The Pinch Points
Why Full-Service Operators Come to Us Instead of Their Bank
A full-service restaurant ties up capital at every turn — the build-out before the first cover, the payroll and food cost every day after, and a buffer for the weeks the dining room runs quiet. Sound familiar?
The Kitchen & Dining Build-Out
A full commercial kitchen — line, hood, walk-in, dish — plus a dining room build-out runs $150K–$600K+ before you serve a single cover.
The Daily Payroll & Food Cost
Front- and back-of-house payroll plus perishable food cost is a relentless $30K–$120K monthly outlay that doesn't flex down on a slow week.
The Margin Squeeze
Full-service margins run thin; one slow month or a food-cost spike can turn a profitable restaurant cash-negative without a buffer.
The Refresh & Remodel
Dining rooms age; a refresh to stay competitive is $50K–$200K, carried out of cash flow the restaurant can't easily spare.
The Seasonal Swing
Covers swing with the season, weather, and the local calendar, while the fixed costs of a full-service operation roll on regardless.
Opening a Second Location
A second restaurant is a $300K–$2M build — the move that turns a successful restaurant into a group, and the one a slow bank won't fund in time.
What an operator said
“Our first slow January nearly took us out — we were profitable but had no cushion. The working line got us through, and when we remodeled the dining room two years later we financed it instead of draining the account. Best decision we made.”
M. Bianchi · full-service restaurant · Boulder, CO
Start Here
See Your Range in 60 Seconds
No credit check, no documents to start, and an estimated funding range on the spot. No one contacts you until you’re ready to move forward.
What Happens When You Start
Estimate Your Capital Range
Slide to your annual gross revenue. We size capital off your top line — not your credit score.
Estimated Capital Range
A conservative range based on 10-15% of annual revenue — many businesses qualify for more with strong receivables or assets behind them. Lenders return real term sheets once they see your file.
60 seconds · No obligation · Estimate only
Built for the Trade
What We Fund for Full-Service Restaurants
Build-Out & Equipment Financing With §179
Finance the kitchen, the hood and walk-in, and the dining build-out; §179 writes off the equipment the year you open, so a new build or remodel doesn't drain the operating account.
Working Capital for Payroll & Food Cost
An unsecured, revenue-based working line carries payroll and perishable inventory through the slow weeks and the seasonal swings.
A Buffer Against the Margin Squeeze
A working line is the cushion a thin-margin operation needs so one slow month or a cost spike doesn't become a crisis.
Revenue-Based Second-Location & Expansion Capital
Open a second restaurant on revenue-based, capital-stacked financing — build-out, equipment, and opening working capital in one structure, not an SBA queue.
Match Your Situation
The Cash-Flow Gaps We Fund for Full-Service Restaurants
Match your situation to the structure. Every one of these funds on the restaurant's revenue, not a perfect credit file.
| What It Looks Like | Funding Solution | Amount | Speed | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bank risk-aversion | Banks see restaurants as high-risk and pass | Revenue-Based Financing | $75K–$5M+ | 1–3 days |
| Six-figure build-out | Build-out is six figures before the first cover | Equipment Financing | $75K–$5M+ | 3–7 days |
| No slow-month buffer | Thin margins leave no buffer for a slow month | Working Capital | $75K–$5M+ | 1–3 days |
The Products
How Full-Service Restaurant Financing Is Structured
Most full-service restaurant files fund between $75K and $5M+, structured to the build-out and the cash flow in front of you. Larger lines available when revenue, cash flow, and story qualify.
| Amount | Term | Best For | Funding Speed | Typical Structure | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Equipment Financing | $75K–$5M+ | 3yr–7yr | Kitchen line, hood, walk-in, dining build-out | 3–7 days | Equipment serves as collateral |
| Working Capital | $75K–$5M+ | 6mo–10yr | Payroll, food cost, seasonal swings | 1–3 days | Often unsecured, revenue-based |
| Business LOC | $75K–$5M+ | Revolving | Ongoing food and labor draws | 1–5 days | Unsecured line, no PG by default |
| Revenue-Based Financing | $75K–$5M+ | 6mo–24mo | Bridging seasonal and slow-month gaps | 1–3 days | Repays as a share of daily card sales |
Tax Strategy
Section 179 on the Kitchen Build-Out — Worked
If last year was strong and you’re about to write a check to the IRS — stop. Acquire qualifying equipment with as little as 10% down, finance the rest, and write off the full purchase price in year one. Section 179 covers it up to the annual cap; 100% bonus depreciation — made permanent in 2025, with no cap and no income limit — carries the rest.
At the top bracket, that first-year deduction can return meaningful tax savings — and for an established business with strong cash flow, it’s the difference between writing a check to the IRS and putting the same money into your own equipment. Your CPA models the exact numbers for your bracket and structure.
Worked scenario · top bracket · illustrative
You financed the machine and put down a fraction of its price — but you deduct the full price in year one. The write-off is bigger than your down payment, and the equipment keeps working the whole time.
