This is the ultimate guide to restaurant success - fully updated and revised. Yes, hard work and a dream are indispensable, but success in the restaurant business requires an arsenal of skills and a vast body of knowledge and access to information. The Restaurant: From Concept to Operation, Fourth Edition provides it all. This easy-to-read guide shows aspiring restaurateurs how to conceive, open, and run any type of restaurant, from fast-food franchise to upscale dining room. This book will equip aspiring restaurant owners to master a broad variety of start-up issues and gain the solid footing they'll need to ensure the restaurant's ongoing success. Here, you will discover how to choose a suitable concept, find a market gap to fill, develop business and marketing plans, and secure financial backing. Also, you'll learn how to select the perfect location, obtain the necessary permits, create a tantalizing menu, design the interior, and hire and train employees. You'll also acquire the all-important skill of turning first-time customers into regular patrons. Special features of this new edition include: increased focus on the independent restaurant; greater emphasis on restaurant business plans, including new exercises; up-to-date restaurant profiles, including franchises and independents; a new chapter on restaurant operations and control; and a new chapter on the latest restaurant technology. As part of the National Restaurant Association's Education Foundation's[registered] Pro Mgmt. Certificate Program, this field-proven guide gives students, chefs, and entrepreneurs all of the skills and information they need to master every challenge and succeed in this highly competitive and rewarding industry.