You do not need any formal qualifications to work as a chef, but your customers will expect fully professional food; NVQ levels 1, 2 and 3 are available to help you gain the necessary knowledge and training. As the owner and manager you will also be responsible for making sure the businesses meets the many health and safety regulations for restaurants and takeaways.
A restaurant will need a good location with lots of passing potential customers; these well placed sites will be costly to rent, but are usually critical to the success of the business. A take-away (with a delivery service) does not need to be in such a busy and expensive location; but should still be within close range of a large number of people, as they can also attract a lot of passing trade.
You will need to carefully check out the local competition to see what the chances are for success; if there are lots of restaurants then competition will be tough, particularly if they serve the same type of food as yours.
The inside of a restaurant needs to be pleasantly decorated, creating a comfortable and welcoming atmosphere. A take-away does not need to be overly decorated, but making the customer area look nice can help create a pleasant impression. Both types of business will of course need to be extremely clean and tidy at all times; otherwise customers may not wish to return.
A large number of restaurants and takeaways fail within a few years because of poor planning, bad service or bad location, but both types of business have the potential to be successful and profitable. Restaurants have the potential to make more money (as long as the food and service quality is good), but come with much higher costs. It is important to remember that restaurants and takeaways often have a high staff turnover (I.e.: Workers switch jobs a lot), particularly with the lower paid job (E.g.: Pot washing, waiting) so you may need to advertise jobs and spend time training regularly.
Restaurants often mainly attract customers through passing trade and word of mouth, advertising in local directories is common, and advertising in local newspapers or regional magazines can also be effective. Takeaways tend to advertise in local directories and sometimes in local newspapers, while distributing menus to potential customers’ houses is a popular way to spread knowledge of the business.
With the high level of competition in these industries, you need to plan every aspect of a restaurant or take-away business carefully to have the best chance of success. However, if you work hard and plan effectively then you can gain regular customers and end up making good money.
Pro:
There are a large number of potential customers on a regular basis.
High profits can be made if food is of good quality, particularly in restaurants.
Con:
The set up costs are often high, particularly for restaurants.
There is lots of competition in most areas.
Staff turnover is usually high.
Skill Level = Medium to High
Start up Costs = Medium to High
Training = Long and short courses
Experience = Not needed unless you intend to cook, but can be very useful
Equipment Costs = Medium
Location/Office Costs = Medium to high for Take-Away, High for Restaurants
Transport Required = No unless delivery services offered
No of Staff (incl. you) = 3-5 for takeaway, 4-12 for restaurant
