opening a mexican restaurant in a new 3000 sq. ft building how do i budget the utilities?

Question

the restaurant is like going thru a line and the food is prepared for you. the steam table is electric/gas stove/gas steak grill/electric oven warmer, 2 baskt frymaster, just a 3 whole sink. we will not have any dishes, the rest rooms we do not pay for any expense. so i need water/gas/electric/trash/grease disposal/phone/cable/internet. The problem is this is a new building and a new area and i can not get any estimates from the utilites. is there any 5 ratio of sales i could use for the budget. the sales are going to be around 1.1 million. the location is near kansas city missouri.

Answer 1

Utilities would usually be considered a fixed expense even though there's some slight variation from month-to-month.

I would talk with some of the business owners/managers in your building and analyze how they budget for their utilities. It also wouldn't hurt to ask to see what their exact monthly expenses are by viewing their bills.

In return for them sacrificing their time in helping you, I suggest you provide them a few free meals or at least some permanent discounts for them and their employees. This will be a win-win situation where you will also benefit. If they still claim not to have the time to speak with you, the inviation to discuss over breakfast/lunch/dinner should work in itself because everybody has to eat.

Networking is key to running a successful business!

Answer 2

Bizstats.com is good for benchmarking. Utilities for restaurants typically run 3%-5% of operating costs. Click the link type in 1,100,000 and select Retail - Restaurant and Drinking

http://www.bizstats.com/
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Answer 3

I THINK THE 7 P PROGRAM APPLIES HERE.
PISS
POOR
PLANNING
PRODUCES
PISS
POOR
PRODUCTION

MOST LOGICAL STEP IS TO DUE COMPLETE BUSINESS ANALYSIS ESTIMATE BEFORE YOU JUMP IN.
ERR I GOT PARACHUTES FOR SALE.
HOW MANY YOU WANT?