How to Expand an Outdoor Cafeteria with a Tent?

Clients today tend to have higher expectations for their dining experience. Compared to the traditional indoor dining experience, more and more guests prefer meals with outdoor surroundings, no matter it's a garden vista, waterfront scenery, vibrant cityscape, or simple street views. 

These outdoor settings don't just complement the meal; they transform the entire experience of dining in your restaurant. Thus, to keep up with the trend and stay competitive, it's time to upgrade your restaurant by developing an outdoor cafeteria.

Since it is often located in outdoor areas, it has to cope with different weather conditions. Then, a reliable restaurant tent is a must for this. In this blog, we will discuss why you should set your outdoor cafeteria under a tent and how to create the best outdoor dining experience for guests.

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Why an Outdoor Cafeteria Should Be in a Tent?

The basic function of a tent is to withstand outdoor climate changes in outdoor restaurants. A reliable restaurant tent should be waterproof and weatherproof. It provides a safe and comfortable area for guests to enjoy their meals even face of sudden rain, snow, or wind. 

It can be used in almost all seasons. On summer days, it can offer shade areas for people to stay cool and avoid the harm of UV rays. While in winter, it may help extend the outdoor dining hours if equipped with the right heating solution and proper accessories.

Due to its appealing design and the fresh dining experience it could provide, customers would flock in to try it. While having their meals, they can enjoy the fresh air and sunshine. Such an environment would make them feel more relaxed. In turn, it generates more profits and brings you more loyal guests. 

Moreover, creating an outdoor cafeteria with a tent is friendly to those families who have kids and pets. It offers a more open area for children to play around and move freely. And the pets can quietly accompany their owners without the constraints of indoor seating.

The restaurant tent could also add a romantic vibe to the dining area. This makes it particularly popular during holidays or some special days like Valentine's Day, anniversaries, proposals, Christmas, New Year, etc.

How to Transform Your Outdoor Cafeteria with Dining Canopy

Most people would be frightened by the difficulties of building the outdoor cafeteria with a tent. But it can be pretty easy as long as you have grasped the right tips. Here are some ideas that you may try to transform the outdoor dining area into a nice place to go:

Choose the Right Outdoor Cafeteria Tent

The key to the success of an outdoor cafeteria is to find a perfect tent for it first. And there are several important things to consider when you are doing this, including:

• Confirm the Size of Available Outdoor Space and Restaurant Tent
  

If the dining tent is too small, guests may feel cramped and uneasy. However, an oversized tent may exceed your budget, create wasted space, and feel out of proportion with your overall setup.

Thus, confirming the right size of the tent is important. You need to measure the outdoor space carefully, and you can turn to your supplier for help. They will give you professional suggestions about the tent choice.

Then don't forget about the layout of the space under the tent. Make sure that the guests will have their meals in a comfortable environment. It is highly suggested that you leave 10 to 12 feet for each guest. Based on this, you can adjust the number of tables and chairs under the tent.

In addition, consider reserving at least 3 ft wide for walkways or aisles, so that clients can move, talk, and socialize freely.

• Invest in High-quality Tent Material
  

The quality of the tent determines how long your tent will last. No restaurant owner or manager wants a tent crafted with poor materials. Reliable outdoor dining tents are highly resistant to bad weather, such as howling winds, pouring rain, harsh sunlight, and heavy rain. If stored and maintained well, their service life can easily reach up to more than 10 years!

Those top-tier tents are often made of durable frameworks and waterproof fabrics. Most tent manufacturers would choose aluminum alloy as the material to craft the framework. It is lightweight, so it makes the whole tent easy to transport and install. Meanwhile, it is also sturdy enough and capable of resisting corrosion and rust. 

As for the cover, waterproof PVC is always a good choice. It can bear tears and junctures. More importantly, the PVC fabric is typically flame retardant and able to withstand most harsh weather conditions.

• Pick up Eye-catching Custom Tent
  

The outdoor cafeteria must draw people in, so selecting an attractive tent is necessary. It is better to choose those patio tents that are designed with an appealing look and allow you to customize them.

You can personalize the size, color, shape, and even add clear prints on it to make your restaurant unique and turn it into a perfect match for the surroundings. If possible, add temperature control and ventilation systems to your tent. This will make it more complete, thus getting more clients in.

