RESTAURANT STANDARDS

- Creating a restaurant design and floor plan involves knowing every anthropometrical
viability, that is, the space required for human sitting and movement, the area you have,
and making optimum utilization of the space keeping in mind the requirements of your
restaurant business

- Ideally, 60% area = dining area

- 40% area = kitchen, storage, freezer, etc

- The primary motive of a restaurant’s floor plan is organizing the available space for the
requirement of furniture in the restaurant in the most efficient way: chairs & tables

- Factor sa design yung kung pano yun paggalaw ng tao yung circulation nila sa area mula
customers hanggang sa staffs. Kasali ditto yung type ng resto mo kung self service ba o
staff mismo yung magdedeliver ng orders. Kung staff okay lang na malalaki table sizes
mo. Pinakamahalaga dito yung safety specially san mo ba nilagay ang fire exits mo. May
access ba ang lahat even the staffs. Kahit pa sobrang gano kaganda ang resto mo, kung
wala yung safety mukhang di naabot yung isa sa main goal ng design mo. Dahil syempre
tao yung mga kinacater mo, safety pa din before anything else dahil di natin alam mga
pede mangyare
- Optimum Utilization Of Seating And Smooth
Circulation
- The areas for specific functions need to be decided in such a way that the
seating space is maximized without compromising the customers’ level of
comfort. Allocating enough space to work comfortably and efficiently in
each area is essential. Your restaurant floor layout should focus on
the comfort and enjoyment of your customers while maintaining
an efficient circulation pattern.
- Safety Concerns
- Restaurant design standards require that there should be sufficient space
between tables. For instance, if there’s an emergency and you need to
evacuate the building, having clear pathways to the exits is an integral
part of keeping everyone safe. Wide paths should be built to avoid
employees and guests alike tripping and hurting themselves as
they navigate your dining room.
 - a) Seating Area
The seating area should be designed with at least three sizes of tables
with the motive to accommodate small, medium and large parties
accordingly. The window area space can be used for small two-person
tables. Similarly, the middle section can be best utilized for
accommodating larger parties. Between every dining table, there
should be a standard of 3-4 ft to avoid any chaos and
disturbance. There should be ample space that allows for the free and
seamless movement of the servers.

- b) Waiting Area

- The waiting area is often overlooked while creating restaurant designs.

Overlooking this area results in diners waiting for the table. There should
be enough space for guests where they could wait for dining.

- c) POS terminals or Billing System Area

The POS system should be positioned at a place that will maximize
efficiency. There should be the minimization of the staff running back
and forth between the payment stations.
Your restaurant design should be structured to get as many tables as you
can into your dining room. The number of tables could greatly affect how
many tables turn (and checks) you have in a shift.

Include The Following Aspects In Your Restaurant Kitchen Design Plan

The kitchen design of the restaurant design and floor plan should ideally have
the following aspects:

 Specific kitchen working zones- Specific kitchen working zones

should be defined in the kitchen floor plan. Namely, pre-preparation
area, food assembly and packing, and washing area.
  Designated spaces– The kitchen and food storage areas include
designated spaces for cooking equipment, food preparation, and
dishwashing, as well as cold and dry food storage.
 The moving area in the kitchen– The layout shall be made in such a
way that allows the kitchen staff to move in quickly, swiftly and
efficiently. Providing enough space is critical to avoid accidents as well.
 Proper ventilation– Ensure adequate ventilation in your restaurant
kitchen as it is necessary for the health of your restaurant staff and
also reduces the chances of the various items being prepared in the
kitchen waft to the dining area.
 Employees restrooms: You may also choose to include an office,
employee bathrooms or a break room in the back of the house.

Allocating Adequate Space For Different Areas In The Kitchen

An efficient Restaurant kitchen floor plan shall include adequate space for
receiving and storing goods, inventory, water closet, prep areas, cooking
stations, food storage, water closet, dishwashing zone, inventory, equipment. It
is suggested that equipment with similar functions should be stored together
and after their use, they should be kept in their proper place.

Kitchen Cooking Area

This is one of the most important zones of the kitchen area where the actual
food preparation will take place. All the equipment like burners, oven, grills,
tandoor and other equipment needed for the operations pre-decided will have to
be positioned in this area.

Prep Area

This is the area where most of your kitchen prep happens. The prep area needs
to be well equipped to accommodate all the ingredients needed for the
preparation of the food.

Storage Area

The storage area should be well equipped to store all the dry goods that are
mostly bought in bulk such as rice, flour, sugar, lentils, oils, whole spices, and
spice powders. This space shall be designed and maintained so that it is
moisture free and free of pests and rodents. The store area is generally
designed adjacent to the kitchen. It serves as a facility storage facility for both
the kitchen and dining items of the restaurant.

