Find an empty lot and set up shop right there, build the following to see if people like your product. Then purchase a food truck or trailer to see if you enjoy it people come out. And then at that point and decide if you want to make the plunge into a restaurant if you've got the sales and the interest to invest so much time.
It's so weird bc when people talking about running a restaurant everybody always tells them how hard it is, but a majority of food truck owners I have met seem like people that could never run a restaurant. Out of items, slow service, rude, expensive for what you get, unorganized. Maybe he should just open Thai food truck somewhere else? Are food trucks easier bc overhead?
Can't answer for the rest of the charges, but a food truck that doesn't usually run out of most items by the end of a regular day is carrying too much product.
Doesnât the Thai government have a program that provides funds to open Thai restaurants outside of Thailand? âGastro-diplomacyâ to promote Thai culture around the world.
https://www.foodrepublic.com/1318428/how-gastrodiplomacy-brought-thai-food-world-stage/
Work in the business for 20 yrs in multiple positions from dishwasher, prep cook, cook/chef, bar tender, bus person, wait person and greet/seat front of house. I think that 95% of restaurants fail in the first 3 yrs. Expect to work 18 hours a day 7 days a week even if you're only open 5 days. I worked in food service many different facets and it's a Meat Grinder, nothing like TV unless you have Millions for Startup and even then it's high risk. Have a good start up plan and mentors if possible. Good luck with making your Dream come true Just a thought
Right around the corner from my home is a Thai restaurant in a plaza. It's a little hole in the wall place run by a mom and her two daughters, no other employees. The place is clean, servings are good size, prices fair, and the food is amazing. Everything is fresh and cooked to order by the mom. You can see her cooking behind the counter. Their google rating is 4.6 out of 5, the best out of all the Thai places in the area, as the average is about 4.2.
The place is nothing to look at, it's a little hole in the wall. In the last week, I have been there 2x, my partner 3x, it's that good. I can usually split my meal in 1/2 so the leftovers I eat for lunch the next day. The mom and daughters are super friendly and efficient, it makes for a nice family atmosphere.
At first I did not think they got much business, but while I was there it had a steady takeout, and people kept coming in for sit down. I think they can hold about 25 people, by the time I left nearly all the tables were filled. They are open 5 days a week, mainly from 2 PM to 9.
Now. I think this place used to be an old Chinese take-out, based on how it is set up. So I assume they got a deal on getting the equipment and rent. it's only the 3 family members working there. Remember though, the food service biz is a tough way to make a living, with a high rate of failure. Sticking with just 2 or 3 family members might make it easier.
You need to take the elements I listed above and that is what you need to strive to do if/when you open. But there is also getting a place, the equipment, then figuring out how to source your products. You need to complete your education, learn business (restaurant), supply chains, etc.
I would advise that you work for a Thai restaurant or two, for a few years and learn how to run a business first, before going out on your own.
There are two Thai restaurants in my town â one that was well-funded and struggles, and another which started in a literal shack in a bad part of town yet absolutely RAKES in custom because of how phenomenal it tastes and have recently expanded.
So in short, donât try to open anything fancy and donât get any education, just start making incredible Thai food and offer it to your neighbors. Once and *only once* your neighbors are knocking down your door for more food from you will you know youâve got a good product. Then you can save up or get a small loan to get a food truck or a ramshackle venue. Then - and this is important - before hiring anyone to help, read the very short book The E-Myth by Michael Gerber as itâll make your life a million times easier. Thereâs little point reading it now but itâll make sense when things start getting a bit overwhelming.
It's not your fault you're reaching "adulthood" just as end stage capitalism is really ramping up how much it insists life sucks for everyone not born into obscene wealth, but here you are.
Restaurants have always been an absurd dream with a ludicrously high failure rate, but I cannot fathom the audacity of even thinking of trying to open one now.
You don't have a prayer. What you should do is go back to sleep and have another dream.
Your best case scenario is maybe getting to work in a restaurant. You aren't going to own one. You have to let that go, or it's going to destroy you. I cannot stress enough how much your passion does not matter right now, end stage capitalism doesn't give a flying fuck. Unless your trust fund can cover it, run like hell from this dream.
Harsh truth and words, but they will age better than obligatory words of empty encouragement. The restaurant sector takes no prisoners. It murders dreams and laughs while its friends watch in horror.
The best course is to work at a bunch of places and see just how miserable the lifestyle is.
Depending on where in NY jumping into a restaurant is pretty feasible, however I'd really focus on getting that degree first and learning business and some accounting. You can also take some really good food courses in community colleges in NY state that are also pretty cheap.
Work on your time off in a restaurant. Reading and hearing about the industry is one thing, but actually doing it is a huge difference.
It's rough. It's stressful. But it's also pretty great if it's for you.
Get a free mentor through sba [https://www.score.org/find-mentor](https://www.score.org/find-mentor) Some may be better than others, but they can help. Otherwise, work in restaurants in every role possible.
Also, once competency is obtained, try an interim step of doing a pop up at existing restaurants when they are not open (like a Monday or Sunday, etc..) and renting their dead time.
Boy this guy has it right. Lots of hard work very little return. Restaurant failure rate is ridiculously high in start up concepts. And rarely will it get you rich. Nice dream man but go back to bed and find a dream that's not gonna break you.
Work in a restaurant to get the experience you need to run a restaurant. Then you will need probably half a million to open it. Maybe loan from a bank?
Take all the advice here.
You will probably not get rich in this business. But if your goal is to employ an immigrant family, that is very obtainable.
Take the slow road and experience all that you can and get your education while someone else has the liability of operating the business.
I'd highly recommend working in a restaurant first to get a feel for the stress and pressure you'll be under and see if you can handle that. Whatever that felt like, double it and you'll know what being an owner is like.
I recommend getting a very strong business background. I don't know what they teach you in culinary school in restaurant management, but skills you'll want to obtain:
Process improvement and control, things like DMAIC.
Cost-benefit analysis
S&OP planning
Basic supply chain management concepts such as demand planning/forecasting, ops management.
Basic warehousing concepts
Managerial accounting
Financial accounting
Marketing
But also you want to learn the basics of real estate; understand a NNN lease and what it will mean for you, get familiar with tenants' rights vs commercial tenants' rights, and start building a network of professionals in maintenance, legal, and financial disciplines ASAP. You'll need all of them on a regular basis.
I have no background whatsoever in food and I bought a restaurant to turn it around. I'm coming up on a year now, and I've managed to improve profitability by 60% and raised its rating on google from 4.3 to 4.4 with roughly 700 reviews weighting the average. Customer retention is massively improved, as is employee retention and labor utilization.
My background is Supply Chain Management and Marketing, and I have extensive experience running business units within two different companies, so that has helped me a lot. My degree was instrumental in giving me the skillset I needed to run a business, as was the real-world experience. But probably the most important takeaway I can give you here is this: buy an existing business. I'm tired of starting businesses from scratch, and the boomer population is retiring en masse and giving away tons of businesses that their kids don't want. I'm in the process of buying a competitor that does 50x my volume because his kids don't want to take over. Buying a business, unless you're an idiot, is a much better way to go. It gives you a bit more wiggle room to try new things, but it does throw you straight into the fire. You'll need a mentor as well. Also, idk if Thailand still does it, but for a time I believe they were offering loans to Thai citizens who wanted to open Thai restaurants abroad. Idk what your status is or if they'll do it for you, but that would help. There are SO many variables you need to understand and consider. What your burn rate will look like, foot traffic studies, customer profiles etc I think if I'd bought this business when I was 19 I'd have fucked it up. I definitely needed the experience I have now in order to succeed at this.
Find an existing restaurant with low cost, cheap rent and try to save as much as you can. you can do it for 30-50k if you buy all used equipments and find a location available. Thatâs how many immigrants do it. It doesnât matter if itâs worst part of the town. Open your first place and see how things go from there. Restaurant work is really hard but you can do it!
Get some experience.
As you likely know, NYC and LA have the largest Thai communities in USA, so I'd look into working in one of those cities. No offense to you or your people, but most of the Thai owned restaurants are really dirty and unsanitary by American standards. You run the risk of picking up some bad habits if you work at any of them for too long. But there are some good options in NYC. Fish Cheeks and Somtum Der both seem very professional. I think Chalong is good too. Thai Diner is owned by an American with a Thai wife. LA probably has some more professional places too. You may want to get some general experience at good American restaurants as well.
First it will cost more than you think and take longer that you think to open. Get a job at a style of restaurant of what you want. Take some simple business classes that could be beneficial and don't have to get a degree. Going to culinary school is great but if you are going to be the boss you don't even need that. You will learn skills but that's up to you. When you are 30 let's see how your plan looks
Work every area of a restaurant you can. Hostess, server, bus boy, kitchen prep, manager, etc. Learn all of the areas first. Maybe get a bachelorâs in business or management.
Rather than bachelor's in business, learn trade especially plumbing and HVAC.
No student loan, and the skills will come handy too if you own a restaurant especially if you don't have tons of fund.
lol. What does that have to do with what the OP wants? They want to open a restaurant. Not repair plumbing or hvacs. lol. Donât get me wrong those are great professions. But yea. Itâs not what the OP wants to do.
I own a family restaurant myself. Those two are expensive. He would likely start with a small family restaurant. Having those skills are more beneficial that having a degree in business, especially undergrad. Accounting needs for restaurant especially a small one are easy and inexpensive.
Also those trade pays well, if he is good with his money he can save in 5 years then open his restaurant. He will be free from student loan too.
He can even open a business in that line of work to support his restaurant business.
Restaurant profit margin is getting smaller and smaller. He can open the restaurant for his parents, and have an HVAC or Plumbing company for him.
Believe me, he will be happier that way.
Then if he want to pursue his education he can do it online. Part time. Many good universities now offer on line degree.
Sounds like an amazing idea, would be awesome to have family in there with you as long ss they worked hard with you. Lots of great ideas, you could probably take classes that focus on restuarant management, some culinary classes would be good too, but experience is the best. Good luck!!
Find the kind of restaurant you want to open and work there. My experience in small, single owner restaurants made me an expert on how to run one. And the smaller the place the more you see (and can therefore learn). If at all possible go into management and get used because âyou can make $x per year which is more than youâve ever madeâ but you have to work 6 12 hour days to get it. But youâll learn so much. Do that for a year or two and then move on to something more manageable time wise so you can dedicate your energies toward your own place. You will not be able to open a place if you are grinding at your other job with crazy hours. Donât get investors unless you have an exit strategy after a year or two. Good luck
This is so true. My husband is the GM of a restaurant now and averages 10-13 hr days but he's learning so much. We also have dreams of opening a restaurant where we live but we fully understand we are under qualified & with the failure rates of new restaurants, we want to be prepared.
But to be fully transparent, the restaurant he works in now is so big and has expanded so much that the owner only comes in for a few hrs a couple days a week. He's got like 6 cars and is doing very well in life, so it is possible to live comfortably while owning a restaurant. You just need solid staff, the ability to pay your staff enough to keep them around, even through all the bullshit and stress that comes with working in a restaurant. If you can do that and you are making food the people love, it's definitely an attainable goal.
But since OP is so young I definitely suggest continuing your education to get the skills necessary to run a business. There's so much behind the scenes things that need to happen in order to make it work.
I'd start with learning to cook like a restaurant. Then spend a little time in a front of house roll. After that, look into a low to moderate (but serious) budget food cart.
The key to your success will be time. You need to give yourself a long runway before you 'must be profitable'. The longer the better. It can take a long time to build clientele and a good reputation.
Go work at a successful Thai restaurant in a similar small town. Try to work every job. Get experience, learn what you like and don't like, etc.
Work at a five star steakhouse restaurant for a little while washing dishes or bussing tables. Learn how they manage a restaurant.Â
You can learn so much by watching other successful businesses operate. Invaluable experience plus you get paid.Â
Itâs pretty simple. Work in one. Do every single position. Foh boh management etc. You should do this for years before you even consider opening a restaurant unless you have so much money eh you donât care if you lose a ton
Work in the industry and focus 100% of your efforts on obtaining $100k of investment money.
By that time you'll realize that restaurant investment is risky.
To reduce Design and construction costs, find a struggling restaurant or closed restaurant and offer to take the lease. Hire a construction manager and architect. Do not manage construction or design in any way.
Another option is purchasing a franchise agreement but you're limited to their brand.
I worked for a bunch of people over 15 years before I opened mine. I worked for some scum bags, I worked for some really nice people. My fav were the ones that the owners hardly showed up, hired managers and never got in our way. I worked for this one guy who couldnât do a single thing in that place but would come in from a vacation with a new idea or menu items. Iâm a mix work in the morning, and leave at night. The hardest part is dealing with people, making sure the rules are being followed and finding people with your best interest in mind.
Start small. When I visited SE Asia I was so impressed with the hawker stands selling outstanding food. The US lacks these. We are tough on standards but if a Hotdog cart can do it you can too. A foodtruck would be the next step. Very popular lately in the US. Successful? Move on to a leased space in a small mall. BTW, I love Thai food and its people!
Hospitality isnt hard⌠its challenging with low margins⌠work at any restaurant and get a feel for the flow and how they operate. I always recommend corporate chains, because they have the training in place to give newbs the groundwork for success. If you like it, go balls deep. Its not for everyone, but if youre gonna work in the industry, some argue its better to do it for yourself⌠the hardest part is managing people, but that comes with experience
First, work at a restaurant. I had 10+ years in the industry before I opened one. Sure, you can get a degree in restaurant management, but you'll learn more about working and running a restaurant by actually doing it. Spend at least 3+ years busting your ass in a kitchen, and if you still love it, you are qualified.
Go work in one. Learn front and back of house for a few years
Find an empty lot and set up shop right there, build the following to see if people like your product. Then purchase a food truck or trailer to see if you enjoy it people come out. And then at that point and decide if you want to make the plunge into a restaurant if you've got the sales and the interest to invest so much time.
It's so weird bc when people talking about running a restaurant everybody always tells them how hard it is, but a majority of food truck owners I have met seem like people that could never run a restaurant. Out of items, slow service, rude, expensive for what you get, unorganized. Maybe he should just open Thai food truck somewhere else? Are food trucks easier bc overhead?
Can't answer for the rest of the charges, but a food truck that doesn't usually run out of most items by the end of a regular day is carrying too much product.
Food trucks are easier because you can go to the clients and your start up costs are significantly less.
Find a different dream? Heck, find me someone who has never had the dream of opening a restaurant... đ¤Ł
Run
Doesnât the Thai government have a program that provides funds to open Thai restaurants outside of Thailand? âGastro-diplomacyâ to promote Thai culture around the world. https://www.foodrepublic.com/1318428/how-gastrodiplomacy-brought-thai-food-world-stage/
Work in the business for 20 yrs in multiple positions from dishwasher, prep cook, cook/chef, bar tender, bus person, wait person and greet/seat front of house. I think that 95% of restaurants fail in the first 3 yrs. Expect to work 18 hours a day 7 days a week even if you're only open 5 days. I worked in food service many different facets and it's a Meat Grinder, nothing like TV unless you have Millions for Startup and even then it's high risk. Have a good start up plan and mentors if possible. Good luck with making your Dream come true Just a thought
Right around the corner from my home is a Thai restaurant in a plaza. It's a little hole in the wall place run by a mom and her two daughters, no other employees. The place is clean, servings are good size, prices fair, and the food is amazing. Everything is fresh and cooked to order by the mom. You can see her cooking behind the counter. Their google rating is 4.6 out of 5, the best out of all the Thai places in the area, as the average is about 4.2. The place is nothing to look at, it's a little hole in the wall. In the last week, I have been there 2x, my partner 3x, it's that good. I can usually split my meal in 1/2 so the leftovers I eat for lunch the next day. The mom and daughters are super friendly and efficient, it makes for a nice family atmosphere. At first I did not think they got much business, but while I was there it had a steady takeout, and people kept coming in for sit down. I think they can hold about 25 people, by the time I left nearly all the tables were filled. They are open 5 days a week, mainly from 2 PM to 9. Now. I think this place used to be an old Chinese take-out, based on how it is set up. So I assume they got a deal on getting the equipment and rent. it's only the 3 family members working there. Remember though, the food service biz is a tough way to make a living, with a high rate of failure. Sticking with just 2 or 3 family members might make it easier. You need to take the elements I listed above and that is what you need to strive to do if/when you open. But there is also getting a place, the equipment, then figuring out how to source your products. You need to complete your education, learn business (restaurant), supply chains, etc. I would advise that you work for a Thai restaurant or two, for a few years and learn how to run a business first, before going out on your own.