If you don't know which tent type suits you the most, you can go for a high peak tent. The open sides ensure good ventilation to keep guests comfortable. Due to its high peaked roof and elegant design, many people have used it for outdoor settings like weddings, parties, and other celebrations. Be it concrete, asphalt, grass, or sand, it can be easily set up on both hard and soft ground surfaces. 

Except for the high peak tent, the dome tent is also a good choice to build an outdoor cafeteria. The spherical shape has made it special and remains stable even faced with harsh weather. It can be customized to add necessary accessories. Moreover, the modular design allows it to be easily assembled and disassembled.

If you are going to create a winter outdoor cafeteria, then the keder tent may be the best option for you. It is famous for its Keder track system, which makes it easy to install.

The sidewalls and fabrics are tightly connected to the framework, so the enclosed canopy forms a concealed space to avoid cold air and moisture from seeping in. In addition, it can be easily insulated and heated during freezing days to keep the tent warm in winter.

• Adaptable to Year-round Outdoor Cafeteria
  

One way to make the tent restaurant more profitable is to ensure that it can run smoothly all year round. From this perspective, you'll need to invest in those tents that allow you to provide a cozy environment for your guests in all seasons. So the outdoor cafeteria must be equipped with adjustable climate and humidity control systems.

Anchor the Outdoor Cafeteria Tent Securely

When using an outdoor tent, it is essential to make sure that it won't suddenly collapse to cause any incidents or safety concerns. The same goes for the outdoor cafeteria. To fasten the tent on the ground, you may choose the proper anchoring systems accordingly. This may include using the rachets, ballasting systems, bolts, stakes, sandbags, etc.

For example, you should use stakes/ratchets for soft grounds like grass and beaches, or load-bearing plates for permanent setups. While for hard surfaces, weighted ballasts may be better.

When you need to set up tents in high-wind areas or on uneven ground, anchoring the tent securely with the right methods and adding canopy weights to its legs is quite important to prevent the tent from falling apart.

Comfort Your Guest

Ensuring the comfort of your guests is a vital factor in building a successful outdoor cafeteria. It can be achieved by installing climate-controlled tents that maintain consistent temperatures year-round through integrated heating and cooling systems. 

During hotter days, it is necessary to combine air conditioning with misting fans and shade fabric to keep the space cool. In winter, the most critical thing is to create a cozy space for customers to stay warm. You may use outdoor dining heaters, HVAC systems, and insulated tent walls to retain heat. These measures would guarantee an enjoyable experience for all guests in any season.

What's more, ventilation is also important. When the days are warmer, you can open or remove the tent sidewalls to keep good ventilation. In the cold season, especially when the heating systems are working, ventilation is extremely critical.

You should regularly open the windows and doors of the tent to avoid carbon monoxide or any other harmful gas accumulation and ensure fresh air circulation.

Decorate the Tent Restaurant

And last, never overlook the significance of your restaurant decorations. When decorating the outdoor party tent, there are lots of things you can do. You may build seasonal themes for your restaurant.

For instance, as Christmas approaches, you can dress the ceiling in red/green fabrics and use miniature trees or socks to decorate the outside dining areas. And for harvest season, draping autumn foliage and pumpkin centerpieces are perfect choices.

The tent lighting could also be an elegant decor for the restaurant tent. Additionally, it helps to illuminate the whole cafeteria to create a warmer atmosphere for people to have their meals and chat with each other. It would be great to use fairy lights, string lights, starry lights, twinkle bulbs, etc., to create a more romantic vibe to the restaurant seating outside. 

On usual days, it's good to stick to a simple style. Try to use a neutral palette like white, gray, and light brown as the major tone of your tent to increase its elegance and appeal. One thing to remember is that, regardless of when you choose colors or decor for your restaurant, they should harmonize with the furniture and other elements under the tent. 

Conclusion

Expanding an outdoor cafeteria could offer you lots of profits, but it is surely a process that requires much effort. One of the most critical things to consider is selecting a reliable tent. When enjoying the meal outside, customers need to face rain, wind, and any other sudden weather changes. 

No worries, tents from Sheltent can help you create the nicest dining experience ever for your guests. All the tents supplied by us are made of top materials and designed with an aesthetic look. Contact us today and transform your outdoor cafeteria into the area's most sought-after dining spot!