A searchable field guide, a community that answers, and a direct line to a working operator. Find what you need at any stage — and help shape the tools that make the next opening easier.
60+ steps, deadlines and statutory duties, searchable by stage and station. The reference you work through at 2am.
Browse the guide →A community Q&A where people who've done it answer the question you're stuck on. Post, vote, reply.
Open the floor →Tell me what's hard or what you wish existed. I read every one — and it shapes what we build next.
Send a message →Menus and décor rarely make this list. What does: cash, costs, and the things owners stop watching once it gets busy.
On the scary stat: the "90% fail in year one" line is a fabrication, and even the popular "60%" UK figure is contested — a UC Berkeley study put first-year closure for independent full-service restaurants nearer 17%. The insolvency numbers are real though, and nearly every closure traces back to cash and cost control, not the food.
Filter by stage or station, or search above. Flagged items carry a legal duty, a hard deadline, or a known failure risk.
Real questions from people opening and running UK restaurants — answered by operators who've been through it. Tagged by stage and station so you can find your situation fast.
Posts are public to the community. Don't share anything you wouldn't want a future landlord or investor to read.
I run a restaurant and I'm building hospitality tools alongside it. The fastest way I know to make them genuinely useful is to hear, in your words, what trips you up at each stage.
What you send is read by a person, not sold or spammed. Aggregated, anonymised themes help shape the resources and the tools we build — but your message and email stay private. Email is optional; leave it only if you want a reply.
One operator to another. No bots between us.
Your message is in. If you left an email and asked for a reply, you'll hear back from a real person. Good questions may show up on the Floor.