How To Start A Restaurant In South Africa
What is a Restaurant?
A restaurant is a business that prepares and serves food and drinks to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on the premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services. Restaurants vary greatly in appearance and offerings, including a wide variety of cuisines and service models ranging from inexpensive fast-food restaurants and cafeterias to mid-priced family restaurants, to high-priced luxury establishments.
How To Start A Restaurant In South Africa
1. Location
Location is everything when it comes to operating a successful restaurant. Even the best of concepts will flop when implemented in the wrong location. The location is so important that other restaurant owners prefer finding the right location first before even coming up with the concept. High traffic areas are usually very good for restaurants because they are easily accessible. Other things you should look at before choosing a location is the overall disposable income of the neighborhood that you want to operate in.
Your rent should not cost more than 10% of your revenue, this is often difficult to estimate. The best way to estimate your potential revenue is to go to a restaurant that has the same concept as the one you want to launch. Look at the menu and calculate the average cost of food in that restaurant then start counting the number of people that go into the restaurant on any given day. This will give you a number to work with. Don’t make projections based a best-case scenario.
2. Choose your restaurant concept
This is the service style of your restaurant, the food you serve. Your brand and everything it stands for should be established in this step. Try to create the culture that your brand will be associated with. Your brand should be communicated through the atmosphere of your restaurant.
3. Design the menu
Design your menu items, it’s important to do this as early as possible because it will help you decide on which equipment to buy. Your menu doesn’t have to be detailed out but it’s good to have an idea of the kind of food that you want to serve in your restaurant in South Africa.
4. Permits and licenses
You will need to register your business, it’s highly recommended that you register it as a private company. Registering a business costs R175 when registering with the CIPC.
You will need to meet certain health and safety requirements. These are rules that generally govern hygiene for food related businesses. A certificate of acceptability will be provided to you should you meet all the requirements.
You will also need licenses if you are planning to sell alcohol in your restaurant or even play music, even when it’s played in the background.
5. Hire the right staff
Consider all roles that need to be filled in your restaurant business. From dishwashers to cashiers to human resources, waitrons and so on. Hire people with experience for the critical roles. Especially roles that have to do with customer service.
6. Marketing
There are a lot of ways to market a restaurant and you should utilize as many of them as possible. First things first, you need to create a website. You can get a website from as little as R1 200 from Promta Web Services.
Other marketing channels that you can use are online directories, digital ads and traditional advertisements. Always offer promotions to new guests, maybe give them discounts or free items.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).
Why is it called a restaurant in South Africa?
The word restaurant comes from the French verb restaurer, “to restore oneself,” and the first true French restaurants, opened decades before the 1789 Revolution, purported to be health-food shops selling one principle dish: bouillon.
What is difference between a cafe and a restaurant in South Africa?
Generally speaking, a restaurant refers to any establishment that serves food and beverages. Meanwhile, cafes are places that serve different types of coffee and drinks. Following that logic, all cafes are restaurants but not all restaurants are cafes.
What is the sentence of restaurant in South Africa?
Restaurant sentence example. The ride to the restaurant was a quiet one. We dined at a small Mexican restaurant and spent the meal discussing general topics. He parked the car at the restaurant and turned to her.
What is the introduction of restaurant in South Africa?
A restaurant is generally an establishment where the public may obtain meals or refreshments. The term Restaurant has its origins in Paris, where one A. Boulanger started as a soup vendor in 1765. A sign on the door said “restaurant”, referring to the restorative quality of the soups and broths served within.
How much does it cost to open a restaurant in South Africa?
The estimated cost can be somewhere from R4 million – R6 million, depending on the type of restaurant and other factors. “An applicant must have a minimum of 35% of the purchase price of a restaurant in unencumbered, non-borrowed cash.
Do you need a license to sell food in South Africa?
If your business sells or supplies meals or perishable food to eat on the premises or to take away, you’ll need a license to do so. Adult entertainment premises. If you’re a hawker selling food and meals, which you take from place to place or sell from a vehicle, you’ll need a permit.
Is a restaurant business profitable in South Africa?
A fast food restaurant business is a very profitable business venture to start in South Africa. The demand of restaurant foods in South Africa is very high. The increased urbanization and disposable incomes is leading to increased demand for restaurant foods.
How much do restaurant owners make in South Africa?
An entry level restaurant owner (1-3 years of experience) earns an average salary of R237,478. On the other end, a senior level restaurant owner (8+ years of experience) earns an average salary of R363,716.
Why is restaurant important in South Africa?
The restaurant industry fosters regional job growth, supports local agriculture and keeps your hard-earned money in your community. When you choose to shop or dine at a local business or restaurant, you generate almost four times more economic benefits for your local community.
What are the main activities of a restaurant in South Africa?
Restaurant operations, in the simplest terms, are various activities that are carried out in a restaurant to run the business. These include all activities involved in the preparation of food, customer service, cleaning, purchasing raw materials, accounting, reporting, etc.
What are restaurants operations in South Africa?
Restaurant operations involve all components of the daily management of a restaurant. Like businesses in other industries, there are specific processes that staff members perform that enable the restaurant to operate and fulfill the needs of their customers.