How to open a restaurant or café in Houston
Seven stages from idea to opening day, in the order most owners work through them, with links to the agencies involved.
Concept and numbers
Test the idea and the budget before you commit.
Draft your startup budget and break-even
Use your own numbers to see how much you need and what sales cover your costs. Revisit it as quotes come in.
Check that your name is available
Search Texas business name records and the free federal trademark search before you print signs. This is research, not legal clearance.
Get free help from the city's Office of Business Opportunity
The OBO Solutions Center offers free SCORE business counseling and information on city, county, state and federal rules that apply to your business, plus 'Starting a Small Business' seminars.
Ask the Houston Permitting Center about your permits
The Houston Permitting Center offers live chat on its website on weekdays and a phone line (832-394-9000) for permit questions.
Business setup
Register the business and its taxes.
Form your LLC or corporation with the Secretary of State
If you're setting up an LLC, corporation, or limited partnership, you form it by filing a certificate of formation with the Texas Secretary of State. You can file online through SOSPortal.
File an assumed name with the Harris County Clerk
If you do business under a name other than your own and are not incorporated, file an Assumed Name with the Harris County Clerk. Incorporated businesses file their assumed name with the Texas Secretary of State instead. The record is valid up to ten years.
Get a federal EIN if you need one
An EIN is needed if you hire employees or operate as a corporation or partnership. It is free from the IRS; be wary of sites that charge for one.
Get a Texas sales and use tax permit
If you sell taxable items in Texas, you need a sales and use tax permit from the Comptroller. You can apply online through eSystems; the Comptroller says to allow 2–3 weeks to receive it.
Understand mixed beverage taxes if you'll serve alcohol
With a mixed beverage permit, your alcohol sales are subject to mixed beverage gross receipts tax and mixed beverage sales tax, and you still need a sales tax permit. Wine-and-beer or beer-only on-premise holders owe only sales tax on those sales.
Your site
Find a location where your business is allowed.
Check deed restrictions and permit history before you lease
Before buying or leasing, review the property's deed restrictions and file an open records request for its permit and inspection history. Every physical business needs a Certificate of Occupancy, including for a change of use.
Know Houston has no zoning but has site rules
Houston does not have zoning, but development ordinances still apply. Development site plans must meet rules on parking, trees and shrubs, setbacks and access.
Review your lease before you sign
Confirm the lease allows a restaurant and check who pays for build-out and upgrades. Consider having a lawyer review it; OpeningIQ can’t give legal advice.
Plan for accessibility
Businesses open to the public must follow the ADA. New construction and alterations must be accessible, and barriers in existing spaces must be removed where that’s readily achievable. Small businesses may qualify for a tax credit.
Plans, permits and build-out
Get the approvals to build out and prepare the space.
Submit food establishment plans before you build
Plans are required for new construction, converting a space that wasn't a food establishment, or major remodels. Submit them to the Houston Permitting Center before work starts, with your menu, floor plan, equipment schedule, finish schedule and plumbing plan (including any grease trap or interceptor).
Include the owner-signed deed restriction declaration
Most building permit applications need a deed restriction declaration form signed by the property owner; it's checked against HCAD ownership records. Demolitions, like-for-like repairs, and interior remodels that don't change use and occupancy are exempt.
Get commercial building and trade permits
Commercial plan review is needed to build or add to a commercial building in city limits; new projects are submitted online, and food establishments include health equipment details. Plumbing, electrical, mechanical, fire alarm and sprinkler work need separate trade permits by licensed contractors.
Get fire alarm or sprinkler permits from the Fire Dept.
If your space has a fire alarm or sprinkler system, you need a permit for it from the Houston Fire Department. Its Fire Permits Office also issues fire prevention permits.
Register your grease trap as a special waste generator
If your restaurant has a grease trap, you need a City generator permit. Each interceptor in city limits must be fully pumped at least every 90 days unless a waiver is approved, and the permit is renewed yearly and posted on site.
Get a sidewalk café license for sidewalk seating
Outdoor dining on a public sidewalk needs a sidewalk café license. You'll submit a site plan by a registered surveyor or engineer, drawings of the setup and public clearance way, and proof of liability insurance naming the City.
Get a sign permit for signs seen from the street
On-premises business signs visible from streets, sidewalks or alleys need a permit with plan review and inspection. Most are permitted by a licensed sign contractor, and sign operating permits renew yearly.
