Questions to Ask a Restaurant Owner
Questions to ask a restaurant owner when you want to know how the business really runs, whether you are thinking of opening a place of your own, interviewing an owner for a class or an article, or are simply curious about a restaurant you like. They begin with the story and the working day, then move through getting open, money, the menu and kitchen, staff and guests, and what the owner would do differently.
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The questions
Each question, and why to ask it
Start here
What made you want to open a restaurant?
Why ask it
Listen for where the story begins: a dish, a building, a family kitchen, or a job they wanted out of. Each starting point produces a different kind of restaurant, and it explains choices that come up later in the conversation.
What does a typical day look like for you?
Why ask it
Have them start from the first thing they do on arrival, which may be checking a delivery or fixing something and nothing to do with a stove. How much of the day goes to invoices, schedules and repairs is the part people outside the trade rarely picture.
What is the hardest part of owning a restaurant?
Why ask it
Give the first answer room, because it is usually the polite one about long hours. The second, about a landlord, a loan, or a cook they cannot replace, is where the follow-up questions are.
What is the most rewarding part of running your own place?
Why ask it
Best asked straight after the hard part, since it shows what the hard part is being traded for. A regular's anniversary table, a cook they trained who now leads a kitchen, and a full room on a Tuesday are three quite different reasons to keep going.
What advice would you give someone who wants to open a restaurant?
Why ask it
Asked cold, this gets a slogan, so save it until they have told you a story or two and tie it to one of them. If the advice is to work in a restaurant first, ask which job and for how long.
How did you come up with the name?
Why ask it
An easy one to answer, and a name often carries a grandmother, a street or a joke that stuck. If it was the second choice, find out what the first was and why it fell through.
What is your favorite thing on the menu right now?
Why ask it
The owner has eaten everything here many times over, so the pick is often not the best seller, and now and then it is not on the printed menu at all. It makes a warm way into the menu questions and a good order for your next visit.
What makes this place different from the others nearby?
Why ask it
Underneath, this asks what they believe guests are paying for, and it is the polite way to bring up competition. Compare the answer with what you noticed as a customer. If the two differ, say so.
Getting open
What had you done in restaurants before you owned one?
Why ask it
Someone who washed dishes, served, and managed for another owner made their early mistakes on somebody else's money. Those who came from outside the trade can tell you which skills they had to hire in from the first day.
How did you land on this concept, and what did you change after opening?
Why ask it
The changes are the useful half. Menus shrink, hours shift, and the customer they planned for sometimes turns out to be someone else, so ask which change was hardest to accept.
How did you choose this location?
Why ask it
Foot traffic, parking, and who lives or works close by all count, but so does which unit was empty at a rent they could carry. The useful follow-up is what they would check about a site now that they did not know to check then.
Where did the money to open come from?
Why ask it
Savings, family, a bank loan, partners, and a landlord's contribution to the build-out each come with different strings attached. Not every owner wants to go into this, so ask once, plainly, and move on if the subject changes.
What did it cost to open, and how far off was your budget?
Why ask it
If the total feels too private, the overrun as a share of the plan is easier to give and just as useful. Follow with where it went: equipment, the build-out, or rent paid while the opening date slipped.
How long was it from signing the lease to opening the doors, and what took longest?
Why ask it
Rent can start before the first guest arrives, so the length of that gap is a cost as well as a wait. A contractor who vanished, equipment on back order, or a sign-off that had to be rebooked are the delays to listen for.
Which licenses and permits did you need, and which one held you up?
Why ask it
The list depends on the city and on whether alcohol is served, so treat the answer as local knowledge and check the rules where you are. What travels is the order they would tackle things in a second time.
Do you have partners or investors, and how do you split decisions?
Why ask it
Who has the last word on the menu, the hiring, and the spending is easy to settle before opening and hard to settle after a bad quarter. What they put in writing, and what they wish they had, is the part to take notes on.
What was your first year open like?
Why ask it
Good for a specific memory: the first night they ran out of food, the week nobody came, the review that changed the bookings. The problem from that year that never came back, and the one that never left, make a useful pair of follow-ups.
Money
How long did it take to turn a profit, and when did you start paying yourself?
Why ask it
They are two different dates, and the stretch between them is what to listen for. A place can cover its bills for a good while before the owner draws a wage, so ask what they lived on in the meantime.
What are your food and labor percentages, and which one keeps you up at night?
Why ask it
These are the two big running costs, each tracked as a share of sales, and a rough figure is all you need. The one that worries them tells you about the model: full table service leans on labor, a menu built on expensive cuts leans on food cost.
How much of your sales goes to rent, and what would you negotiate differently in the lease?
Why ask it
A rough share is enough, and an owner who would sooner not give it may still talk about the lease itself. Lease terms and tenant protections differ from place to place, so take the answer as one owner's experience and have your own lease read by someone qualified.
How much cash do you try to keep in reserve?
