I want to start a small restaurant. What are companies like Cola Factories that ship food to restaurants?

Have you taken a business class yet? I would start there. Even if it is just a free workshop or something like that. You need to start by creating a business plan before you jump into anything. You mention several types of foods in your post. I understand that you want to offer a variety, but ask yourself the chances of success with a diner that serves tacos, pizza, and offers a salad bar. Realistically, you could narrow down your choices. You could have a casual diner that offers pizza on occasion. Or have a taco special for, say, Cinco De Mayo. Your business plan will show lenders what type of business you are wanting to operate, and they will go from there on the risks, costs, etc of your business to decide if you will get a loan. If there are any other small business owners in your area, you may find that some would be willing to sit down and talk to you about what it is like starting out. I was lucky enough to work for an independent restaurant owner for about 5 years. It is tough to start out, and once you have started you will still find that there are rough patches. Business will slow down at times. You need a concrete plan to make sure you can carry your business through the dry spells. Contact your local Chamber of Commerce for information regarding business license, food operators license, etc. You will need to look for a location that is within your budget, either to buy or rent on a monthly basis. A location that was once a restaurant would be easier to remodel into what you want. Plan on spending thousands of dollars on remodeling. Good, Reliable and Cheap are not exactly three words that go together. You either get good and reliable equipment or you get cheap equipment. Food processors, ovens, stoves, microwaves, freezers, walk in coolers, mixers, dishes, cook ware. It's all going to add up, but it's better to spend more in the beginning than have to shell out money all the time when something breaks and needs fixed or replaced. You can buy a $400 microwave once or replace a $100 microwave every few months. It's more in the beginning, but it's a better investment in the long run. As for suppliers, you can find local suppliers for food and beverages. You sign contracts with either Pepsi or Coke to serve their products. Many times they will give you free items for signing the contract. You might get a free ice maker or the fountain for free in exchange for signing a year lease. It depends on your contract. Over time, you do get discounts based on how much of a product you are buying. Prices can go up over time too due to rising fuel costs for the supplier. It's a fluctuating expense. Depending on your location, there are many suppliers for food. Locally, we have one called RDP. Also we have Kaleel and Penn Mac. Those are just 3 I know from work. There are others. You could contact a supplier for your area and get an idea of how much you can expect to be paying for your food and supplies. Sams Club is an option to start out, depending on what all you are selling. For serving purposes, you need to decide if you will be using reusable plate and cups or disposable. Reusable costs more in the beginning but will save you money over time. For employees, honestly, having a sit-down full service diner will save you money on labor. You can pay your waitresses the tipped employee wage. In the beginning, be ready to be the host, cook, waiter, bus boy. Everything. Finding reliable help is hard to do. In 5 years, I had well over 100 co-workers. There were 4 of us total that were there the entire time I was.

You can get good and cheap restaurant equipment from reputed restaurant supply stores. CooksDirect is one of the reputed restaurant supply store that sells good and quality restaurant equipment. You can visit cooksdirect.com to order online the best restaurant equipment. To start with, like taco shop is a good idea and you can sell seasonal drinks too. This will promote your business soon.

for one thing you might contact your local Chamber of Commerce, they might have the names of organizations of retired business people who volunteer to help new businesses get started, especially with the things you mention of course, you can go to a CPA who will be in a position to help you with all these topics but they will charge you for the services and advice you probably need to see what food vendors are in your area for better service and local products rather than have something shipped to you, which is going to be expensive