Are you looking to become a restaurateur but unsure what kind of restaurant best fits your needs? The restaurant industry has exploded in recent years with exciting new business concepts growing out of the pandemic shutdowns.
Now that things are back to normal, you can choose from an array of pre- and post-COVID restaurant types. From food-truck casual to black-tie fine dining, there’s something for everyone.
Read on to learn about the top seven kinds of restaurants that are dominating the market today.
Food trucks represent one of the cheapest, simplest, and easiest kinds of restaurants out there. You don’t need to rent a storefront. Instead, you can take a page out of the ice-cream man’s playbook and sell your food directly from a truck.
It’s not all fun and games, however. These are more sophisticated operations compared to the traditional hot dog vendor you might find on a New York City street corner. You have to adhere to your city’s registration and permitting system. Some municipalities require that you cook your food or do some of the preparation in a separate kitchen.
One major drawback to operating a food truck is the limited menu resulting from a lack of space. However, you can turn this into a strength by building a strong brand identity around just a few key menu items.
Historically, many food trucks have offered Mexican food (like taco trucks). Nowadays, with the growing popularity of the business model, you can increasingly find food trucks offering all sorts of food including American, Chinese, Thai, Filipino, and more. That same growth in popularity has led to higher-quality food and higher prices, making the food truck business both more competitive and more lucrative than in the past.
Ghost kitchens are a kind of restaurant that surged in popularity during the pandemic. Although pandemic restrictions may be over, ghost restaurants are here to stay. These virtual restaurants operate without a storefront. Instead, they’re delivery only.
This lets you save big. Not only can you rent kitchen space in a cheaper area, such as an industrial-zoned building or an out-of-the-way spot, but you also don’t need to pay for a dining room.
Ghost kitchens typically sell their food online or through apps. Third-party apps like Grubhub, DoorDash, and Uber Eats play a big role in this corner of the restaurant industry. However, it’s not uncommon for ghost restaurants to also sell their food through in-house apps, websites, or over the phone.
Pop-up restaurants occupy a key role in the restaurant industry. They allow restaurateurs the freedom to explore new restaurant concepts and business models. These restaurants exist only for a few weeks or a few months at most.
A pop-up restaurant isn’t built with an eye toward longevity. Instead, you might create a pop-up restaurant to test out an idea that you might later turn into an actual restaurant if it meets with success.
Pop-up restaurants are often run in different cities to gain a better feel for the market. For example, you might create a pop-up restaurant in New York. If it’s successful, you could then move it to Chicago and San Francisco.
Fast-food restaurants, also known as quick-service restaurants, are a mainstay of the American restaurant scene. These cheap, yet popular restaurants don’t offer table service. In fact, many do a large part of their business selling takeout to diners on the go through their drive-throughs.
Although fast-food chains might seem like an inaccessible kind of restaurant for budding restaurateurs, fast-food restaurants are actually one of the most accessible entry points into the restaurant industry for small business owners.
That’s because the franchise business model makes it easy for you to get set up with your own Taco Bell, McDonald’s, or Burger King. A franchise is essentially a licensing agreement that says you get to piggyback off a bigger company’s marketing and business model in exchange for a fee.
For example, if you open a McDonald’s franchise then you pay a franchise fee to the McDonald’s Corporation. In exchange, you benefit from their marketing, brand presence, and successful business practices.
Becoming a franchise owner isn’t for everyone. Some people feel restricted under the rules and fees of the franchise business model. However, if you want access to a tried-and-true way of doing business, opening a franchise might be the right move to make.
Not all fast-food chains use the franchise model. For example, Panda Express, a titan of the Chinese fast-food world, is 100% corporate-owned. Franchise fees and rules can also vary quite a bit between companies.
Fast-casual restaurants bridge the gap between fast food and casual dining restaurants. They offer higher-quality food compared to most fast-food chains, but their prices are still affordable for a quick bite.
Fast casual restaurants can sell any type of food. Instead of being defined by their types of cuisine, this kind of restaurant is known for using a counter service business model, which saves businesses money when compared to full-service restaurants.
Popular examples of this kind of restaurant include Chipotle and Panera Bread.
This kind of restaurant is a step up from a fast-casual dining restaurant. Typically, they include table service and operate at a higher price point. However, casual dining restaurants still maintain a casual atmosphere. In areas with warm climates, you can often find outdoor seating.
People come to these restaurants to enjoy the relaxed atmosphere and laid-back ambiance. Many contemporary casual restaurants, like Applebee’s and Red Robin, serve classic American food like cheeseburgers and BBQ. However, you can also find examples of Chinese casual dining restaurants like P.F. Chang’s and Italian casual dining restaurants like Olive Garden.
This kind of restaurant sits atop the restaurant industry food chain. You can find higher prices and higher-quality food at fine dining restaurants. These restaurants are known for their full table service.
As mentioned, fine dining restaurants serve high-quality food. For example, they might follow the farm-to-table restaurant industry trend that sees restaurateurs sourcing their food from local farms. A fine dining restaurant may also be known for their expensive and high-quality alcoholic beverages. For example, high-end Italian and French restaurants may specialize in fancy wines.
At a fine dining restaurant, the ambiance is equally important as the food. The dining room should maintain an elegant atmosphere, and the service should be anything but casual. You might also find fixed-price menus (also known as prix fixe), which include appetizers, entrees, and desserts all for a single price.
Because the emphasis is on a high-quality dining experience, some fine dining restaurants ask their patrons to comply with a dress code. Men typically have to wear long pants and collared shirts. Some fancy restaurants, such as bistros, might refuse service to men without a blazer.
Traditionally, women often had to wear a dress or a skirt and blouse. However, many modern fine dining restaurants have expanded the female dress code to include slacks and blazers.
There is no one right answer to this question. You can be successful or unsuccessful with any type of restaurant. Rather than start with a specific kind of restaurant and work backward, it’s better to ask yourself what type of cuisine you’re most comfortable with.
Are you a fan of Mexican or French food? Do you prefer buffet-style, family-style, or the upscale ambiance of a fine dining restaurant?
Next, conduct market research for your area. If you want to open your restaurant in a low-income area, you might be better off with an inexpensive food service option, like a fast-food restaurant, a food truck, or a fast-casual restaurant.
You should also consider the competition. If you live in a small town without a McDonald’s, you could take advantage of the gap in the market by opening your own franchise.
The restaurant industry is composed of a variety of diverse dining options. From more laidback choices like fast-food restaurants and food trucks to the elegance of fine dining, there’s something for everyone.
You can appeal to the middle tier of diners with a casual or fast-casual restaurant, or you can test out your high-concept dining experience with a pop-up restaurant. With so many different types of restaurants, there truly is something for everyone!
With most restaurant types, you can benefit from the labor and time savings that come with adopting a self-service kiosk. KioskBuddy is a high-quality self-service kiosk app that can transform your restaurant for the better. Its minimal hardware requirements mean you can get set up with just a tablet and any Square payment hardware like the Square Kiosk.