Covid-19 Disaster Relief Website here.

Here at Restaurant Engine, we are here to help you as needed. We will continue covering this important program for our customers. Many readers expect to receive many thousands of dollars in forgivable loans, amounting to essentially a disaster relief grant that will help them survive the current economic depression.

Note that there are time lags from when something is announced on television or Twitter, versus when those changes are actually effectuated on government and bank websites.  Any benefits – subject to meeting any SBA program criteria – will also be expected to take time before being processed. Please remember to set your expectations for this program accordingly for your restaurant’s operational plans. Nothing in this article should be relied upon for financial, tax, or legal decision-making. Contact your licensed financial advisor, accountant, and lawyer for final advice on issues relevant to your unique business and personal situations.

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Technology is changing eating out.  The use of mobile phones and online access is changing how customers find and experience eating at restaurants.  But what exactly is happening out there and how can restaurants grasp onto these trends to improve their business and build better relationships with the customers?

Hello, this is Drew Adams, owner of Restaurant Engine.  Restaurant Engine will have a booth at the North Carolina Restaurant and Lodging Expo on August 29 – 30 in Raleigh, North Carolina and I will be speaking on a panel dedicated to Restaurant Technology.

In the run-up to the being on the panel, I thought I would like to outline three trends in restaurant technology especially as it pertains to online and mobile usage and how your restaurant can leverage them.

Trend: Mobile search

In 2015 Google announced that mobile searches had overtaken desktop searches in 10 countries including the US and Japan.

Google says the results of a survey of online mobile searching shows that 55% of people using mobile devices for research want to purchase within an hour and 83% want to purchase within a day!

Of the people searching for restaurants specifically 70% considered making a purchase and 54% actually made a purchase.  For restaurants being seen or shown during what Google calls these “micro-moments”  is a huge opportunity to gain new business.  

Consider this story from a typical restaurant customer.

“If I am in a town I do not know I do an internet search, “best restaurants Charleston”, and I always go to Trip Advisor…sometimes Yelp….and ask for the top restaurants, read the ratings, check the budget, often then I will go to the restaurant’s website check out the menu, see the ambiance, and sometimes I call directly. If it is before hours I will use Open Table to check availability and make a reservation. If there is not availability and I really want to go I will call the restaurant. I do all this on my phone.”

But the most important part of the diner’s description above is probably, “I do all this on my phone.”  Think about that.  Checking location, menu, reviews, setting reservations – things that back in the 90s would have taken several conversations among friends, a subscription to Zagat, a phone book, and, yes, a push button phone – all done now on a 5 inch x 3 inch screen in the palm of a hand!

According to Google’s Think Insights, 59% of those researching online will visit the business’s website and the ones who actually make a purchase come an average of 6 times to the website.  An OpenTable survey says that 86 % of diners regularly check out menus online before they dine out.  

The bottom line is that it all re-inforces the upmost importance of having a good mobile website.  And in a world with Yelp and TripAdvisor and the like, the restaurant’s website is the restauranteur’s chance to “make the case” to the customer directly on why they should visit the restaurant and give them an idea of what they will experience when they come.

Studies have shown the most enjoyable part of a vacation is the anticipation.  Considering this, I would propose that the restaurant’s website has another function, and that is to set diner excitement.  In doing that, you are actually creating the first moment of the diner’s experience and influencing the overall enjoyment of the meal.

What technology to use to be a part of the trend

• Make sure you have a website that is optimized for mobile.
• Make sure you are in Google Location.
• Make sure the basics like your address and phone number are easily accessible.
• Use images that convey the experience the customer can have coming to your restaurant. 

Trend: Mobile apps

An OpenTable survey earlier this year found that 56% of consumers said they were “very unlikely” or “unlikely” to download an app for an individual restaurant, compared with 6%  who said they were very likely to download such apps.

But, that being said, it’s impossible to ignore the mammoth success of the Starbucks app.  Consider these statistics:

• 16% of total transactions in quarter ending December 2014 were paid for by the app
• 21% of total transaction in quarter ending December 2015 were paid for by the app

In fact, customers have preloaded $1.2 billion dollars onto their Starbucks accounts, which makes Starbucks the same size as a healthy mid-sized bank!

