Opening a restaurant: hygiene standards to be respected!

If you have not completed training to become a restaurateur (CAP, BTS, Bac Pro, etc.), it is still possible to open your restaurant.

The law does not require a diploma to open a restaurant; in fact, it is one of the few professions with this flexibility. However, even if you are not obligated to have completed a formal diploma program, you have strict hygiene obligations to comply with.

What are the hygiene obligations to open a restaurant? ⚖️

1/ Food hygiene training for one person on your team

This HACCP training is provided by accredited organizations. It lasts at least 14 hours, either in-person or via online courses. During this HACCP training, you will learn about traceability, guaranteeing the cold and hot chain, establishing a cleaning plan and its follow-up, good hygiene practices, and more.

However, if you can demonstrate at least 3 years of experience in the restaurant business as an operator or manager, you may be exempt from mandatory food hygiene training.

If one of your team members (head chef, assistant) has completed a diploma program in the restaurant field, you are not required to take this training.

But just because training is not mandatory in these cases doesn’t mean it isn’t useful — it is strongly recommended. In short, train with professionals, with certified courses, and put all the odds on your side to guarantee safety and hygiene in your establishment.

2/ Respect good hygiene practices: HACCP method

If you do not wish to undergo food hygiene training because one of your team members meets one of the criteria mentioned above, you still need to know good hygiene practices to apply the HACCP method correctly.

At Octopus HACCP, we offer free HACCP trainings, non-certified, to review the basics of the HACCP method and download documents, tables, and practical sheets you will need to carry out your HACCP records and comply with regulations. Register now, it’s free!

3/ Write a Sanitary Control Plan

Writing a Sanitary Control Plan (PMS) is mandatory. A PMS includes several elements:

• A description of the establishment and its activity
• Documents relating to good hygiene practices: personal hygiene, premises hygiene, temperature control, product traceability, pest control plan, etc.
• Documents related to the HACCP method: process flow diagrams, hazard analyses and corrective measures, list of CCPs and their control
  This is a non-exhaustive list; each sanitary control plan is specific to each establishment and linked to your working methods

We recommend consulting specialists for tailor-made PMS writing, such as our partner Vethyqua. Having a PMS is more than just compiling a set of documents. It is mainly about analyzing your work environment and implementing proper procedures to guarantee food safety and act correctly in case of issues.

While waiting for your tailor-made PMS, you can already collect all the necessary HACCP record documents for free via Octopus Academy to familiarize yourself with the HACCP method.

Is it possible to open a restaurant without a diploma? ?

Yes, you can open your restaurant without a diploma, whether it is take-away, a food truck, or traditional dining. But no diploma does not mean no training!

Being a restaurateur is a demanding profession that will require you not only to know how to cook but also to respect good hygiene practices in the industry and to manage your cash flow, among other skills. A diploma is therefore not necessary, but solid training will be a plus to help your project succeed. And some trainings are mandatory.

Contact your local Chamber of Commerce (CCI) to learn about the training available locally, such as the training for the operating license for a bar or restaurant.

Which trainings should you take to open your restaurant? ?

The mandatory trainings to open your restaurant are three:

1. The operating license (Permis d’exploitation)
2. The Nighttime Alcohol Sales Permit (Permis de Vente de Boissons Alcooliques la Nuit – PVBAN)
3. Training on the HACCP method

The operating license

This training lasts at least 20 hours (2.5 days) and is intended for people with less than 10 years of experience. During this course, you will cover topics such as consumer protection and operator responsibility, prevention and fight against alcoholism, administrative closures, local regulations, and more.

You can contact your Chamber of Commerce and Industry, but accredited training organizations also provide this course.

The nighttime alcohol sales permit

This permit allows you to sell alcohol between 10 PM and 8 AM in a business other than bars or restaurants serving on-site consumption. If you do not sell alcohol, or if you close from 10 PM onwards (for example, only lunch service), you are exempt from this permit.

Training on the HACCP method

You may hear this training called by various names: training on good hygiene practices, food hygiene training, or HACCP method training. The content is the same and will help you guarantee safety and hygiene in your establishment.

This training is mandatory if you are not a professional in the restaurant business (see the 1st chapter: What are the hygiene obligations to open a restaurant?).

How to easily apply hygiene regulations? ?

Applying the HACCP method can seem complex when starting out in the restaurant business. If you are opening your restaurant and need support, we recommend equipping yourself with an application like Octopus HACCP.

Why choose an HACCP application?

An HACCP application will guide you through all the HACCP records you need to keep to comply with regulations. With Octopus HACCP you will be able to:

• Benefit from tailored support to implement good hygiene practices that fit your working methods. For example, we help you create a customized cleaning plan and offer advice to simplify your life,
• Be guided on the records to keep (traceability, temperature control, cleaning plan, etc.),
• Receive alerts so you don’t forget to perform your checks,
• Save all your records in the application, so you don’t have to chase paper archives.

What to do in case of a hygiene inspection?

Every year, more than 10,000 restaurants are inspected by hygiene services. The results of these inspections are publicly available on the government website alim’confiance.

During an inspection, the inspector will focus on several points, notably respecting expiration dates, completing traceability, guaranteeing the cold chain, and following your cleaning and disinfection plan.

You will be able to prove the proper compliance with all these rules by showing the dashboard of your Octopus HACCP application. It is a guarantee of good hygiene practices and peace of mind!