Why ask it
Suppliers and payroll fall due on a fixed rhythm while takings swing, so the answer is often given in weeks of costs and not in money. If the cushion was thinner at opening, ask what happened that made them build it up.
Which months are slowest for you, and how do you plan for them?
Why ask it
The quiet stretch depends on where they are: January for one, August in a town that empties out, exam weeks near a campus. Listen for what they actually change, such as shorter hours, private events or a planned week off.
How much comes through delivery apps, and what is left after their cut?
Why ask it
Commission comes off the top of a ticket priced for a dining room, and the rate varies by platform and plan. Owners who have run the arithmetic can tell you which dishes they refuse to list and why, and some skip delivery altogether for the same reason.
How have rising costs changed what you buy or what you charge?
Why ask it
Push for one concrete case: an ingredient swapped, a portion trimmed, a dish that quietly left the menu. Whether they raised the price or changed the plate shows who they think their guest is.
Which number do you look at first every morning?
Why ask it
Yesterday's sales, the labor percentage, the cover count, or the bank balance: the pick shows what they think drives everything else. It also gets at how they measure success without inviting a speech.
Which software or subscription earns its keep, and which did you cancel?
Why ask it
Point of sale, reservations, scheduling, and delivery tablets all bill by the month, and the total creeps up quietly. The one they dropped, and the reason, is advice no sales demo will give you.
Who taught you the money side, and what did you only learn by getting it wrong?
Why ask it
Few people open a restaurant out of a love of bookkeeping, so this side tends to be picked up from someone or the hard way. A bookkeeper, an old boss, or one expensive mistake are the usual teachers, and whichever they name is where your next question goes.
How do you work out what to charge for a dish?
Why ask it
Some owners price up from the cost of the ingredients, some look at what the street already charges, and plenty do a bit of both. The last time they raised a price, and whether anyone at the tables said a word, is the story to get.
Which dish makes the most money, and which one stays for other reasons?
Why ask it
The most profitable plate is not always the one on the sign. The dish that barely pays for itself but stays, because regulars would complain or because it is why the place opened, says a lot about what the menu is for.
What do people order most, and did you see it coming?
Why ask it
An owner who expected one dish to carry the place and watched another do it has learned something specific about who walks in. If they did see it coming, ask how early they knew.
How do you try out a new dish before it earns a place on the menu?
Why ask it
A weekend special, a staff meal, or a quiet plate sent to a few regulars are the usual trial runs. Find out what would take a dish off again: slow sales, a cook who dreads making it, or a cost that crept up.
How do you decide which food trends to follow and which to ignore?
Why ask it
A trend costs something to chase: new stock, new training, a menu reprint. The one they jumped on and regretted, or sat out and were glad, shows how they weigh fashion against what their regulars come for.
Where do your ingredients come from, and how did you find your suppliers?
Why ask it
Some kitchens buy nearly everything from one large distributor, others from a market, a farm, or a fishmonger they have known for years. Ask what happens when a delivery turns up short or wrong, because that is when the relationship shows.
How do you keep a dish the same no matter who is cooking it?
Why ask it
Recipes written by weight, a photo of the finished plate, and tasting before service are the unglamorous answers. If the consistency lives in one cook's hands and nowhere on paper, the owner knows it and will often admit it.
What do you do about food waste?
Why ask it
In a kitchen, waste is first a cost, so the practical answers are about ordering, prep quantities, and finding a use for trim. The item that gets thrown away most, and what they have tried so far, tells you more than a general policy.
What is the busiest hour of your week, and what breaks first?
Why ask it
Peak hour shows the real limit of the place: one station, the dish machine, the host stand, a single cook. If you are planning a kitchen of your own, ask what they would lay out differently to fix it.
What is the worst thing that has gone wrong in the middle of a service?
Why ask it
A walk-in fridge that died, a power cut with a full room, the grill cook who never arrived: most owners have one and have told it before, so it comes out well. Write down what the kitchen does differently since.
What is a health inspection actually like from your side?
Why ask it
Inspectors look at things guests never see, such as holding temperatures, date labels, handwashing sinks and repairs. How visits are scheduled and scored differs by city and country, so ask how it works where they are and which finding taught them the most.
Staff and guests
How do you find and keep good staff?
Why ask it
Finding and keeping are different problems, so take them one at a time. For keeping, ask who has been there longest and why they think that person stayed: the pay, the hours, or how the place is run.
What do you look for when you hire, apart from experience?
Why ask it
Most owners have a tell they trust, such as how a candidate speaks to the dishwasher or whether they turn up early for a trial shift. Unlike the cost figures, this answer applies to almost any business.
How do you train someone new?
Why ask it
Notice whether there is a plan for the first week or only a shift spent trailing whoever is on. How long it takes before a new hire works a busy night alone tells you how much slack the team has.
How do you structure pay, and how do you handle tips?
Why ask it
The rules on wages, tip pooling and service charges differ by country and often by state, so hear this as how one owner does it and not as how it must be done. What they changed after their first attempt is the useful part.
What happens when a key person quits on a Friday?