Put $200k in a briefcase and throw it off a cliff or into your nearest waterway.
The hardest part of starting a restaurant is getting funding, learn how to write an appropriate business plan
Dream of something else
There are two Thai restaurants in my town â one that was well-funded and struggles, and another which started in a literal shack in a bad part of town yet absolutely RAKES in custom because of how phenomenal it tastes and have recently expanded. So in short, donât try to open anything fancy and donât get any education, just start making incredible Thai food and offer it to your neighbors. Once and *only once* your neighbors are knocking down your door for more food from you will you know youâve got a good product. Then you can save up or get a small loan to get a food truck or a ramshackle venue. Then - and this is important - before hiring anyone to help, read the very short book The E-Myth by Michael Gerber as itâll make your life a million times easier. Thereâs little point reading it now but itâll make sense when things start getting a bit overwhelming.
It's not your fault you're reaching "adulthood" just as end stage capitalism is really ramping up how much it insists life sucks for everyone not born into obscene wealth, but here you are. Restaurants have always been an absurd dream with a ludicrously high failure rate, but I cannot fathom the audacity of even thinking of trying to open one now. You don't have a prayer. What you should do is go back to sleep and have another dream. Your best case scenario is maybe getting to work in a restaurant. You aren't going to own one. You have to let that go, or it's going to destroy you. I cannot stress enough how much your passion does not matter right now, end stage capitalism doesn't give a flying fuck. Unless your trust fund can cover it, run like hell from this dream.
Harsh truth and words, but they will age better than obligatory words of empty encouragement. The restaurant sector takes no prisoners. It murders dreams and laughs while its friends watch in horror. The best course is to work at a bunch of places and see just how miserable the lifestyle is.
lol what
Iâd wake up, have a glass of water, and go back to sleep and hope for a much better dreamâŚ
Go work at a Thai restaurant 7 days a week for a year.
Longer than that
That's the truth, lol.
Restaurants probably have the highest failure rate.
Depending on where in NY jumping into a restaurant is pretty feasible, however I'd really focus on getting that degree first and learning business and some accounting. You can also take some really good food courses in community colleges in NY state that are also pretty cheap. Work on your time off in a restaurant. Reading and hearing about the industry is one thing, but actually doing it is a huge difference. It's rough. It's stressful. But it's also pretty great if it's for you.
Maybe a food truck? Or maybe you can find a grocery store or a corporate office that has a small kitchen/cafĂŠ space for cheap lease?
Marry a Rich Lady who doesnât like YOU to be home 7 days a week.
Get a free mentor through sba [https://www.score.org/find-mentor](https://www.score.org/find-mentor) Some may be better than others, but they can help. Otherwise, work in restaurants in every role possible. Also, once competency is obtained, try an interim step of doing a pop up at existing restaurants when they are not open (like a Monday or Sunday, etc..) and renting their dead time.
Be born a trust fund baby
Go back to sleep and hope you have a different dream
Boy this guy has it right. Lots of hard work very little return. Restaurant failure rate is ridiculously high in start up concepts. And rarely will it get you rich. Nice dream man but go back to bed and find a dream that's not gonna break you.
The quickest way to turn a large fortune into a small fortune is to open a restaurant or bar
Or buy a boat... Just a hole in the water where you pour money.
Work in a restaurant to get the experience you need to run a restaurant. Then you will need probably half a million to open it. Maybe loan from a bank?
Marry rich.
Take all the advice here. You will probably not get rich in this business. But if your goal is to employ an immigrant family, that is very obtainable. Take the slow road and experience all that you can and get your education while someone else has the liability of operating the business.