Cold Storage

Another crucial element of the kitchen design is the cold storage area. There is
a continuous need for cold rooms, deep freezers and perishables to stock
perishables like meat, seafood, and frozen food. The facilities that you would
need in your cold storage will depend on the quantity the restaurant
handles. The maintenance of cold storage also needs to be done.

Washing Area

The washing area in the restaurant should be allotted the maximum space for
the workflow to be smooth. The washing space should be equipped to
accommodate to wash the large cooking vessels, cutlery, crockery, and other
utensils. There should also be a space where the used cutlery, crockery, utensils
would be kept for washing.

Pantry Area

A pantry is a room or a ready to serve the area where beverages, food, and
sometimes dishes and others as decided by the head chef.
Staff Personal Area

There should be a space for a staff toilet. A small area can also be created for
staff where they could change their uniforms and keep their personal belongings
or things they would need for their use.

4. Restrooms

It is undisputed that the restaurant owners need to pay ample attention to the
food and services offered by them, but at the same time the cleanliness of the
restaurant especially the restrooms form an integral part of the customer’s
dining experience. The toilets should ideally be divided into male and female
sections. Give special attention to this area as it is usually ignored in the
restaurant planning and design stage.

Restrooms leave a lasting impression on the mind of the customer. They should
have sufficient lighting and easy to clean and maintain. Every customer will
appreciate sparkling, clean and large enough restrooms to accommodate
multiple guests.

While Designing The Restrooms Area, Keep The Following Points In

Mind

 The restrooms should be easy to access for the customers without

unnecessary wandering.
 It is advisable that the restrooms shall also have wheelchair access for
catering to the specific needs of physically challenged customers.
 It is necessary that the restaurant restrooms should be properly
equipped with sanitation facilities, especially trash disposal, and have
proper designated space on the bathroom floor plan.
 The restrooms should also be equipped with proper lighting.
5. Electrical Services

The electrical part of the restaurant is a fundamental and crucial aspect both of
the operations and safety of the establishment. Depending on the location the
wiring, termination, lighting fixtures, cabling need to be taken care of both
professionally and diligently. Plan the location for the main control panels,
Generators, etc. systematically.

Restaurant floor plans are ultimately a balancing act between various,

functional needs and requirements of restaurant design. Designing your
restaurant floor plan might seem a little easier task as compared to a financing,
licensing or construction that goes along with starting a business. But the
restaurant floor plan is a critical aspect of effective restaurant design.

You know your restaurant floor plan is poor when there have been instances in
your restaurant when any customer might have smacked his head with a server
while passing through a tight corner, or a customer might have had to sit with a
stranger to let someone else pass through the aisle way. Therefore, you should
always avoid these disastrous situations by analyzing your restaurant design
requirements and specific needs before finalizing the layout.

Designing your seating plan will depend on what type of restaurant you plan to
open. It’s important to remember that banquet seating may use as little as 10
square feet per person, while fine dining may require 20 square feet per person.
It is common for most restaurants or coffee shops with that have a general
menu to average about 15 square feet per person. This is taking into account
space needed for traffic aisles, wait stations, cashier, etc.

Example: Your restaurant floor plan has 5000 square feet

 200 seats
  60% Dining Area = 3000 square feet
 40% Kitchen = 2000 square feet

If you are buying an existing restaurant or leasing commercial space and you
plan on renovating or remodeling the building, the same rule of thumb of 60%
of the area for the dining area and 40% for kitchen, storage and preparation
still applies.

Assuming the building has 2800 square feet available. The dining area should
be approximately 1680 square feet, which would accommodate 112 seats. The
kitchen and storage area should be 1120 square feet. The details of the floor
plan and percentage of square feet to be allocated to the kitchen and dining
area depends on the owner’s ideas and how they can be incorporated into the
floor plan.

The area of square footage allotted for each patron depends on what type of
dining establishment you intend to have, depending on whether or not you have
a fine dining establishment, full service restaurant, counter service, fast food
restaurant, a hotel/club or a banquet hall.
The general seating guidelines that should be observed are:

 Fine Dining: 18 – 20 Square Feet

 Full Service Restaurant Dining: 12 – 15 Square Feet
 Counter Service: 18 – 20 Square Feet
 Fast Food Minimum: 11 – 14 Square Feet
 Table Service, Hotel/Club: 15 – 18 Square Feet
 Banquet, Minimum: 10 – 11 Square Feet

For safety reasons and to allow for the free flow of traffic for diners and servers,
the traffic path between occupied chairs should be at least 18 inches wide and
you should leave at least 4 – 5 feet per table, including chair space. This allows
for free movement of servers between stations and the kitchen and provides
enough comfortable room for the guests to move around. It is very important
for safety reasons that there is enough space for the guest and staff to move
around and that the aisles are clear, especially in case there is a fire.

