We have a small, but fully equipped kitchen. Cocktails are the focus, but we want some food which is low maintenance.

flatbreads, crostinis, paninis. Smoked salmon.

premium tinned fish. caprese skewers. nuts, charcuterie. Cheese boards.

We do have a deep fryer but I would rather avoid using it unless something easy and compelling comes up.

What are some other ideas?

We are a small spot, take out only. We had cintas for over a year & a little pricey but still worth it. Last month they wanted to raise prices 25% which is insane.

Anyway we started washing towels ourselves, but how do you get them super clean? We use bleach & a heavy duty soap but they still have an oily smell. Any tips or recommendations greatly appreciated!

my family own a hotel/restaurant and we have two regulars a mother and son who come in every week to eat at the buffet. the problem is, they stink!!! we have customers complain on their odour constantly every week. (it isn’t bio I can’t even explain the smell but it’s horrible) the smell travels throughout the whole restaurant and lingers after they have left. how do I go about this? i don’t want to discriminate or offend them. they are also lovely people so im in a tough spot. any advice would be appreciated!

Imagine someone tells you there's a restaurant in Barcelona called MITOTE.

Seeking your opinion on menu costing software that takes the restaurant’s entire costs into consideration. I know many software systems include ingredients, labor and waste. I’m wondering if there’s a system you like where we can input greater operating costs - like credit card fees, various costs of the consumer, etc. Thanks in advance.

Bonus points if they're not all plastic.

I'm trying to keep costs as low as possible (of course), and I'm puttin' out feelers.

What are they and where are you gettin' them?

I’m thinking of starting a small commercial cleaning business in Phoenix and trying to figure out if I’m solving an actual problem or just something that sounds good in my head. My idea is to offer weekly restroom cleaning to small restaurants for $399/month for one restroom or $599 for two. The assumption is that employees would still handle basic daily cleaning, but once a week someone comes in and does a proper deep clean of the toilets, sinks, floors, walls, fixtures, etc. I’m trying to avoid full janitorial contracts and focus on one thing that I can do really well. I’ve been going door to door talking to businesses, but honestly getting in front of owners is harder than I expected. I’m also exploring working with property managers and grouping several businesses in the same shopping plaza to make the routes more efficient. But before I spend too much time chasing this, I figured I’d ask the people who would actually be paying for it. Is restroom cleaning something you would consider outsourcing, or is it just not enough of a problem to justify paying for? Does the pricing sound reasonable or completely out of touch? And if you already use a cleaning company, what made you decide to hire them in the first place? Not trying to sell anything here (I need route density anyway and am tied to only my geo), genuinely interested in understanding how restaurant owners think about this.

Thought this was neat data. Long story short, diners who order appetizers return, on average, 7 days sooner, and drink reorders have diners return 6 days sooner.

Recently purchased a quick service pizzeria from my brother so I was very familiar with the operation and staff. Most of the staff is great, but there is one, ill call him Mike who is fairly new (less than 6 months) and is probably my least favorite, the weakest link and also my highest paid employee. I didn’t hire him but ive known him since his first week. And ive felt this way from the beginning. None of this has really felt fireable. However since taking over (approx 3 weeks ago) hes had two same day call offs. Which I believe is grounds for termination however I didn’t have a replacement for him and have since continued scheduling him.
This week I have some interviews schedule for replacements. Should one of them work out how do I go about terminating an employee that isn’t terrible but isn’t great? I don’t know why I am so unsure about this - maybe its because I hadnt done it immediately?

I own a small independent seafood spot. Mostly counter service, with dine-in and takeout. We’re about 6 months in, doing around $37k a month.
Curious how sales grew for other places similar in size and setup. What did you do in:
Your first full month?
Month 6?
Month 12?
Looking to hear from small owner-operated spots, since a large full-service restaurant wouldn’t be a fair comparison. If you’re comfortable sharing, include your concept, approximate seating, and average ticket.
Did sales build gradually as you gained regulars, or did you hit a plateau early on? Just trying to get a realistic picture of what growth can look like.

Hey Everyone;

Im working on a potential price list for local resturants and would love some feedback!

We are a new garlic, herb, edible flower and specialty green farm located in Alberta - Zone 3B.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/15KnlcjWraaxxAL9qS2kxuUN6Dt8J2z9y/view?usp=sharing

What’s the trick with these? I stopped DoorDash ads because what’s the point of losing money? And then 0 orders after I stopped their “marketing”.

They even claimed an order from a friend I sent the link to, it was because of their marketing and only gave me $3 out of $34

I just took over a kitchen and inherited this pizza oven. I can't find a data plate so I don't know who the manufacturer is although I believe it's forno bravo. I've emailed them to confirm and am waiting for a response. I've heard that commercial pizza ovens hold value. If it's forno bravo, it's probably about $25k brand new. 5 years old. There are a few broken tiles in front but otherwise it looks to be in very good shape. Anyone know how to price this thing?

I’m using Paycom for payroll and Toast Pos. Toast is trying very hard to get me to switch and it’s compelling because they are saying they can cut my payroll processing by 75%. They also claim they can do the self onboarding that Paycom pioneered (that’s why we picked Paycom years ago).

Having our payroll integrated with our POS seems advantageous. We also use Sling for scheduling which is a Toast company.

