How To Design A Restaurant Layout
When redesigning or designing a restaurant layout, getting every aspect based on your needs and preferences is exciting and essential. Decorating a restaurant needs more than just hiring experts like interior designers or architects. It entails marketing and creating an inviting place for people to enjoy their meals. The following are some of the tips for designing a restaurant.
Focus on the Seating Capacity
It is essential to pay attention to the comfort of your customers when designing a restaurant layout. Although you may be tempted to stuff the area with many bar stools, chairs, and tables, customers’ comfort is key. Since ambiance is an essential aspect of a restaurant’s success, you may end up losing your business if yours is uncomfortable and overcrowded.
The feeling offered by a restaurant to its customers is crucial. For instance, if your restaurant is overcrowded, this may create a perception that customers take longer to be served. Although it is essential to plan a profitable sitting arrangement, you should also avoid overdoing it.
Pay Attention to the Seating Areas
People usually prefer not to sit in specific areas as they enjoy their meals. For instance, nobody likes seating near bathrooms, the kitchen, or the waiting station. Others prefer seating away from the door since the area may be too cold or hot. Therefore, it is essential to design around these bad areas when designing a restaurant layout. So, what do you do with them? Consider disguising them with wood partitions, decorative plants, or screens. Besides, you can also relocate the wait station away from the seating areas.
Lay Out Your Kitchen
As discussed earlier, if your kitchen workflow and placement are off, your restaurant may fail to work. Since the kitchen is usually a restaurant’s central hub, it should be the first area to design. Consider allocating areas for food preparation, cooking, assembly line, plating, server pickup, food storage, dishwashing, and receiving. It is essential to focus on the proper workflow in your kitchen and plan the space accordingly. Additionally, creating a well-designed kitchen layout also creates an enabling environment for hygiene observance, which is crucial in a restaurant business.
Design the Restrooms
If your restrooms are too small to accommodate your customers, this may drive them away from your restaurant. You should ensure that your restrooms are separate from the seating space but easily accessible. Restrooms should be roomy, designed for cleanliness, and have sufficient space for a dining establishment based on your restaurant size. Although customers and employees can use common restrooms in small establishments, consider separating your restrooms if your restaurant is a larger facility.
Remember the Outdoor Space
If your restaurant has an outdoor drinking or eating area, it is also essential to incorporate it in your layout design plan. You can consider designing a patio or deck to complement the outdoor space. If you incorporate this option, also remember to incorporate the design in your interior layout. Since some outdoor seating spaces usually face streets or parking lots, consider adding some to the layout if the view is not ideal. It is also crucial to create some overhead protection in the outdoor layout design to protect your customers during the summer. It is also crucial to ensure adequate space between the tables, as discussed in the internal space.
Designing a restaurant needs some level of planning and strategy. A restaurant’s layout plays an essential role in determining the performance of the business. Every area in a restaurant plays a significant role and should be appropriately designed. The above tips can help you to design a restaurant layout.