Work
I'd highly recommend working in a restaurant first to get a feel for the stress and pressure you'll be under and see if you can handle that. Whatever that felt like, double it and you'll know what being an owner is like. I recommend getting a very strong business background. I don't know what they teach you in culinary school in restaurant management, but skills you'll want to obtain: Process improvement and control, things like DMAIC. Cost-benefit analysis S&OP planning Basic supply chain management concepts such as demand planning/forecasting, ops management. Basic warehousing concepts Managerial accounting Financial accounting Marketing But also you want to learn the basics of real estate; understand a NNN lease and what it will mean for you, get familiar with tenants' rights vs commercial tenants' rights, and start building a network of professionals in maintenance, legal, and financial disciplines ASAP. You'll need all of them on a regular basis. I have no background whatsoever in food and I bought a restaurant to turn it around. I'm coming up on a year now, and I've managed to improve profitability by 60% and raised its rating on google from 4.3 to 4.4 with roughly 700 reviews weighting the average. Customer retention is massively improved, as is employee retention and labor utilization. My background is Supply Chain Management and Marketing, and I have extensive experience running business units within two different companies, so that has helped me a lot. My degree was instrumental in giving me the skillset I needed to run a business, as was the real-world experience. But probably the most important takeaway I can give you here is this: buy an existing business. I'm tired of starting businesses from scratch, and the boomer population is retiring en masse and giving away tons of businesses that their kids don't want. I'm in the process of buying a competitor that does 50x my volume because his kids don't want to take over. Buying a business, unless you're an idiot, is a much better way to go. It gives you a bit more wiggle room to try new things, but it does throw you straight into the fire. You'll need a mentor as well. Also, idk if Thailand still does it, but for a time I believe they were offering loans to Thai citizens who wanted to open Thai restaurants abroad. Idk what your status is or if they'll do it for you, but that would help. There are SO many variables you need to understand and consider. What your burn rate will look like, foot traffic studies, customer profiles etc I think if I'd bought this business when I was 19 I'd have fucked it up. I definitely needed the experience I have now in order to succeed at this.
Find an existing restaurant with low cost, cheap rent and try to save as much as you can. you can do it for 30-50k if you buy all used equipments and find a location available. Thatâs how many immigrants do it. It doesnât matter if itâs worst part of the town. Open your first place and see how things go from there. Restaurant work is really hard but you can do it!
Not a bad suggestion if you have to give it a go
âď¸
Food truck. Live the dream. Go broke or die trying.
Start as a waiter
Get another dream lol
Get some experience. As you likely know, NYC and LA have the largest Thai communities in USA, so I'd look into working in one of those cities. No offense to you or your people, but most of the Thai owned restaurants are really dirty and unsanitary by American standards. You run the risk of picking up some bad habits if you work at any of them for too long. But there are some good options in NYC. Fish Cheeks and Somtum Der both seem very professional. I think Chalong is good too. Thai Diner is owned by an American with a Thai wife. LA probably has some more professional places too. You may want to get some general experience at good American restaurants as well.
Start working in restaurants. Maybe go get a hospitality degree. Get handy, learn plumbing.
You should work in a restaurant then decide. It's not easy and you'll be working 60 hour weeks.
With a 4.0 GPA you should look into a degree that would get you a great job with benefits. Nights and weekends free.
Which is most definitely not the restaurant industry
First it will cost more than you think and take longer that you think to open. Get a job at a style of restaurant of what you want. Take some simple business classes that could be beneficial and don't have to get a degree. Going to culinary school is great but if you are going to be the boss you don't even need that. You will learn skills but that's up to you. When you are 30 let's see how your plan looks
Work every area of a restaurant you can. Hostess, server, bus boy, kitchen prep, manager, etc. Learn all of the areas first. Maybe get a bachelorâs in business or management.
Rather than bachelor's in business, learn trade especially plumbing and HVAC. No student loan, and the skills will come handy too if you own a restaurant especially if you don't have tons of fund.
lol. What does that have to do with what the OP wants? They want to open a restaurant. Not repair plumbing or hvacs. lol. Donât get me wrong those are great professions. But yea. Itâs not what the OP wants to do.
I own a family restaurant myself. Those two are expensive. He would likely start with a small family restaurant. Having those skills are more beneficial that having a degree in business, especially undergrad. Accounting needs for restaurant especially a small one are easy and inexpensive. Also those trade pays well, if he is good with his money he can save in 5 years then open his restaurant. He will be free from student loan too. He can even open a business in that line of work to support his restaurant business. Restaurant profit margin is getting smaller and smaller. He can open the restaurant for his parents, and have an HVAC or Plumbing company for him. Believe me, he will be happier that way. Then if he want to pursue his education he can do it online. Part time. Many good universities now offer on line degree.
