With the opportunity to reopen our restaurants and quickly, we would all like to get back to operating and working in our restaurants. Is being the first to rush to open in the best interest for your team, your guests, and your business? There are so many variables to consider. Hopefully, here in Texas, you have received information from the Texas Restaurant Association and our Promise, which overs proper guidelines; if not, please see our Covid-19 resource page.
There are a lot of important considerations; the list below is to help focus on financial, operational profitability before you reopen.
Once you know what your local guidelines are from your city, county, and state, here are The Top Ten Essential Financial Questions to consider before you reopen your restaurant.
1. How will you accommodate take out, delivery, and pick up to balance all of the needs of your potential guest to maximize sales?
2. Have you determined how many seats you will have to serve guests in your restaurant?
3. Have you determined the cost of proper PPE usage by your team?
4. Have you evaluated and mapped out and marked traffic flow in your restaurant facility to ensure that safe distancing is maintained?
5. How will you control people on a wait for seating in a safe environment?
6. What will be your policy on guest requirements and positively handle service refusals? What have you created to train your team on how to communicate this? For example, Guest mask usage.
7. Have you reviewed your menu to reduce its size and complexity focused on high crave-ability, unique, high demand, substantial margin contribution, and sufficient inventory turnover?
8. Have you created a reopening plan timeline to allow for rehire, reeducation, new standards, and best practices?
9. What is the cost of transition to touchless payment methods? Should you be eliminating cash payments entirely?
10. How will you pay for all these new changes? Have you created a detailed P&L statement that captures all possible income, as well as all extra costs associated with the new reality and determine if your menu pricing is appropriate so you will not operate at a loss?
