Starting up a restaurant is no easy feat: from the location to the menu, there are so many things to keep track of. And expenses in the first half of the year naturally tend to go over your revenues, which means you should have enough money to stay afloat while you are in the red. Amidst all of these, it is also important to plan out and design your starting dining area. It might sound difficult, but we have you covered! Here are some of the aspects you might not really pay attention to when deciding how to design your restaurant:
- Issues – when designing the layout for your specific dining area, do not forget to check for any potential issues with the layout. It is less of a question of the outdoor cafe furniture Melbourne you bought being problematic, and more of a question of the specific positioning being problematic. To fully understand any potential issues that you might not notice at first, it is ideal to try out every table and every chair in the restaurant: there are things that become apparent only when you try and become the customer. For example, you might find that gaining the attention of a waiter is particularly difficult for a person seated in a specific location – and that can impact the enjoyment factor of a customer significantly.
- Cleaning – another good point to focus on is the specifics of the furniture you purchase. If you have never noticed, examine the furniture choices of other restaurants. You will find that the cafe chairs and tables they use usually feature solid designs – having few or no small crevices and designs at all. The reason is quite simple: whilst you can clean intricate designs for home furniture, restaurant furniture needs to be regularly cleaned, and cleaning out small designs and crevices is no easy feat. Not to add, there is a greater chance of crumbs and dust getting stuck in these small spaces. Thus, make it a point to search for commercial furniture designs that come in solid varieties; if you really want to have intricate designs, at the very least, have them for your waiting areas.
- Dividers and booths – if your dining room is on the larger side, it might be useful to buy some dividers to part the area into two. A common idea is to separate the dining areas into smoking and non-smoking compartments, especially in the case of high-end restaurants. Additionally, if you have a generous extra space, it might also be worthwhile to create a ‘party room’ for party functions. On the other hand, if space is lacking, the use of booths can greatly maximize your seating arrangements whilst not compromising on traffic flow.