I am interested in a couple breakdowns of startup costs for a new
restaurant, more specifically a tableservice Italian restaurant in a
small town.  These would include kitchen equipment, tables, chairs,
placesettings, lights, etc.  I ask for a couple breakdowns just to be
sure I'm getting an accurate ballpark figure (what I actually want to
know is if it can be done under $100K).  Thank you.

Viseu --

Capital costs for starting a restaurant can cover a wide range. 
Outback Steakhouses budget $1.5 million to $2 million for each of its
sites.  However, most operators start with a leased site and an
existing building.

Commerce Clearing House (CCH) is a well-known business and law
publisher. Their small business toolkit site has the example of a
sandwich shop in Cedar Rapids, IA.  It anticipates startup costs of
just over $60,000 -- with the largest categories being  equipment
($15,500) and remodeling ($8,000):
Commerce Clearing House Business Owner's Toolkit
"Case Study -- Startup Costs"
http://www.toolkit.cch.com/text/P01_2290.asp

Admittedly, a sandwich shop takes less than a white-tablecloth Italian
restaurant -- but probably not much more than a pizza and pasta
location.  The equipment and remodeling are key.

Here's an interesting case history about Carl Redding, who managed to
start his own restaurant in expensive New York City for about
$150,000.  It notes that the range of equipment and remodeling costs
run a wide range, between $15,000-$45,000:
Looksmart
"Cooking up Success" (Hughes & McCrea, February, 2003)
http://www.findarticles.com/cf_dls/m1365/7_33/96954405/p1/article.jhtml

So, even with equipment and remodeling at $45,000, the Commerce
Clearing House model would say that investment is about $83,000.

A highly-recommended book on the details of operating a restaurant on
a day-to-day basis "Complete Idiot's Guide to Starting a Restaurant,"
by Cannon and Tarcy.
Amazon.com
""Complete Idiot's Guide to Starting a Restaurant"
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/002864168X/103-2387616-0145456?v=glance#product-details

There are some ways to hold costs down, particularly by purchasing
used or refurbished kitchen equipment:
Bankrate.com
"Ask the Small Biz Adviser" (Windhaus, Sept. 26, 2002)
http://www.bankrate.com/brm/news/biz/adviser/20020926a.asp?prodtype=advice



Note, too, that many state restaurant associations have programs to
provide benefits for employees; educational programs; and even credit
card processing at reduced rates:
Maryland Restaurant Association
Home Page
http://www.marylandrestaurants.com/

The U.S. Small Business Administration has some good publications on
planning retail sites, but surprisingly little about restaurants. 
However, the publications page has a range of information that's very
valuable on financing/market/site selection for any business:
Small Business Administration (SBA)
"Publications"
http://www.sba.gov/library/pubs.html#mt-2

Google search strategy:
restaurants + "startup costs"

Best regards,

Omnivorous-GA

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Request for Answer Clarification by viseu-ga on 10 Dec 2003 18:44 PST

Thanks for your answer however I wonder if you can find any other
cases...  The sandwich shop isn't quite analogous, and I couldn't get
that findarticles.com link to work.  Also I have the Complete Idiot's
Guide and it doesn't give any hard numbers.  Any other ideas?  I'm in
Virginia by the way.  Thanks.  Will tip for a good answer.

---

Clarification of Answer by omnivorous-ga on 11 Dec 2003 07:43 PST

Viseu --

Please try the Findarticles link again -- it's working fine this
morning.  If it's not working it may be some site blocking at your
end, so try this:
1.  enter the Google search strategy suggested
2.  choose the "cached" link for that article (the link is at the bottom)

It's really quite a good article and notes that $45,000 is the
high-end of the typical range for remodeling and fixtures.  The CCH
article is a good guide to a thumbnail budget -- and makes it clear
that the first cost decisions are those two categories.
"Do I look for a location that's already set with sinks, stoves and
ovens -- or do I buy (lease?) that equipment?"
"Do we do paper table covers or buy linen?"

Overnight I thought of a couple of additional places to look and will
post some additional information today.  My wife went to Cooking and
Hospitality Institute of Chicago and it's a decision that we've
considered for years!

Best regards,

Omnivorous-GA