STARTUP: Restaurant, bar, bakery timeframe Florida

The process of creating a business plan should be a main part of your pre-planning stage when intending to open a restaurant, bar, bakery or food truck.  Before you get into the details of the entire project management, managing general contractors, architects, coordinating subs, buying equipment or meeting with inspectors are all part of the process of creating a key timeframe for opening your bar, bakery and restaurant in Florida article courtesy of One Fat Frog Restaurant Equipment, 407-480-3409  Leave the equipment to us- we’re here to help you.

At the Frog we help open A LOT of food service and beverage establishments in Florida, Georgia and internationally.  Of course the Florida customers often become our regular stops for coffee, cake, burgers, steaks and meals so we see more of their growth throughout the process of startup and all of the ensuing stages of early business growth.  At the Frog we also help to close businesses, so with that knowledge we’re able to help you open and STAY open.

The most crucial part of opening a restaurant is doing as much work before the game begins and it costs you money.  The more you can do at the front end the better.  This means if you’re planning in transitioning out of your 9-5 job into entrepreneurship you should plan and prepare as much as possible so that there is a short lag between actually leaving your 9-5 job and starting your new venture.  Being realistic and knowing that most restaurants, bars and bakeries go over schedule is a base line.

So the quickest concept to get up and running is the bakery concept in Florida.  This is due to the fact that you often do not need an ansul system if you plan appropriately which cuts down in cost of a hood, capital improvement that you have little return on (unless you own your building or are a savvy negotiator), and also has what seems to be an easier type of inspection.  Please know that One Fat Frog encourages you to read the state guidelines for your particular jurisdiction and familiarize yourself with them.  We deal with food service establishments outside of the country and cannot possibly keep up with rules and regulations for every country.

Bars and restaurants may take longer depending on your buildout, type of licensure you are completing and jurisdiction you are in.  Many bars and restaurants need ansul hoods and walk in coolers installed which may really eat up your construction schedule.

So, the quickest I’ve seen places open- 3 months with a VERY seasoned operator who has done a lot of pre-planning prior to signing the lease.  A few things you might make sure you have done before you sign a lease:

• hired an architect and have him start on plans on the week/s you are finalizing the lease (this is risky but can save you a lot of time)
• have logo completed
• have menu completed
• Interior design: have already worked with decorator for colors, furniture styles, etc – often our clients do this themselves, so they have already sourced: tile, paint, artwork, furniture, lighting
• priced signs, printing and locked down a company who is ready to provide that just simply add the address
• have looked at equipment and have a tentative equipment schedule- unless there are specialty pieces you may wish to wait buying equipment because of variables that change per location – hood size, line space, walkin space. and layout.
• Running any lines for bars is also time consuming
• always figure in a minimum of  2 weeks for install of equipment and working out bugs.  It’s not unusual to have difficulties with install of new equipment and you may need to get factory service out and / or parts

The shortest we’ve seen open- 2 months.  The longest- over a year.  The over the year bar was poorly financed and zero pre-planning.  Nearly cost the owner everything they had.  We have seen bakeries opened in less than a month if the facility was move in ready.

Please check out the licensing portal at the State of Florida website or your jurisdiction state/ national for further information.  At One Fat Frog we encourage you to be diligent in pre-planning which will save money later.