Working with restaurant consultants can be a little like taking your car in for a tune-up or yourself to the doctor for a check-up. Restaurant consulting advice can keep you ahead of the game. Restaurant business consultants can inform you of trends that are waxing or waning in the food arena. They solve particular problems you're encountering in your business.

Working with restaurant consulting firms is a means to saving you money and increasing your profits. Restaurant management consultants can trim the fat off your menu, increase productivity with your staff and advise you on purchasers and suppliers that are more cost-effective than the ones you're working with now.

1. Working with restaurant consultant firms on financial operations will increase your profits.

2. Restaurant consultants will work with you to solve problems you're having—whether it is with the menu, the design of the restaurant or the customer service provided by your staff.

3. Restaurant consultancy is useful when you're creating a wine list. Restaurant advice is available to you on any restaurant-related matter through restaurant consultants.

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Save money and increase profits working with food service consultants

Working with a food service consultant can improve your profits by re-working items on your menu with less expensive items without cutting back on taste. Other restaurant consultants will streamline your costs in terms of productivity by identifying areas of waste.

I recommend: Synergy Consultants can refine your menu to include delicious food without going overboard in costs. The Fifteen Group is so named because after working with them, your profits increase at least 15%. Gilkey Restaurant Consulting offers a Financial Systems Improvement strategy for overall restaurant operations.

Use food service consultants to design your restaurant

The best food tastes better in the appropriate environment. A restaurant design consultant will make the most out of your space in both the dining and kitchen areas.

I recommend: J. Design Group design restaurant creates light-filled dining interiors. Mosser Design specializes in building restaurants. Its website is filled with information on contractors, consultants and everything else you need to create your restaurant's interior.

Use restaurant consulting firms in areas that are not your expertise

You may not be a wine expert but a restaurant consultancy can steer you to wine experts. If you're having problems with the food coming out of your kitchen, you can work with a consulting chef to straighten things out.

I recommend: SF Sommelier will increase your wine profile by developing a wine program that fits your budget and supplies wines of quality. CIA Pro Chef is a food consulting group out of the Culinary Institute of America. Consulting chefs will come to your restaurant and train your staff. You can also send your staff to training sessions.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Restaurant consultants will work with you to enhance food and service; they solve problems you are having and help you overcome them.

Restaurant consultants can give you the edge in starting a restaurant, a business with an astoundingly high failure rate. Food service consultants can benefit even industry veterans who think they can start a restaurant without calling in outside restaurant experts.

Restaurant consulting firms can tighten up every aspect of your plan, from concept development to employee training. A restaurant's profit margins are slim and the business plan complex. There are many fronts where costs can quickly spiral out of control without sold restaurant advice.

1. Good restaurant consultants provide you with an objective point of view. Because they are not so emotionally bound-up in your vision, they can dispense levelheaded, objective restaurant advice and shed some light on your blind spots.

2. Your food service consultant should be organized, experienced, and have plenty of time to devote to your restaurant. Remember, you're hiring someone to supplement your schedule and knowledge base. Get your money's worth.

3. Not all restaurant consultants are created equal. Some specialize in getting an enterprise off the ground, while others work with established restaurants to get them in the black. You can hire a restaurant design consultant, bar consultant or a franchise restaurant consultant. Know exactly who you're hiring and establish your expectations up-front.

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Search for industry-accredited food service consultants

Remember, anybody can call themselves a consultant. It doesn't mean their services are particularly helpful. A professional organization provides some assurance that your consultant has the expertise to do the job right. Also follow up on references and ask if previous projects were completed in a timely and effective manner.

I recommend: Foodservice Consultants Society International is an industry organization that educates, accredits and promotes professionals the world over. Check out the search tool on their North American website to find a consultant who can meet the challenges of your business.

Hire restaurant consulting help with the right experience

While some firms offer comprehensive services, others are geared toward improving a specific aspect of your restaurant's operation. Ask specific questions about a consultant's depth and range of experience.

I recommend: Check out this article by Lloyd M. Gordon for a list of specialties. Ask a potential consultant which of these areas he or she is qualified to handle. Being precise about your needs will get you the right help.

Discuss your expectations and get a restaurant consultancy agreement in writing

Hammering out the details before you get started will save everyone frustration down the line, and protect you if things go sour. Set goals, timetables for progress, a payment schedule, and find out what costs you'll need to reimburse.

I recommend: FindLaw provides a sample consulting agreement for small businesses free of charge, as does AllBusiness.com.

Subscribe to a restaurant management publication

If you're struggling to improve the efficiency of your operations but are hesitant to hire somebody, get your hands on educational materials geared to needs of the restaurant owner. Most publications are likely to have advertisements for seminars in your area, which provide another source of professional advice.

I recommend: Restaurant Consulting.com offers a comprehensive kit guaranteed to jump-start your restaurant's profitability in a jiffy.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Interview prospective food service consultants with a list of prepared questions. Listen carefully for solutions, rather than industry jargon.
• •  Choose a consultant with whom you share some 'chemistry.' You should choose somebody you feel comfortable with from the get-go, as this is a relationship you need to feel relaxed and confident in. Make sure your consultant is a good listener.
• •  Ask for a written proposal before you make the hire. Likeability is one thing, but success is in the details. Any restaurant consultant worth his salt should be able to put together a detailed, organized plan that addresses your needs.
• •  Be wary of restaurant management consultants that push expensive solutions. Good restaurant consultants look for ways to cut costs with a minimum of upfront expenses.

Restaurant consultants are not like Gordon Ramsey, but they are of use. Restaurant consultants can work with you on anything from decor, demographics and food to help you get your restaurant up-and-running. The restaurant business is one of the toughest businesses around. It is no secret that most restaurants close in their first year.

Using restaurant consultants or restaurant consulting firms in your business plan is a way of getting restaurant experts to help you solve problems. Many restaurants come and go—due to location, demographics, poor service or wrong food for the area. Whether you want to sell pizza, open a franchise or trendy restaurant, there are restaurant business consultants that are experts for all types of restaurants.

1. Before using restaurant consultants, make a list of every area in which you have a problem or need advice.

2. Food, menu (design of menu), interior design, marketing, furniture, kitchen supplies, plates, glasses and cutlery are all areas that could use restaurant experts.

3. Restaurant consulting might sound easy—anyone can hang up a shingle and claim to be a food service consultant. Find food service consultants through recommendations, solicit several proposals and compare the services and prices offered before hiring one.

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Consider how food service consulting can help you

How do you hire food service consultants? What do you need to do to have a profitable restaurant? These are two questions that require a lot of thought.

I recommend: All Food Business provides a comprehensive list of all the things you need to start a restaurant--from the food end through the business. It's a good idea to start there. Restaurant Report gives you tips on how to hire a restaurant consultancy. Food Consultants Group is a good reference guide for both long- and short-term consulting needs and can give you a good idea of the vast number of aspects that go into starting a restaurant.

Think about the extent you wish to use a restaurant consultancy

Maybe business has fallen off. You can hire a restaurant expert to assess your operations. Other restaurant advice can be as a matter of fact as hiring someone to train your staff.

I recommend: Linda J. Lipsky Restaurant Consultants can evaluate your operations and give you the info you need to solve operational problems. Meanwhile, TopServe Consulting can train your staff in customer service.

Use restaurant consulting firms for design purposes

Using restaurant consultants for interior design is an asset to the creating of a good dining experience. So, too, they can help you with creating a dining concept.

I recommend: Quantified Marketing is a concept based consulting company. It can help you with interior design, creating a business plan--in other words, help you create a total restaurant. National Restaurant Consultants is another full-service consultancy. It has a branch, KLM, that specializes in high-end restaurants all over the world.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  If you are starting a restaurant, assume that you will be working 100-hour weeks, if not more in the beginning. You will need physical strength, restaurant advice and lots of energy to be a success.

Starting and maintaining a restaurant requires careful planning and consideration. Many restaurant owners seek the services of a restaurant consultant to help them bring their ideas to fruition. The consultant brings discipline, culinary knowledge and management expertise to help build the business. Restaurant consultants encourage new restaurant owners to gain hands-on restaurant experience, network with seasoned industry workers and learn the language of the industry. Knowing a few key terms can also be helpful when dealing with a restaurant consultant.

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The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Market feasibility studies

Market feasibility studies refers to a strategic, marketing plan to help develop the business, as well as provide a guide for future business decisions. These studies also help identify product development to ensure customer appeal.

I recommend: Visit White Hutchinson Leisure and Learning Group for more about market and feasibility studies. Understand what is involved in market feasibility studies through Market Street Research.

Food merchandising

Food merchandising is a creative manner of enhancing the appearance of a food facility in order to promote sales. Some businesses use special effects, such a mirrors or lighting to achieve a desired look. Ask a consultant to help you with a food merchandising plan.

I recommend: Read more about food merchandising through Convenience Store News.

Lease negotiation

Lease negotiation refers to the discussion of the lease to determine the best possible terms for all parties involved. With their experience, a restaurant consultant may offer tips to negotiating a lease.

I recommend: Learn a few lease negotiation tips through Corporate Administration.

Operations assessment

Operations assessment is the method used by organizations to evaluate the performance level of different aspects of their business. A restaurant consultant can help you develop a profitable operations assessment.

I recommend: PMC details operations assessment and its procedure.

Food delivery system

A food delivery system is a method for transporting food from a central location to specific delivery points. In a restaurant, a conveyor belt could be used to transport food from the kitchen or main serving area to patrons' tables or other eating stations.

I recommend: Visit Justia.com to read about the operational requirements for food delivery systems.

Facility planning and equipment layout

Facility planning is the process of building or improving and expanding upon a physical facility based on research, concept and application. Equipment layout is determining the best placement of the various pieces of facility equipment for the proper functionality.

I recommend: Learn about facility planning through GEC Consultants. Learn how facility planning and equipment layout is implemented through Kocer Consulting and Engineering.