Fine dining is loosening its bow tie and fast food is getting fancy. Use this restaurant concept development checklist to differentiate between the different types of restaurant concepts and figure out if the vision you had in mind is the right one for your business goals. Download this free checklist to get started, or keep reading to learn more about designing a restaurant concept.
What Is a Restaurant Concept?
First things first, let’s establish what a restaurant concept is. Developing a concept is about more than just choosing from a list of types of restaurants. A restaurant concept is the overarching theme or vision for a foodservice business. It’s the guiding principle that inspires a restaurant’s menu, decor, and service style.
Let’s examine the popular chain Olive Garden to better understand what a restaurant concept is. Olive Garden’s slogan, “when you’re here, you’re family,” is at the root of its concept. The restaurant’s menu, which is full of Italian-inspired comfort foods served in family-style portions – perfect for sharing – makes you feel like you’re family. The restaurant’s rustic interiors, often complete with fake olive trees and pergolas, emphasize the chain’s Italian-inspired roots and transport you to the rolling hills of Tuscany.
Whether it’s at Olive Garden or your own restaurant, a concept informs every business decision.
Why Do You Need a Restaurant Concept Development Checklist?
Now that you understand what a restaurant concept is, you probably want to know why you need our restaurant concept development template. Our free checklist can help you if you’re dreaming of opening a restaurant (or have taken the first few steps to get your business off the ground), but haven’t yet finalized your concept.
The checklist is useful at every step of these critical restaurant concept design stages:
- Building a team of restaurant experts: No matter how far you’ve gotten with your business, it’s important to have experienced restaurant industry veterans you can consult along the way. If you’ve already worked in the industry, make a list of past colleagues you can turn to for advice. If you’re a first time restaurateur, think about who in your network can help connect you with restaurant experts.
- Creating your restaurant’s mission statement: Think of your restaurant mission statement as your north star. It should be inspired by your concept and guide all of your decisions, from your food and service style, to your decor and marketing.
- Choosing your restaurant’s name. Your restaurant’s name can say a lot about its concept, so choose carefully. For example, even if you didn’t know Olive Garden was an Italian restaurant, you could probably guess it’s associated with some kind of Mediterranean cuisine from its name.
- Developing your menu. Restaurant concept development is intertwined with menu development. Your menu is the edible embodiment of your concept, and is often where concepts stem from. Take care when developing your concept restaurant menu and be sure to test it with people whose opinions you value.
- Defining your target market. Figuring out the customer demographic you want to target shouldn’t be an afterthought. It’s a crucial part of the restaurant concept development process as it determines menu prices, decor, marketing, and more. For example, McDonald’s target market is presumably people who value a convenient, delicious meal at a great price. Because price, speed, and convenience are the main factors of its concept, McDonald’s invests in things like drive-thrus and self-ordering kiosks.
Restaurant concepting is the most important first step in turning an idea into a business. Download our free restaurant concept development checklist to bring your vision to life.