Concept plan

The Major Milestones You Must Reach to Open a Restaurant

by David Klemt

Opening a restaurant is no small task, with projects requiring the completion of 500 unique tasks before welcoming guests.

KRG Hospitality president Doug Radkey identified these tasks several years ago. The commitment to systematically accomplish these tasks is a cornerstone of our approach to all projects.

Our feasibility studies, branding, concept and brand development, and programming are unique and customized to every client. However, the journey from idea to grand opening is a path dotted by hundreds of waypoints.

There’s a reason we call our project plans Roadmaps to Success: we’re here to help guide our clients to and through each waypoint on the map.

Below you’ll find just 50—just a tenth—of the unique tasks we at KRG believe you must complete before your grand opening. You’ll find more than 80 tasks in the brand-new 2023 KRG Hospitality Restaurant Start-up Cost Report + Checklist.

Both the list below and the checklist included in our free Restaurant Start-up Cost Report download will give you an idea of what we work on with each of our clients. These tasks should also highlight the enormity that is taking your concept from idea to brick and mortar.

To download your free copy of our 2023 Restaurant Start-up Cost Report + Checklist, click here.

Planning & Admin Tasks

Complete your project feasibility study.
Develop your concept and brand plan.
Develop and test a layout/drawing.
Complete a strategic business plan.
Complete a marketing and tech stack plan.
Finalize your start-up budget.
Analyze and secure necessary funding.

The Support Team Tasks

You’ll need to secure:

Business insurance broker
Business and liquor license attorney
Restaurant and bar consultant
Project manager
General contractor and trades
Mentor or coach

Site Development Tasks

When it comes to these tasks, you may have an idea of roughly what to expect.

For example, one necessary task is…securing your property of choice. Another task to cross off or set a check next to? Signing the lease.

But there are other tasks you may not anticipate or think of when planning to open a restaurant:

Submit drawings to municipality.
Start and manage project renovations.
Set a SMART opening date proposal.
Set up and submit deposits for utilities.
Develop your service sequence (flow).

You’ll also need to source the following:

Exhaust hood supplier
Millworker and specialty supplier
Interior and exterior signage company
Grease trap cleaning
Used oil pickup/recycling
Exhaust hood cleaning

Operations Development Tasks

Complete a kitchen workflow plan.
Complete service sequence analysis.
Source take-out container suppliers.
Secure security, sound, and video, plus applicable licenses.
Secure point-of-sale and tech Systems.
Develop recipe books for kitchen and bar.
Develop package of standard operating procedures.

Brand Development Tasks

Developing your brand involves much more than choosing a logo and colors.

Consider every design and service element a branding opportunity. Your brand development tasks will include developing:

your core statements;
graphic design/branding kit;
website and social media accounts;
a promo video strategy;
a “coming/opening soon” plan; and
your media strategy for the launch.

You’ll also need to:

complete the F&B concept stage;
complete the F&B testing stage;
source menu cover supplier (for dine-in version)
complete a photo shoot; and
plan for and execute a soft opening.

Team Development Tasks

Develop your staff hiring strategy.
Plan for and complete HR and compliance forms.
Develop onboarding manuals.
Source staff uniform suppliers.
Promote job fair or interview dates.
Hold a staff orientation night.
Execute a staff-building exercise shift.
Create a brand ambassador program.

Image: KRG Hospitality

Will Virtual Kitchens Persist or Go Brick-and-Mortar?

by David Klemt

Virtual kitchens and virtual brands are back in the headlines after a record-setting grand opening in Rutherford, New Jersey.

Well, I should clarify: A restaurant may now hold a specific record.

The restaurant in question is the first brick-and-mortar MrBeast Burger location. And the record it may hold claim to is most burgers sold in a single day by a single restaurant.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by MrBeast Burger (@mrbeastburger)

Now, if you don’t spend much time on YouTube, you may not know MrBeast. So, here’s a quick rundown: He’s Jimmy Donaldson, a YouTube personality known for “expensive stunts.” In fact, he may be the pioneer of that type of content.

Right about now you may be wondering what this all has to do with virtual kitchens and brands. It’s quite simple, really. MrBeast was among the highest-profile virtual brands to launch during the pandemic.

Incredibly, MrBeast Burger boasts more than 1,700 virtual kitchen locations. And now, one brick-and-mortar MrBeast restaurant.

Leveraging Demand and Popularity

So, you’re an influential YouTube content creator with tens of millions of subscribers. Obviously, your channel is monetized. What else can you do to leverage your popularity?

Well, if there’s a pandemic crippling the globe and people are stuck at home, maybe you notice the demand for takeout and delivery. And perhaps you learn about something known as a “virtual kitchen.”

If you’re a foodie or maybe just a savvy businessperson, maybe you’d jump into the virtual space. It is, it goes without saying, much less expensive than opening your own restaurant. And if you perform well, that’s an excellent way to collect data and guest feedback.

Also, an efficient way to hone your brand without a lease, buildout or the overhead of a physical restaurant. In a way, a virtual brand is akin to a pop-up restaurant, only you can test hundreds of markets simultaneously.

Okay, so now let’s say you reach a rare milestone in the creator space: 100 million subscribers. MrBeast did just that in July of this year. Do you think you’d want to leverage the support of millions of fans willing to support you and your brand?

The first physical MrBeast Burger opened last week at the American Dream mall in New Jersey. Reports claim that over 10,000 people waited in line for the grand opening.

Oh, and that’s when the location may have claimed the aforementioned record: 5,500 burgers sold in one day. After just one day of operation, MrBeast wondered if the brand should franchise:

should we… franchise? @mrbeast

— MrBeast Burger (@MrBeastBurger) September 15, 2022

Virtual to Physical

This (potential) record-setting event brings virtual kitchens and brands back into the spotlight.

Of course, most virtual brands don’t have the same origin story as MrBeast. One hundred million supporters? That’s rarified air.

At any rate, virtual kitchens do offer potential physical restaurant operators a less expensive method of testing their concepts. Couple data collection and feedback with an accurate feasibility study and taking the next step may make sense. And it may make a tidy profit.

It’s possible we’ll see MrBeast franchise off the success of two years of operating virtually and opening a physical location. And it’s possible we’ll see other virtual brands expand beyond the virtual kitchen.

However, it’s important that virtual brand owners keep a few things in mind. One, online success doesn’t always translate to brick-and-mortar success. Two, the restaurant space doesn’t care about your subscriber count—the KPIs are entirely different here. Three, potential operators need to perform the proper studies—or retain an agency with experience performing them—rather than rushing into the restaurant space.

It’s highly likely we’ll see more virtual brands enter the physical restaurant world. How many will do so successfully remains to be seen.

Image: Eiliv-Sonas Aceron on Unsplash

The Major Milestones You Must Reach