Recently a reader shared a blog post with me he had written about social media for restaurant owners. In the blog, the author points out the need for restaurant owners to think outside of the traditional advertising box. More and more people turn first to the Internet when looking for a place to eat out. If you hope to draw in new customers, particularly tourists during busy seasons, then social media is a must.

If you don�t already have a website, you should seriously think about investing in one. However, if you don�t have a few thousand dollars to spare at the moment (and who does?) there are plenty of free and inexpensive resources that restaurant owners can use to their advantage. A few include:

� Online Maps- Make sure your restaurant is listed with sites such as MapQuest and Google Maps Local Business Center.
� Google Alerts � You can get a Google alert anytime your restaurant�s name is posted online. These alerts come in handy when people post reviews (both good and bad) about your restaurant on one the hundreds of restaurant review sites out there.
� Facebook � Facebook is a free way to let customers know what is going on at your restaurant and advertise upcoming restaurant promotions.
� Constant Contact- This is not a free service, but it is only a few hundred dollars for a year. You can produce your own electronic newsletters and other social media that can be emailed to customers. I�ve used this program in the past and it is very easy to navigate and put together a professional looking newsletter in just a few minutes.

Want to know more about social media strategies? Read the whole article at Social Media Defined. Then share your thoughts at the Restauranting Forum.

If 2009 is the year you decide to open your own restaurant, here are some handy how-to guides to get you started:

� How to write a restaurant business plan
� How to prepare for a bank interview
� How to choose a restaurant location
� How to choose a restaurant name
� How to stock a restaurant kitchen
� How to set up a restaurant bar
� How to go green at your restaurant

It seems like in every town there is one location where restaurant after restaurant opens and almost immediately closes. There may be a number of possible causes for a restaurant to close, including poor management, slow restaurant sales or bad customer service. Or it might be the curse of its location. What do you think? Is a cursed restaurant location a reality or a restaurant myth? Share your thoughts at the Restauranting Forum.

One of my favorite restaurants is located in a converted shipping warehouse on the waterfront of Portland, Maine. Fore Street serves an upscale menu and features an enourmous wine list. