How to Design Your Restaurant

We have all heard the age-old question, "Which came first, the chicken or the egg?" When it comes to designing a restaurant, a familiar question is "What do I design first, the kitchen or the dining room?" The answer is..."Neither!" The first thing you design is the MENU.

Once your menu research and concept development is completed, you will begin with preliminary design sketches and the kitchen layouts. Following this is the operations review of kitchen-cooking procedures, and the "consumer confirmation" process (focus groups regarding name, menu, style of service, beer, wine & pricing). This information may take two to three weeks to compile and it will give you a good overall idea of the direction of your restaurant.

Next is Phase 2, the design, development and planning process of your restaurant, which starts with researching potential locations and ends with lease negotiations. Using a restaurant-knowledgeable real estate agent to assist you with a site analysis and feasibility study is very important.