How to Prepare Your Restaurant for Winter?
The days are noticeably shorter, the weather is cooler and customers are sitting on the outside patio much less than in summer. How can you prepare your restaurant for the colder months in a way that makes the most sense?
Roll Up Your Sleeves
It is worth taking advantage of the first chilly days in a practical and effective way. Get on with the repairs and revisions you have been putting off during the summer season and for which it may be too late in the winter.
A good place to start is a check of the heating system. A broken heating can betray your business at the worst possible time, so it is a good idea to have it done in the weeks when you and your customers can still manage without heating.
Equally, focus on repairing water pipes and seals, and it is also worth it to protect the restaurant from various pests. The colder months force various pests to seek shelter indoors, so you will do best to check the places they might get in and add poison to pest traps.
Rewrite Your Menu
Autumn is also the perfect time to adjust your menu. First of all, it offers a variety of seasonal specialties that are becoming increasingly popular - pumpkins, cabbages, mushrooms and geese.
At the same time, this is the perfect time to think ahead and prepare your menu for the winter or even for the next year. Not to mention the possibilities offered by the drinks menu - refreshing it with a few warmer drinks (teas, hot chocolate and mulled wine) can only make customers happier.
How About a Winter Patio?
With the summer season coming to an end and the pandemic situation still ongoing, there is one major change to consider. How about giving your restaurant a heated winter patio that will attract people even in the coldest months of the year?
It is a bigger investment that will require additional costs for furnishings, lighting and heating, but it can pay you back over the next few years. You can read more about the specific ways to improve your patio in our article published earlier.
