In a recent study by Technomic, 36% of consumers said they are doing their socializing at home more often than a year ago. In addition, 40% said they’d like to entertain at home more often in the next year.

For a restaurant owner, those are some sobering numbers. The corresponding 4% decline in restaurants nationwide over the last year tells you just how serious the situation is. If your restaurant has made it this far, then hopefully the worst of it is behind you. And now might be the perfect time to turn the crisis into an opportunity.

That’s because although consumers are staying home, they’re not necessarily wanting to cook at home. That means you can find willing customers if you’re willing to venture out from the restaurant. In fact, 53% of consumers said they bought prepared foods for the 4th of July 2009. That reveals a market that’s available for what you do best: prepare great food.


Catering for small and mid-sized parties (10 – 100 people) is on a steep rise, and some restaurants have already started offering their services as a way to drum up business, even if those customers aren’t seated in the dining area. So how can your restaurant get in the game? Some ideas:

1. Get equipped. Don’t try to translate what you do in the kitchen of your restaurant so well into a foreign venue without the proper tools. Catering requires some specialized equipment that allows you to be mobile and quick on your feet. Don’t get into the catering game without investing in some good equipment first.

2. Specialize your menu. Stick to the items on your menu that are high margin and require minimal prep work. Whatever your bread and butter entrees are, the ones you can whip up in your sleep, slap them on a special menu for catered events. This keeps things nice and simple, especially when you’re starting out.

3. Try to reach known customers. If you have an email list or other way to market to customers you know haven’t been in for awhile, use it to advertise directly to the people who are probably staying home but like your restaurant.

4. You probably will want to try a few dry runs before you hit the big time with your new catering operation. Maybe try catering your own family function or a similar low-stress event so you can work out the kinks. That will ensure you’re making the best impression possible when you start.

If you choose your menu items carefully and back up some effective marketing with a well prepared mobile operation, your restaurant can stand to make some pretty good money in catering, which gives you another stream of revenue and a little more stability in the uncertain world of food service.

Gregory Scott McGuire is a regular contributor to The Back Burner Blog, a resource of restaurant news and trends written by the employees of Tundra Specialties, a company specializing in restaurant equipment, supplies, and equipment parts

So here’s a head start on crafting your restaurant business sample-

In general there are five things that all restaurant business plans should have. They are Executive Summary, Market Research, History and Position to Date, Operations and Business Strategy.

Speaking about executive summary it should address some vital issues like mission and objective of the company, description of the company, products and services offered, finance requirements as well as financial forecasts. An executive summary is often regarded as the foundation of any business. All the information that you will provide in the plan will be like a guiding path as to what your restaurant will do and how they will do it.

History and position to date is the second vital thing in a business plan sample. This part of the business plan will take you a step further in running your restaurant business. Here you require to include some vital things- such as, the key personnel and the management team of your business, history of your restaurant and also the structure of your restaurant business.

Market research is the most important part of the business plan sample. Efficient market research will only depict how much successful your restaurant business is going to be in the long run. A market research should be inclusive of the following factors – social and economic factors, long-term opportunities, competitive environment, customer description, geographic area, market definition, competitive analysis, market opportunities, competitive advantages and also potential future competition.

The answers that you would get to these things should be analyzed carefully. The information received through market research is invaluable for the success of any business.

Business strategy is another important component of a restaurant business plan sample. Here you should exactly explain how you plan to attract customers to your restaurant. You not only require to attract but also to retain that attraction so as the customers can keep coming back to your restaurant. Thus the topics that should be addressed in this part of the plan are advertising and promotion, incentives or special offers to customers, marketing and sales and commission.

After this comes the fifth most important part of a restaurant business plan sample is Operations. Here you need to explain clearly as to how you will run your business on a daily basis. This part should include things like number of employees you have, type of employees, the daily menu, particular food on a particular day and more. Basically this part of the restaurant business plan should address the daily operations of your restaurant business.

Garen Garson is a restaurateur with a passion for Restaurant Business done right. -check out his HUB pages on restaurant business along with an article on restaurant business plan software and much, much more, including a new one on Restaurant Business Plans

I have to admit that I tend to frequent many of the same restaurants over and over again with my friends. We get together once a week to enjoy a lunch so we can stay in touch. Our lives are too busy otherwise and it works well for us. Since we know we do frequent many of the same places, we make it is a practice to definitely try out every new place that opens up here.

The reason so many of us do go to the same restaurant again and again though has to do with the fact that we are comfortable there. We may be craving a particular type of food and we know just where to get the very best. We aren’t sure what we will get if we try a new restaurant. It is often easier to go with what is familiar, but why not take the risk and enjoy something new?

Many customers also struggle with the concept of loyalty. They feel bad if they don’t spend their money at the restaurant that has treated them so well. Yet as a customer you have the right to enjoy new experiences. This will also give you some real basis to compare your favorite places to.

If you are lucky enough to live in a town where there are plenty of restaurants, start having fun with trying new ones. They may have just opened or been in business for a very long time. If you live in a small town you won’t have as many to choose from but do what you can.

There is a chance you won’t like the foods offered at a new place or the atmosphere. However, you still need to be willing to give it is shot. It can be very exciting to step foot into a new restaurant. If you don’t like what takes place you can always tell the manager about it. May be the can implement some changes and it will be a place you go back to in the future.

Not everyone is comfortable though with just pulling up to a place they have never heard of. They want to spend money on food they will like and they want to eat it in a relaxing atmosphere. If this idea is just too much for you, consider getting some information from people you know or online. Even if you are traveling out of town you can find reviews online about great places to eat.

In order to help other people, take a few minutes to post your own reviews. You may not have liked the restaurant or you may have loved it. Regardless, you have exposed yourself to something new. Eating out can be a great deal of fun when you approach some new places now and then.

Patricia Farnham is well known for her insight on creating a successful restaurant. Learn from this veteran restaurateur with real life examples of restaurant failure and success. She’s uncovered many methods of starting a restaurant for very little money, and keeping it open. Check out her website for how to start a restaurant information, opinions and resources.