How to start a Restaurant in Uganda. (2022)

Many people dream of starting their own business, but few know how to make it happen. Many fail due to lack of planning and preparation. What are the difficulties that come with starting a restaurant? Many factors need to be considered before opening your doors to a restaurant. location, size, kitchen facilities, and availability of staff among others. These considerations will depend largely on your budget and what kind of catering operation you want.  Generally, if you wish to start a restaurant, this is the right article for you. We shall get you through the whole start-up process and give you some tips to succeed in the competitive world outside.

What is a restaurant?

A restaurant is a place where people eat meals that are cooked and served on the premises and usually there is a fee they pay for the meals and good service.

The costs of starting up one.

The costs of starting up a Restaurant can range from small to big based on;

• The location you plan to establish the restaurant.
• The type of restaurants and your target market.
• The size of the restaurant and the services the restaurant shall offer.

Is starting a restaurant a profitable venture?

The answer to this question is profitable. This is all derived from the fact that people have to eat and most of them don’t have time to cook especially those in offices.

The extent of profitability is dependent on many factors such as the scale of operation, your location, type of food, and many more factors.

How to start a Restaurant in Uganda.

At the start, we shall get you through the whole process of starting a restaurant.

To start with, what type of restaurant to open? Let’s look at the different types of restaurants so that you start with the right decision on the type to start.

Fast food

These are restaurants operated in chains and have different branches in different locations. They offer limited menus, particularly comprising of chicken, Pizzas, hot dogs, and more of the sort. They offer speed and convenience in their service.

Cafes

This is a restaurant that offers special eats and drinks, particularly coffee or drink-related dishes. They usually have limited menus though that has changed with time and nowadays, they offer a wide range of foods.

Local food

This is a type of restaurant that offer specifically foods of that locality say Ugandan food or Chinese food if it were in China. These target people of that area that prefer to have their dish un altered “as it is prepared locally”.

Delivery restaurants.

These comprise kitchens but no serving or dinner place. The food is ordered and delivered to whichever place the client is. This is quite a new type of restaurant and it’s picking up with the increase in online presence and growth in delivery companies.

Food trucks.

Just like its name suggests, this type of restaurant comprises a truck where cooking is done. These are ideal for functions where the truck can be parked somewhere and people pick food from the truck.

These are some of the common types of restaurants that you can look at when planning to start one. Ideally, you can blend and have a restaurant that provides all these services though it shall call for more resources.

Create a business plan and have everything on how your business shall run planned.

To start a restaurant, a business plan is essential. It should include how you will market your restaurant, the menu, the source of income for your business, and any other information about the restaurant’s operation. Those are some of the key things that you should include in your business plan. you can get more information on how to write a business plan from the link below.

Read more: How to write a business plan.

Decide on a location for your restaurant

Location is an important factor when it comes to a restaurant. make sure that;

• Your restaurant is in an area where it can easily be seen by any hungry person. Local or strangers looking for food.
• Have ample parking space for your customers.
• Possibly, locate your restaurant in a commercial area where people are doing business and have no time to cook

Make sure you have enough money to start up the establishment.

Money is one of the key factors that shall heavily determine your level of service and success as a whole. Different types of restaurants take different amounts of money.  This can’t be an excuse anyway as you’ll still need money, whatever type of restaurant you open. Though it’s important to have it enough and available when needed. There are different ways you can raise capital for your business. These include bank loans, savings, family and friends, etc. There are many ways and if you don’t mind, you can do some more reading on how to raise capital for your business.

Get all licenses needed to operate as a food establishment in your area.

Different regions have different regulations. As you start your restaurant, make sure to meet all the requirements to start one in your area. In the case of Uganda, you may have to register your business and pay for an operation license. This may call for inspection of your operation premises by food and health personnel. So prepare yourself in advance. For the case of registration, we have a full article on how to register your business in Uganda, you can look through it for guidance on how to register your restaurant.

Read more: how to register your business in Uganda.

Hire staff with the skills necessary for running a successful restaurant.

Based on your restaurant type, you’ll have to hire staff with the required expertise. Some of the staff you shall hire include the manager, chefs, waiters, and waitresses. Nevertheless, depending on your scale of production and type of restaurant, you can take up this task and reduce costs. Though it’s not always a good idea to be greedy and want to do all the work yourself. It reduces the quality of the service.

Get your menu and dishes/ Equipment.

The menu is that list that has the different foods you prepare at your restaurant and their corresponding prices. Getting a menu is not about just drawing a chart. It’s about taking your time and coming up with those costs for different foods. Bearing in mind that you need to make a profit and also have a fair price to keep your customers aboard. After creating one, let it be visible at one corner of your restaurant or have different copies at the tables. Let people know the cost of food before they eat.

After the menu, go ahead and get the equipment you’ll use in the restaurant. These shall be based on the type of restaurant you are choosing to start. These include tables and chairs, saucepans and other cooking equipment, cartlary-like dishes, any entertainment system to keep customers entertained, a fridge to keep drinks cool, and many more.

Look for a supply of raw food.

At a restaurant, it’s all about food. Then get ready to roll on with food. Look out for a company to supply you with food or a staff member to source food in your area. Remember, food is cheap in the production areas. There, you can get it fresh. This can be a viable cheap source of food for your restaurant.

Advertise your restaurant.

Creating an advertisement campaign that will attract customers to come in and eat at your restaurant is an ideal way to improve your sales. Different social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram can do the magic in this case. In case you have a good budget, a website is even a better option.

Some tips to get ahead of others in the business.

Now that you’ve started your restaurant, how are you going to get the best out of it and get ahead of others? That’s the question answered here.

Get steady suppliers and let your menu hold. It sacks to ask for something on the menu and all that you learn is that it’s not available. you’ll often lose customers for this. Avoid it.

Make your food quality and affordable. Everyone wants to eat quality cheap food. This can help you grab some customers, especially at the start of business

Make customer care a priority and let your business stand out in terms of looks and the general impression as a whole.

How about the supply? This is another area that shall take some good money. It’s important to look for cheap reliable sources. These can be readily found in production areas.

Incorporate other services into your business. Below are some services you can add to your restaurant business.

• A popcorn business at the front.
• An ice cream business that can quench the thirst of your customers before they get served food.
• Homemade juice is an option for those that don’t take carbonated drinks. Give these a try and you’ll see how they perfectly work out with your restaurant.

Conclusion:

The type of restaurant you open will depend on the available resources and your interests. It’s important to consider what type of food establishment will fit in with the area where it is located, as well as how much money you have saved up for startup costs before opening day. If all this sounds overwhelming or if you just don’t know where to start, we can help. Our team has extensive experience starting and running successful restaurants and would love to guide you through every step of bringing your dream into reality! Let’s talk about which type of restaurant fits best with your business plan so we can get started making sure everything is perfect. Contact us today.