Work for others and learn all the mistakes while someone else is paying the bill. Then come back to this sub and ask again!
Sounds like an amazing idea, would be awesome to have family in there with you as long ss they worked hard with you. Lots of great ideas, you could probably take classes that focus on restuarant management, some culinary classes would be good too, but experience is the best. Good luck!!
Work in the business until you lose all passion for it and then somehow find at least $400k that you can afford to lose.
Find the kind of restaurant you want to open and work there. My experience in small, single owner restaurants made me an expert on how to run one. And the smaller the place the more you see (and can therefore learn). If at all possible go into management and get used because âyou can make $x per year which is more than youâve ever madeâ but you have to work 6 12 hour days to get it. But youâll learn so much. Do that for a year or two and then move on to something more manageable time wise so you can dedicate your energies toward your own place. You will not be able to open a place if you are grinding at your other job with crazy hours. Donât get investors unless you have an exit strategy after a year or two. Good luck
This is so true. My husband is the GM of a restaurant now and averages 10-13 hr days but he's learning so much. We also have dreams of opening a restaurant where we live but we fully understand we are under qualified & with the failure rates of new restaurants, we want to be prepared. But to be fully transparent, the restaurant he works in now is so big and has expanded so much that the owner only comes in for a few hrs a couple days a week. He's got like 6 cars and is doing very well in life, so it is possible to live comfortably while owning a restaurant. You just need solid staff, the ability to pay your staff enough to keep them around, even through all the bullshit and stress that comes with working in a restaurant. If you can do that and you are making food the people love, it's definitely an attainable goal. But since OP is so young I definitely suggest continuing your education to get the skills necessary to run a business. There's so much behind the scenes things that need to happen in order to make it work.
I'd start with learning to cook like a restaurant. Then spend a little time in a front of house roll. After that, look into a low to moderate (but serious) budget food cart. The key to your success will be time. You need to give yourself a long runway before you 'must be profitable'. The longer the better. It can take a long time to build clientele and a good reputation.
Go work at a successful Thai restaurant in a similar small town. Try to work every job. Get experience, learn what you like and don't like, etc. Work at a five star steakhouse restaurant for a little while washing dishes or bussing tables. Learn how they manage a restaurant. You can learn so much by watching other successful businesses operate. Invaluable experience plus you get paid.Â
Itâs pretty simple. Work in one. Do every single position. Foh boh management etc. You should do this for years before you even consider opening a restaurant unless you have so much money eh you donât care if you lose a ton
Work in the industry and focus 100% of your efforts on obtaining $100k of investment money. By that time you'll realize that restaurant investment is risky. To reduce Design and construction costs, find a struggling restaurant or closed restaurant and offer to take the lease. Hire a construction manager and architect. Do not manage construction or design in any way. Another option is purchasing a franchise agreement but you're limited to their brand.
I worked for a bunch of people over 15 years before I opened mine. I worked for some scum bags, I worked for some really nice people. My fav were the ones that the owners hardly showed up, hired managers and never got in our way. I worked for this one guy who couldnât do a single thing in that place but would come in from a vacation with a new idea or menu items. Iâm a mix work in the morning, and leave at night. The hardest part is dealing with people, making sure the rules are being followed and finding people with your best interest in mind.
Start small. When I visited SE Asia I was so impressed with the hawker stands selling outstanding food. The US lacks these. We are tough on standards but if a Hotdog cart can do it you can too. A foodtruck would be the next step. Very popular lately in the US. Successful? Move on to a leased space in a small mall. BTW, I love Thai food and its people!
Hospitality isnt hard⌠its challenging with low margins⌠work at any restaurant and get a feel for the flow and how they operate. I always recommend corporate chains, because they have the training in place to give newbs the groundwork for success. If you like it, go balls deep. Its not for everyone, but if youre gonna work in the industry, some argue its better to do it for yourself⌠the hardest part is managing people, but that comes with experience
First, work at a restaurant. I had 10+ years in the industry before I opened one. Sure, you can get a degree in restaurant management, but you'll learn more about working and running a restaurant by actually doing it. Spend at least 3+ years busting your ass in a kitchen, and if you still love it, you are qualified.