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Want to start a restaurant but don’t know where to begin? What to do? How much to spend? Well, we’ve got you covered. Read the article in full to find out how to start a restaurant in India.

India is a huge market for food services. With over 1.3 billion people, the country has great potential for booming food industry. The Indian food scene is booming and so is the demand for good quality restaurant owners. Restaurants have become a major part of our lives. Whether it’s fast-food chains, coffee shops, or fine dining, we all depend on them to provide us with a quick, healthy meal.

To start a restaurant in India is not as easy as it seems. There are many factors to consider, like how to find the perfect location, how to manage finances, how to hire staff, how to find suppliers, etc. And that’s just the beginning. A successful restaurant takes a lot of work and planning.

Restaurants are not as easy to start in India as they are in other countries. The Indian government is still struggling to come up with a clear regulatory framework for restaurants and takeaways, and the country has a very large population of people who are employed in the informal sector.

So if you want to open a restaurant in India, then you’re in the right place. We’ve put together a short guide on how to start a restaurant in India.

Steps To Start A Restaurant In India

1. Decide on the type of restaurant you want to open

When wondering about how to start a restaurant in India, deciding on the type of restaurant you want to open comes first. The concept of the restaurant you are planning to start will depend on the business potential of that type, your budget, and your capability. The higher your budget is, the more profit-making capabilities it will have.

However, it is always advisable for newcomers to start with a small restaurant at first and then build your business with your profits.

You should also have a fair idea about how much a customer will spend in your restaurant. You will also need to do your research on the market and figure out what type of restaurants are popular in that city. The market is full of people who want to eat Indian food, and they will be willing to pay for it. You just have to ensure that you provide them with the best quality food at the right prices.

Keeping these points in mind, you should decide your restaurant theme, interior style, and cuisine you will offer.

Generally, you can decide on the following basis:-

  • If you are low on budget, cloud kitchens, food trucks or dark kitchens are your best options.
  • For a moderate budget, a café, bakery, or casual dine-in would be your ideal option to choose from.
  • And if you don’t have any budget restrictions, then you can easily afford to start a decent fine dine or restro bar. 

2. Secure Investment To Fund Your Restaurant

The first step towards starting a restaurant business in India is to get investment to fund your restaurant business. You can always get an investment to fund your restaurant business. There are mainly three ways to fund your business:-

  • Self-financing: If you have enough money with you to fund your restaurant, then you can easily fund the initial investment required to open your restaurant. The best way is to fund the business in partnership because that way you can distribute your risk factor involved in it.
  • Taking loan: Not everyone who has a dream can finance his business all by himself. But that shouldn’t stop him from fulfilling his dream. You can take a loan from any bank to finance your restaurant and pay them back later. However, securing a loan from the bank is not easy as one has to keep some collateral or guarantee in case of inability to pay back.
  • Securing funding from investors: Getting investors to invest in your restaurant is a challenging task, especially for newcomers. Investors consider your business idea and its market profitability possibilities as one of the main things before investing in your business.

3. Select The Location For Your Restaurant

Selecting the right location for your restaurant is one of the most important decisions that you need to make. It determines whether or not your business will be successful. You should first consider the type of food that you’re serving, and how much demand there is for that particular dish in your area.

If there are not enough customers for your food, then you may want to look for a different location. The second thing you need to consider is the location’s availability to potential customers. You should select a location that’s in the heart of a bustling area, with plenty of foot traffic, and a good parking lot for your customers. It’s a big investment, so you want to make sure that it fits into your budget, and provides you with the most return. 

You want to be close to public transportation so that your guests will be able to easily get to you. You also want to be near the main street or an area where people spend time. Another important factor to consider is the size of your restaurant.

If you are starting, then you may want to opt for a smaller restaurant with fewer seats. But once you start growing, you’ll need a larger space with more seats, so that you can accommodate more customers and better serve them. Ideal factors for location include the presence of a mall or retail store nearby, good access to a highway, an airport, a train station, a bus terminal, or any other means of transport, and whether you have enough parking space.

4. Get All The Required Licenses For Your Restaurant

In order to run a successful restaurant, you need to get all the necessary licenses. These licenses will vary from one state to another, but you should be aware of the requirements for each one, as well as the procedures to follow to obtain them.

For example, if you plan to add liquor also to your menu, then you would also require a liquor license. You can apply for this online, and you can do so at any branch of the NYC Department of Consumer Affairs. You can also visit their website to get a list of the required documents, and what they are. The most important licenses you need include are as follows:-

  • Trade license and company registration
  • FSSAI License
  • GST registration
  • Fire Department NOC
  • Signage License
  • Eating House License
  • Lift Clearance
  • Music License
  • Liquor License
  • ESI and PF registrations
  • Shop and Liability Insurance
  • Shop and Establishment Act

5. Design a Perfect Menu

There are many online tools available that you can use to create a menu for your restaurant. But the best way is to ask a consultant or chef who has worked in the industry before to create a menu for you. This will ensure that the food items are well-balanced and that the food items are appealing to customers. There are many different options for creating a perfect menu, but here are a few tips to help you get started:-

  1. Choose a theme – If you have a specific theme in mind for your menu, then choose it. But if you want something more creative, then use your imagination to come up with a theme. Themes can be as simple or as complicated as you like, but they should be relevant to your business and serve as an overall branding statement.
  1. Consider the type of menu you want – Are you planning on using a free-form menu that lets users select their favorite dishes, or do you want them to choose from a fixed list of dishes? Either way, the menu design will depend on your menu theme, so choose one that best fits your needs.
  1. Use the right font – You don’t want your menu to look like a computer screen, so make sure that it’s easy to read and appealing to the eye. This means that you should use a lightweight font, and keep the size small and consistent throughout. You should also avoid using any special fonts or symbols as they can make the menu look outdated.
  2. Include pictures and graphics – There is no reason why a menu can’t be visually appealing too. Including pictures or graphics can make your menu stand out, and they can add some personality and character to your business. Just make sure that you don’t go overboard with it.
  1. Keep it simple – If you’re planning on creating an elaborate menu, then you may need to reconsider your design. It’s important to keep it simple so that it doesn’t overwhelm users and distract them from the food they want to eat.