Why ask it
Friday is the point: there is no time to hire. If the owner steps onto the line, the place still leans on one person. If someone else is already trained for that job, ask how long it took to set up.
What actually brings new people through the door?
Why ask it
Expect something blunter than a marketing plan: a sign on the street, one write-up, a photo that got passed around, the office block next door. Then ask what they paid for that did nothing, which is the half that saves you money.
Is social media worth the time you put into it?
Why ask it
Somebody has to take the photos and answer the messages, and in a small place that somebody may be the owner after closing. Listen for whether they can point to a post that filled tables, or whether they keep it up mainly because a silent account looks closed.
How do you deal with online reviews?
Why ask it
Some owners reply to every one, some read none, and some make themselves wait a day before answering a bad one. Ask whether a review has ever changed something on the menu or the floor.
How do you handle an unhappy customer at the table?
Why ask it
There is the policy, a replaced plate or something taken off the bill, and there is who gets to decide it. Whether a server can fix it on the spot or has to fetch the owner tells you how much the staff are trusted.
Who are your regulars, and what keeps them coming back?
Why ask it
Regulars are the nearest thing a restaurant has to a salary, and most owners can describe a few by name and usual order. What they do for those guests, a held table or a remembered drink, costs far less than a promotion.
What do you wish customers understood about restaurants?
Why ask it
This hands the owner the floor, and the answers tend to be small and practical: what a no-show costs on a Saturday, or why the kitchen closes before the doors do. For an article or a class project, it is the question most likely to give you a line worth quoting.
The long view
How many hours a week are you here, and which of them could someone else do?
Why ask it
The gap between the hours worked and the hours that need the owner shows how much of the place runs on routine and how much on one person. Counting stock at midnight is a task that can be taught, so ask whether they have handed anything like it over.
What has owning this place cost you outside of work?
Why ask it
Missed weekends, holidays, and family dinners are the common answers, and some owners would sooner not go there. Ask it late and gently, and take a short reply as the whole reply.
What was the closest you came to closing, and what got you through?
Why ask it
Only for a conversation that has gone warm, and not at all if the place looks to be struggling now. What got them through is often a person: a landlord who waited, a supplier who extended credit, staff who stayed.
If you were starting over tomorrow, what would you do differently?
Why ask it
Answers tend to be about size, lease terms or kitchen layout more than the concept. If they say they would change nothing, ask what a second location would look like, which gets at the same thing without asking anyone to admit a mistake.
Knowing what you know now, would you do it again?
Why ask it
A quick yes and a long pause are both answers. Whichever you get, ask whether they would say the same to a close friend about to put their savings in, which moves the reply from pride to advice.
What is next for the restaurant?
Why ask it
A second site, shorter hours, a new menu, or simply another year like this one are all real plans. If the talk has gone well, ask whether they picture selling it, handing it on, or closing it one day, which almost nobody asks.
Learning from a Restaurant Owner
Practical guidance for the conversation itself
How to get real answers
Ask when the quiet hour is
For many places it falls mid-afternoon, between lunch and dinner prep, but a breakfast cafe or a dinner-only kitchen keeps a different clock. Let the owner name the time, and never try during a rush.
Ask about their numbers, not the industry's
Owners will discuss their own food cost far more readily than they will comment on national averages. Specific questions about this site get specific answers.
Order and pay first
You are asking for expertise from someone whose time is the business. Being a paying guest changes the conversation more than any introduction.
Say what you are trying to decide
Opening a place, writing about the trade, or weighing an investment are different asks, and owners calibrate their candor to which one it is.
Choose by what you came for
No owner has time for the whole list. For a class project or an article, take most of Start here and a handful each from Menu and kitchen and Staff and guests. If you are planning to open a place yourself, spend the time on Getting open and Money.
Earn the money questions
Rent, margins and where the opening money came from land better once the owner has told a story or two. Lead with them and the conversation sounds like an audit.
Numbers worth writing down
- Food cost and labor cost as percentages of sales, plus their targets
- Rent as a share of sales, the length of the lease, and what happens when it comes up for renewal
- Weekly covers, average check, and the gap between the quietest and busiest day
- Total opening cost, split between equipment and build-out
- How many weeks or months of running costs they held in reserve at opening
Common mistakes
Asking for the secret
There is no single answer, and the question signals you have done no groundwork. Ask about one specific decision instead and you will get a real reply.
Focusing only on the food
The food is the part guests see, but a restaurant is also a lease, a payroll and a bank balance. If every question is about the menu, you leave with half the picture.
Assuming success transfers
A thriving site may rest on a lease signed cheaply years ago, or a neighborhood that has since changed. Ask what would be different starting from today.
Taking one owner's rules as everyone's
Licensing, tipping, inspections and lease law change from one city or country to the next. Take the reasoning home with you, and check the rules where you plan to open.
Skipping the failures
Ask about the closed concept, the bad hire, the dish that never sold. Owners will discuss these once it is clear you are not there to judge.