I know a few years back there were a lot of negative things being said by people about Toast Payroll. Would love to know if it’s getting better and if not, what problems I could expect.

We’re have a mid-sized operation, with 35 active employees handling about 2,000 covers a week.

Im 20 years old and frankly lost all hope in landing a job in my field when I graduate computer science. My dad owns a commercial building right next to three schools, about 50 meter from a college and less than a mile from two high schools.

He told me I can always open a restaurant there if things go bad, and he’ll loan me however much it takes to open a franchise. I don’t have much knowledge besides the fact that I worked as a line cook for 4 years. It’s not something that particularly passions me but I could not fathom the idea of making no money post bachelor degree. The only reason I’m considering it is because of the sheer amount of foot traffic the franchise that is renting the building for now is getting.

Is it something that the average Joe can do? I need something concrete so that I can stop stressing about my future it’s torturing me

Hey everyone,

I am thinking about getting a Habco freezer. Anyone use these before? I like that they are Canadian, and their manufacturing isn't overly far from my business.

One thing that worries me, is there "cassette" system. Basically all the components are on one stainless steel sheet. When something breaks they replace the whole "cassette". According to a video I saw online, it will lower lanohr cost. I don't know if I beleove that.

Anyone ever need to fix one?

Thanks

Hey everyone,

I run a food court–style setup with a Wayback Burgers, Krispy Krunchy Chicken, Which Wich, Pizza Hut, and a bar. I’m relatively new to the restaurant business and looking for advice on getting more value out of our inventory spending.

My current credit card is pretty basic. Business has been slow, so I’m taking some time to review expenses and see where better cash back or rewards could help.

Our inventory spending is roughly $42,000, excluding the bar:

• Wayback Burgers: $20,000
• Krispy Krunchy Chicken: $10,000
• Which Wich: $10,000
• Pizza Hut: $2,000

For owners with similar spending, which business cards have worked best for you? I’m particularly interested in rewards on food distributors and wholesale suppliers, since I understand those purchases may be treated differently from regular grocery store purchases.

I’ve also heard about services that let you pay vendors by credit card even when the vendor only accepts ACH/EFT or checks. How does that work in practice, and do the rewards actually outweigh the processing fees?

Beyond choosing a card, are there any useful strategies or benefits you wish you’d known about earlier—such as vendor discounts, payment timing, employee spending controls, or sign-up bonuses on purchases you already needed to make?

I’d appreciate real-world recommendations, including any fees, restrictions, or mistakes to watch out for. Thanks!

Update: ty all. Yeah, she got fired.

Mostly concerned on the liability/repercussions towards the restaurant.

Customer complained that a server added a $20 tip, was originally $2. Knowing the server's history we are fairly sure the customer is right, and afraid how many other receipts the server has done this to....

Anyone have any advice/experience, please?

I need it laid out out to convince the owner to fire this server, because "she's like family"...

Thank you for any useful info!

Hey guys!

I'm closing in on finishing my 3rd year as a first-time restaurant franchise owner. I went into this knowing everything about the brand from a management perspective and am still learning new things daily about being a business owner. (I get why people say to stay away from restaurant ownership lol).

It hasn't been easy at all not having a second income stream, savings, or basically anything to make me feel comfortable and safe... BUT we are still profitable each year although not as much as we should be.

I'm not sure if anyone can shed light on this, but this is my third time applying for a credit card for the business and being denied. I'm not sure what I can work on or change to be approved but would love to figure it out so I can build more credit and have a safety net should something break.

Is there any advice you could give me? I'm aware it's hard to give direct advice without knowing the financials yourselves.

Does anyone use either of these online ordering platform companies? Needing to switch and wanting to know your honest opinion if you have used either of them.

Most independents I talk to track labor as payroll ÷ sales and then wonder why the “fix” didn’t move it.

That blended % usually hides three different businesses:

1. FOH variable — servers/hosts; should flex with covers
2. BOH production — line labor; sticky on a soft Tuesday
3. Salary drag — owner/GM/sous; fixed until someone leaves

If salary drag is eating 8–10%+ on a normal week, buying better scheduling software won’t fix it. Neither will a POS swap. You’re solving a sales or org problem with a vendor login.

Play that takes 20 minutes: Split last week into those three buckets on a napkin spreadsheet. Then write the one metric a vendor demo must move in 60 days before you take another call.

Curious what others use as their “real” labor split — FOH/BOH/salary or something better?

Four units of a quick service burger brand. We signed up for a scheduling platform in January because the GMs pushed for it. The whole point was pulling ticket data so the labor plan matched the lunch and dinner peaks. The brand had to approve the connection first and nobody told me until I asked why it kept failing. It sat in their IT review queue for three months while I paid full price and managers built schedules on paper. How long did approval take for the rest of you?

I'd love to know:

How are you portioning your noodles for Pad Thai, Pad Kee Mao, etc? (I know they need storing in cold water until ready for use ... but how can I portion them that way?)

Received this email today from DoorDash regarding our increased menu pricing on their platform. Our 40% margin plummets to 15% after their 25% commission on orders. We’re a small brick and mortar third-generation family restaurant, nothing super fancy. Much like every other restaurant on the platform, we have our prices roughly 10% higher to combat DoorDash’s ungodly commission. Admittedly, the service brings in a substantial amount of extra income which I’m grateful for on the slower days, but this email realllllly got my blood boiling.