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The Global Insight

Is it profitable to open a restaurant?

Author

James Williams

Updated on February 25, 2026

“If a restaurant is successful, the profit margins can be to the tune of 40% per month. This makes it more lucrative than property investment, which gives you a return of up to 25% annually,” says hospitality consultant Sandeep Verma. “The business has to be planned like the car business.

How much should you invest in a restaurant?

The median cost of opening a restaurant is $275,000 or $3,046 per cover for a leased space, according to a recent survey. This number jumps to $425,000 or $3,734 per cover with an added land purchase.

How much do successful restaurant owners make?

How Much Do Restaurant Owners Make? On average, restaurant owners make between $30,000 and $155,000 a year. The restaurant size, type, location, and other factors impact the restaurant owner’s salary.

Is a breakfast restaurant profitable?

Breakfast foods have some of the most affordable ingredients around. And traffic at breakfast restaurants has increased over the past several years. This means that opening a restaurant that focuses primarily on breakfast food can be very profitable.

Is owning a restaurant a good investment?

Investing in Restaurants Can Work, but It’s Not as Easy as Pie. RELAXING in a restaurant, satisfied after a good meal and maybe a glass of wine, it’s easy to dream about what it would be like to own the place. But plenty of people find ways to run restaurants profitably and make a good deal of money from the enterprise …

How much does it cost to set up a restaurant?

In general, expect to spend an average of $115,655 for kitchen and bar equipment. Furniture and tables can cost $40,000 alone, so be sure to plan accordingly. 4.

Do you need a budget to open a restaurant?

Before jumping straight into opening your restaurant, you need to know how much it’s going to cost you. You need a budget plan. Without a budget plan, chances are, you will overspend. In our ultimate guide to starting a restaurant, we revealed that a restaurant’s startup costs vary widely due to the many cost components.

What do you need to start a restaurant?

Renovation, Equipment & Decor When starting a restaurant from scratch, you will need the basic kitchen equipment and furniture such as tables and chairs. The amount of kitchen equipment you’d need would depend on your store’s size and capacity.

How much does it cost to hire an employee for a restaurant?

It can cost you around CAD$2,500 per employee – find out the minimum wage in your province too. Cost-Saving Tip: The team at ZoomShift has a comprehensive guide on how you can save costs with a labour budget. Check out their article here: How Restaurants Can Set and Stick to a Labour Budget.