Scales with your numbers
Illustrative only. Actual savings depend on your tax bracket, entity type, state conformity, and CPA guidance. Section 179 and bonus depreciation are elections your CPA makes for your situation; above the Section 179 cap, 100% bonus depreciation carries the balance.
Terms reflect credit, revenue, time in business, and each lender. Every file is unique — see what the desk structures for yours in the 60-second qualifier.
Bobby’s Take
“A full-service restaurant is the hardest business in this country to run profitably and one of the most expensive to open — you sink six figures into a kitchen and a dining room, then live or die on margins so thin that a slow week or a spike in food cost can wipe out a month. The operators who last aren't the ones who white-knuckle the cash flow; they're the ones who build with financing and keep a working-capital buffer so a bad week is a bad week, not an existential one. We fund the build-out — §179 hands back roughly $70,670 on a $191K kitchen — and the working capital that carries the swings. Build it right, ride out the slow stretches, and put your energy into the food instead of the float.”
Bobby Friel · Founder · 20+ years in banking and finance
How It Works
From Application to Funded
One application, 70+ lenders competing, a dedicated specialist, and most files funded in days.
60-second estimate
Enter your numbers — no credit check, no documents. You see an estimated funding range on the spot.
A specialist is assigned
A real funding specialist — not an algorithm — reviews your file, usually within 24 hours.
70+ lenders compete
Your application goes to the marketplace. Competing offers typically land 24–48 hours later.
You pick the offer
Compare structures and terms with your advisor. No obligation until you choose to sign.
Funded in days
From same-day working capital to a multi-piece stack, most files fund in days — not the bank’s 60–90.
Underwriting
What Underwriting Looks At
Funding here leads with what your business actually does — your revenue and cash flow. The specialist desk reads the real picture from your statements, then matches it to the lenders most likely to fund it.
How you’re evaluated
Revenue-first
sized off your top line, not just your balance sheet.
Cash-flow driven
your bank statements show how the business really runs.
Bank-statement underwriting
even a down year is read off 4 months of statements.
Story-driven
a big new contract, a seasonal swing, a turnaround in progress: context the raw numbers miss counts too.
What to have ready
↳Had a loss year? It’s read off the bank statements — 4 months, not 6.
Start fast, finish complete
The operators who fund quickest come to the specialist review with these ready — but you don’t need all of it to start. Your signed application and bank statements are what unblock the review; the rest can follow as trailing docs. Real term sheets come once the lenders can see a true business overview, so the move is simple: get the application and statements in right away, and don’t let a missing tax return hold up your term sheets.
Credit, straight
Qualification
Who Gets Funded — and Who’s Not Ready Yet
A straight read saves everyone time — here’s the line between a full service file that funds and one that isn’t ready yet.
↳Time in business is a factor, not a gate — newer crews with strong revenue still qualify.
Not ready yet isn’t a no — it’s a checklist. Most of it is fixable in a quarter or two, and your advisor will tell you straight which gaps to fix before a file goes in.
The Operator's Guide
Full-Service Restaurant Financing
The Build-Out Is the Easy Part to Underestimate
A full-service restaurant is two capital problems wearing one apron. The first is the build: a commercial kitchen — line, hood, walk-in, dish pit — and a dining room that has to look the part runs deep into six figures before a single table turns. The second is everything after open: payroll across front and back of house, perishable food cost that doesn't flex down on a quiet Tuesday, and rent that arrives whether the room was full or empty. Banks look at the thin margins and the failure rate and want two years of returns; the lease and the equipment quotes don't wait that long.
One Application, 70+ Lenders
We fund full-service restaurants on the operation's revenue, not a perfect credit file — equipment financing for the kitchen and dining build-out with §179 on the gear, a working line for payroll and food cost, and a buffer so a slow month or a cost spike doesn't become a crisis. When it's time to open a second location, build-out, equipment, and opening working capital stack into one revenue-based structure instead of an SBA queue. One application, 70+ lenders, soft-pull review.
Common Questions
Full Service Financing — Questions, Answered
Yes — equipment financing covers the kitchen, hood, walk-in, and dining build-out; §179 writes it off the year you open.
Yes — an unsecured, revenue-based line carries payroll and perishable inventory through the swings.
Yes — a working line is the cushion so a slow month or cost spike doesn't become a crisis.
Signed application, four months bank statements, P&L, balance sheet, two years returns; losses → four months statements. Soft credit pull only — zero FICO impact to see your range.
Yes — build-out, equipment, and opening working capital stacked revenue-based, not an SBA 7(a) loan.
Recommended Funding
The Products That Fit Full Service Work
Equipment Financing →
Finance the kitchen, hood, walk-in, and dining build-out — the equipment is the collateral.
Working Capital Loans →
Carry payroll and perishable food cost through the slow weeks and seasonal swings.
Business Line of Credit →
Draw for food and labor as covers rise and fall, repay as the room fills.