Determining the area for the wait stations should also be taken into account
when designing your floor plans. One small station should take up 6 – 10
square feet, sufficient for 20 diners. One large central station should be
anywhere from 25 – 40 square feet. This would be sufficient for 60 diners.
If your restaurant will have a bar, in determining the length you should allow for
1 foot 8 inches to 1 foot 10 inches per person for standing room only. If you are
going to have seating at the bar, there should be a distance of 2 feet between
bar stools.

Here are some general furniture guidelines to assist you in determining the ideal
height of the tables and seating you will need to buy.

Furniture Guidelines:

 Table Height: 29″ – 30″

 Bar Height 30″ – 36″ – 42″
 Seat Height 17″ – 18″
  Bar Stool Height 29″ – 30″

Once you have your restaurant floor plan designed, you can focus on the decor
and what type of restaurant furniture you want to furnish you restaurant with.
This depends largely on what type of dining establishment you have what kind
of clientele you are looking to attract. Depending on the size of your
restaurant there are many options to consider, including the use of restaurant
booths, tables and chairs or a combination of both.

Taking the time to design a restaurant floor plan that takes into consideration
the available space, type of restaurant and seating arrangements is crucial and
will help make your restaurant a success. In our next article we will discuss
various options for table and chair layouts and how they can create the right
ambiance for your restaurant and help maximize your profits.

Looking to see how other restaurateurs created a new restaurant floor plan and
renovated their commercial kitchen? Check out Total Food
Service’s Blueprint series to learn more.

DESIGN & SPECS CENTER

Opening a new restaurant is a challenging endeavor for would-be

restaurateurs. Plus, the process of selecting the right seating layout is equally
important and challenging because there's literally an endless combination of
possible seating layouts. Regardless of how your venue may be set up, you
could use our free restaurant seating guidelines to help you decide how to set-
up your restaurant's seating capacity. Moreover, if you're short on time, please
call our seating experts. We would be happy to help you plan your layout, and
select the right restaurant chairs & tables.
 CHAIR & TABLE SPACING TIPS & SUGGESTIONS

 14 sq. ft per person for spacious dining (allows for table, chair, and aisle)
 12 sq. ft per person for caferteria or restaurant style seating
 10 sq. ft per person for banquet, institutional, or close seating
 Allow 18 inches for person seated from edge of table to back of chair
 Diagonal seating saves floor space
 Duece tables and wall spacing saves the most space
 Min. 42 " between squared tables for chairs back to back leaves 6 " to push
out.
 Min. 60 " between squared tables for chairs back to back leaves 26 " service
out
 Min. 54" between round tables service space. Main traffic aisles need to be
larger
 24 " between corners of diagonal tables for customer access - no aisle
 30 " between corners of diagonal tables for customer access - narrow aisle
 Where space is limited, booths require only 8 sq. ft. per person including aisle
allowance

REQUIRED TABLE TO CHAIR RATIOS

Dimensions for compfortable seating may need to be adjusted when

considering special seating options such as arm rests, over-size seating, etc.
Square Tables
Table Size
Number of Seats
24 X 24
30 X 30
36 X 36
42 X 42
2
2-4
4
8
Rectangular Tables
24 X 30
24 X 42
24 X 48
30 X 42
30 X 48
2
4
4
4
4
Round Tables
24
30
36
42
48
54
60
1-4
2-4
3-4
4-5
5-6
6-7
6-8
DETERMINING ADEQUATE TABLE SIZE

The industry standard for adequate table room is 300 square inches per diner.
For example, for fast food and standard cafe dining, an average table
dimension might be 30" X 42", or 1260 square inches. Divide that number by
the previously mentioned 300 square inches per diner, and you theoretically
have sufficient table space for four persons.

However, there are other factors involved in determining this figure, such as
the menu and dining style. Some menus require more square inches to
accomodate more utensils, plates, and service. Another example would be in
the case of cafeteria trays being used. A family-style dining experience, or
ethnic dining such as Mexican or Asian, require room for more plates. Table
size is a critical factor in determining the likelyhood your customers will have
a pleasant and comfortable dining experience. Tables that are too small will
drive customers away with terrible reviews of your establishment.

As a restaurant owner or manager, your desire is to be able to have seating and

table space which accomodates the most people, without having a crowded
room. Also, a well-designed combination of sizes of tables can decrease wait
time for diners. Traffic flow is also a critical consideration, since congestion in
high-traffic areas will increase noise, accidents, and slow down your overall
turn-over. Below, we have designed a few examples of seating layouts as a
starting block for your design process.

DESIGN LAYOUT IDEAS

For design considerations and dimensions, please see Chair & Table Spacing
Tips and Suggestions.
Café Tables

Café tables come in a variety of shapes, sizes and materials but typically are
defined by their efficiency and flexibility. Designed to be lightweight and
moveable, café tables are most commonly found in coffee shops and can
easily be moved and arranged by customers and staff. Café tables have
surfaces that are typically between 28”-30” | 71-76 cm from the ground.