Going self-employed
Starting your own restaurant?
The kitchen and the covers are your world: get the menu pricing, supplier admin and food-business side organised before you open the doors and start serving.
Instant digital downloads · UK-focused templates and guides · Not a substitute for professional advice.
The work is one thing. The setup is another.
Cooking the food and running the room is the part you're built for; running it as a business is the part that quietly eats your margin. The day you open you're not just on the pass, you're pricing every dish against ingredient cost so the gross margin actually works, managing waste and stock, juggling suppliers, building staff rotas around your covers, and watching cash flow through the quiet weeks. LaunchKit is a set of UK-focused, downloadable templates and guides to help you think through that setup side and get organised before your first service. It's a practical starting point, not a substitute for professional advice.
- Pricing the menu so each dish earns a healthy gross margin once you've costed the ingredients, instead of guessing and finding out at month-end
- Keeping on top of suppliers, stock and food waste so money isn't quietly walking out of the back door
- Building staff rotas around your covers and opening hours without over-staffing the quiet shifts or running short on a Friday night
- Managing cash flow and seasonality when rent, staff wages and overheads land whether the tables are full or not
- Getting found by local diners and filling covers on Instagram, Google and the bookings side when you'd rather be in the kitchen
What to sort first
Your get-set-up checklist
- 1
Work out how you'll price the menu
Cost each dish against its ingredients and set prices that protect your gross margin once rent, staff and overheads are accounted for.
- 2
Look into the food-business side
Registering your food business with your local authority, food hygiene and allergen requirements, and any premises or alcohol licensing are things to look into and sort yourself before you open.
- 3
Sort your suppliers and stock system
Decide how you'll order, track stock and keep waste down so the back-of-house side doesn't quietly drain your margin.
- 4
Plan your staffing and rotas
Think through how you'll rota kitchen and front-of-house staff around your covers and opening hours so quiet shifts aren't over-staffed.
- 5
Set up simple money records
Get a basic system for tracking takings, supplier costs and wages so cash flow and tax time aren't a scramble through the slow season.
- 6
Plan how diners find you
Think through Instagram, Google and maps, local Facebook and your bookings so new and repeat covers keep coming in.
- 7
Look into your insurance
Cover for a restaurant premises is worth looking into early. That's a prompt to look into, not insurance advice.
Recommended LaunchKit tools
Tools that help you get set up
Walks you through the practical first steps of setting up a self-employed restaurant so you're not guessing what to sort before you open.
See what’s inside Your paperworkReady-to-use supplier, booking and invoice templates for the paperwork that runs around the kitchen and front of house.
See what’s inside Your pricingHelps you cost each dish against its ingredients and price the menu so your gross margin covers rent, staff and overheads instead of leaving you short.
See what’s inside Getting foundContent templates to help you show off your dishes and fill covers on Instagram and local Facebook without staring at a blank caption box.
See what’s inside Your wordsHelps you write menu descriptions, booking replies and local listings without spending your one quiet hour wrestling with the words.
See what’s inside Money adminA set of forms to help you keep supplier costs, takings and staff-related spending organised in one place across the week.
See what’s inside Record-keepingA structured workbook to help you keep records organised for Making Tax Digital as a sole trader.
See what’s insideNot sure where to start? See everything for restaurant or browse all LaunchKit products.
Suggested starter stack
A sensible order to build up
The same tools, grouped in the order most people pick them up. You don’t need everything at once — start with the essentials, then add the rest as your business grows.
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Common questions
Before you buy anything
- Do I need to buy everything before I open?
- No. Most people start with the startup guide to get the basics organised, then add the business documents and a pricing tool as they go. It's designed to help you build up your setup at your own pace.
- Are these legal or food-safety documents?
- No. These are downloadable templates and guides to help you get organised and set up practically. They're not a substitute for professional advice and don't replace any food-safety, registration or licensing requirement you're responsible for as a restaurant.
- Can I use these if I'm already open and trading?
- Yes. Plenty of restaurant owners who are already serving pick these up to tidy up their menu pricing, supplier admin and money records rather than starting from scratch.
- How do I receive the files?
- They're instant digital downloads. After purchase you can download the templates and guides straight away and start using them.
- Which should I buy first?
- A good practical starting point is the startup guide, followed by the pricing calculator to cost your menu and the business documents for your supplier and booking paperwork. From there you can add the other tools as you need them.
Start with the right tools
Get the admin side organised so you can focus on the work. Browse the tools built for restaurant businesses.
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