Its clear that customer will use apps.  Mobile apps give customers several advantages that they love including:

• Gaining rewards for purchases
• Pre-order ability (avoid lines)
• Quickly finding locations close by

Likewise restauranteurs also gain from being able to:

• Reward repeat customers
• Increase efficiency
• Have a detailed order history data on customers
• Send App notifications – via GeoFencing or Beacons

Clearly, it is working for franchise like Starbucks, but how important is having an app for single independent restaurants?  I believe this questions is playing out in the marketplace today.  There are some relatively cheap options so you can experiment with having an app if you want one.  If you have take-out and delivery or a chain with multiple locations, I would advise experimenting with one and see how it affects your total take-out volume and speeds adoption of your loyalty programs.

What technology to use to be a part of the trend

Here are a few ways to tackle the app building task:

• Hire your own app developer and incorporate the features you want.
• Use a third party solution that has pre-built features.  Here are some companies that offer these services.  
  • Levelup
  • MojoBistro
  • OpenDining

Trend: Online Ordering

Panera, which defined online ordering as ordering done via kiosks, mobile or the web, says that in cafes that have been converted to the 2.0 model specifically, they account for more than 20 percent of retail sales, and it reaches 30 percent for 2.0 cafes converted more than a year, he said.

LevelUp research indicates that customers who have placed an order online visit the restaurant 67 % more frequently than customers who haven’t.

Our partner OpenDining says that online orders are 22% larger than comparable call-in orders and also add on average an 18% increase in total, non-dine-in orders.

Online ordering gives advantage for consumers to

• Skip lines
• Saved preset likes and dislikes
• Get items delivered

Online ordering has increasingly been a no-brainer for restaurants that offer take-out or delivery. 

What technology to use to be a part of the trend

Online ordering consists of subscribing to online ordering provider and then putting your menu into their system. 

Online orders can be received via fax, text or email as a baseline, but even better is if they are connected directly to your point-of-sale systems on site so the orders can appear in your systems as if keyed in by waitstaff.  This is supported by most point-of-sale system.  Here at Restaurant Engine we partner with Open Dining to provide online ordering features and then we integrate the ordering into a restaurant’s website.

Conclusion

Use of online technology in the process of eating out has been increasing and signs show will continue to increase.  Customers want to use mobile phones and online media to locate and research restaurants, make reservations, order their meals, pay for those meals and earn rewards.  Keeping up with these technology trends can be daunting but  can reap big rewards for companies with increased traffic, order size and customer satisfaction.

Zest has a new impressive layout that features big images to showcase your restaurant and includes some terrific features that boost your website’s style and presentation.  Zest, of course, looks elegant on both desktop and mobile devices and is optimized for search engines. (See a LIVE demo )

What’s new with this theme.

Full-Width Images on the Homepage

Zest begins with a beautiful mobile-optimized, full-width rotating image gallery featured on the homepage.  Images sell – and a big image at the top of your website will help communicate what makes your restaurant great.

Homepage Navigation That “Locks” to the Top of the Screen

When users scroll down in Zest, the navigation stays put at the top of the screen so that it is always available to website viewers.  A feature that looks great and makes navigating your website super-convenient.

Parallax Background Image

At the bottom of the page there is an image that we can place there that stays still as people scroll down it.  This makes for a terrific effect that helps the user seem like they are in your restaurant while they are reading your content.

New Modern Page Navigation on Smaller Screens

On a mobile phone, Zest uses a different way of showing your user how to navigate.  Instead of a dropdown, we have neat navigation menu that expands and collapses when you select it.

The Same Great Features

Of course, Zest comes will all our standard features:

• Full control over the colors and styles of the website
• Full Compatibility with Restaurant Engine’s Menu, Reviews and Events, Gallery modules and SEO Tools
• Integration with Online Ordering, Social Media, Google Maps, Reservation widgets

If you are a current customer and would like to switch to this theme, please contact us. (Your data would transfer to the it without a problem).

If you are new to Restaurant Engine and want to try out this theme, you can signup now or contact us for a free consultation.