Get a Certificate of Occupancy before you open
You need a Certificate of Occupancy before occupying a commercial space or lease space. It's issued after construction, a remodel, or a change of use, after an inspection; the business must have power on for inspection day.
Licenses
Get the licenses that let you open.
Have a certified food manager on staff
If you handle, prepare, or serve exposed time/temperature-control foods, you may need at least one supervisory employee who is a certified food manager, certified by passing a DSHS-approved or ANSI-accredited exam. Your local health department may have stricter rules.
Apply for a TABC permit or license to serve alcohol
Apply through TABC's AIMS system for the right on-premise permit (e.g., Mixed Beverage, Wine and Malt Beverage Retailer's, or Beer On-Premise). Complete the public notice, publisher's affidavit, and city, county, and state certificates; TABC says issuing can take 30–35 days after a complete application.
Choose the right TABC on-premise permit type
A Mixed Beverage permit (MB) covers spirits, wine, and beer on-premise; a Wine and Malt Beverage Retailer's permit (BG) covers wine and beer; a Retail Dealer's On-Premise license (BE) covers beer. Restaurants may also qualify for a Food and Beverage Certificate.
Post TABC's 60-Day Sign at a new location
If your location wasn't licensed by TABC for on-premises consumption in the prior two years, you must post the 60-Day Sign outdoors, visible to the public, for 60 days before TABC can issue your permit. You may post it before you apply.
Pass pre-opening inspection and buy your food dealer permit
You can't operate without a food dealer's permit. Call 832-393-5100 to schedule a pre-operational inspection, have your certified food manager's contact info and approved plans on site, then buy the permit using the invoice from the final inspection.
File your alcohol application with the City (ARA)
Submit a copy of your TABC application to the City's Administration & Regulatory Affairs Dept. with a licensed surveyor's survey showing distances to nearby schools, daycares, public hospitals and religious institutions. You also need a Certificate of Occupancy and must pay any annual city fee.
City of Houston Administration & Regulatory Affairs Department ↗
Register with TTB before you sell alcohol
Businesses that sell alcohol must register with the federal Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau before they start, for each location, and keep records of the alcohol they buy.
Get ready to open
Cover people, insurance and suppliers.
Make sure food employees finish food handler training
Texas rules say all food employees must complete an accredited food handler training course within 30 days of employment. Accredited food handler cards are recognized statewide.
Register with TWC for state unemployment tax
Once you pay $1,500 or more in gross wages in a calendar quarter, or have at least one employee in 20 different weeks of a year, you're a liable employer and must register with TWC within ten days, using its Unemployment Tax Registration (UTR) system.
Decide on workers' comp — and notify if you opt out
Most Texas private employers can choose not to carry workers' comp. If you don't, file a notice of no coverage with DWC after hiring your first employee and yearly (Feb 1–Apr 30), post a no-coverage notice for employees, and give new hires written notice.
Texas Department of Insurance, Division of Workers' Compensation ↗
Post an occupancy capacity sign if 50+ people
Rooms with an occupancy load of 50 or more and no fixed seating, used for assembly or similar purposes, must post a durable capacity sign near the main exit, 48–60 inches above the floor.
If you’ll hire, set up federal payroll taxes
Withhold federal income tax using each employee’s Form W-4, pay Social Security and Medicare taxes, and pay federal unemployment (FUTA) tax, which isn’t withheld from pay.
Complete Form I-9 for every hire
Employers verify each new employee’s identity and authorization to work on Form I-9 and keep it on file.
Report new hires to your state
Report each new employee to your state’s new hire directory within 20 days of hiring; some states require it sooner.
Put up required workplace posters
Which federal posters you need depends on the laws that cover you; the Labor Department’s free Poster Advisor tells you. States have their own posters too.
Arrange business insurance
Ask an insurance broker what coverage your lease, lender and licenses call for. This is an OpeningIQ suggestion, not an agency requirement.
Line up equipment, POS and food suppliers
Get quotes early and compare delivery, payment and support terms. Your budget should guide the choices.
Check every approval is in hand
Gather your permits, licenses, certificate of occupancy and certificates in one place, and confirm each matches your address and business name.
Open and stay current
Keep licenses, permits and filings current.
Renew permits yearly and expect surprise inspections
Your food dealer permit is valid one year and must be kept in public view; a renewal invoice is mailed 30–45 days before it expires. The Health Department conducts unannounced inspections. Grease generator and sign operating permits also renew annually.
Track these steps in a free private plan
Save your progress, notes and target dates, and see your next step at a glance. Your plan stays private and is never shared with suppliers.