6. Arrange Suppliers & Vendors For Your Restaurant

You can easily find suppliers and vendors for your restaurant by searching online. However, it’s important to be very careful when selecting them because some may be selling sub-par products, or have questionable business practices.

For example, you should avoid vendors who sell their goods at a high price with little or no warranty. Instead, choose vendors who offer a warranty, and support their products with a phone number or email address. Also, make sure that they’re reputable companies with a good reputation, and are not offering poor quality products for the sake of making quick money.

To arrange suppliers and vendors for your restaurant, you can use online marketplaces such as eBay, Alibaba, Amazon, or Shopify. The advantage of using these online marketplaces is that they are cost-effective, and allow you to reach a wide audience of potential buyers.

7. Partnering With Online Food Aggregators

Online food aggregators are great because they help you discover new restaurants, places, and cuisines. In this context, partnering with them is beneficial because they provide a platform for you to get more exposure and interact with your customers. The idea of listing with food aggregators is to let your customers get your menu online and in one place. You can get your restaurant listed with any food aggregator like:-

8. Install Latest And User-friendly Technology At Your Restaurant

There are many reasons why your restaurant needs to get updated with the latest technology, but one of them is to ensure that you are catering to your customers’ needs. The restaurant industry has been changing, and your competition is always trying to outsmart you.

Hence, it’s advisable to keep up with the times and install the latest technology to remain ahead of your competitors. This should be thought of well before you start a restaurant in India.

In order to do this, you need to invest in the latest equipment and systems, and make sure that they are properly maintained. You can get the latest technology from some of the best restaurant equipment suppliers in the world, and you can also find them online. One of the best ways to do this is by installing the latest POS systems, which include the latest payment processing solutions.

These include NFC (Near Field Communication) and QR code payment readers, among others. Most people have been using smartphones for some time now, and a lot of people prefer to use their phones to order food instead of using a menu. If you haven’t done so already, it’s advisable to update your menu with the latest recipes.

What Makes A Restaurant Successful?

People these days are becoming more aware of the health and hygiene of the food they eat and they want to have food that is healthy and delicious. There is a growing demand for high-quality food items. The restaurants have to take care of the quality of the food they serve. They have to make sure that the food they serve is safe and nutritious.

If you want to start a restaurant in India, you must know the key elements that make a restaurant successful.

Restaurant owners need to understand the following essential elements of a successful restaurant:-

1. Quality food

The first thing that comes to your mind when you think about restaurants is the food. You can eat any type of food from the restaurant, but you will always prefer healthy and tasty food. If you want to enjoy a delicious meal, then you need to look for a restaurant which serves good quality food. If you want to enjoy the taste of your favorite dishes, then you need to check whether the restaurant offers healthy food or not.

2. Cleanliness

The next thing that people will look at is the cleanliness of the restaurant. They will judge a restaurant based on the cleanliness of the place. If the restaurant is clean, then people will love it. But if the restaurant is dirty, then it will be a big problem for them. You should make sure that the restaurant is clean before you visit it.

3. Service

You can never ignore the service of a restaurant. When you go to any restaurant, you don’t want to be bothered by any kind of service. The restaurant should serve you as quickly as possible and you should not have to wait for a long time. You should have the best dining experience when you eat in a restaurant. If you have to wait for a long time, then you will be disappointed.

4. Good ambiance

The atmosphere of the restaurant is very important for the success of the restaurant. If the atmosphere is good, then people will love it. The restaurant should be well-lit so that you can easily see the menu items. The ambiance of the restaurant should be calm and relaxing so that you can enjoy your meal.

5. Menu

A good restaurant has a wide variety of menu items. The menu of the restaurant should include all the food items that you like. It should also include vegetarian dishes so that people can eat healthy food. Your restaurant menu should have recipes that are easy to follow. You can ask the staff of the restaurant to give you the recipe for the dishes that they serve.

6. Design

The design of your restaurant is another essential element of a successful restaurant. You need to make sure that your restaurant is eye-catching and looks attractive to the customers. If your restaurant looks unprofessional then it will lose customers easily.

7. Employee management

Employee management is the most important thing that a restaurant owner needs to do. It is the backbone of any restaurant business and if your employees are happy and satisfied then you will have a successful restaurant. You should take care of their health, happiness, and well-being. You should also provide them with a good working environment.

8. Location

Location is one of the most important elements of a successful restaurant. If your restaurant is located in a good place then it will attract more customers. So, you should focus on the location of your restaurant as it can be the reason for its success or failure.

Start a Restaurant in India Using Digirestro

Now you know how to start a restaurant in India. But wouldn’t it be awesome if I tell you that you can easily manage your restaurant and simplify your operations?

Well Yes! It is possible now with Digirestro РThe All-in-One Restaurant Management Software with an easy user interface to run your restaurant or caf̩ on a single plate.

Also read: How Cloud Kitchens are Reshaping the Indian Restaurant Industry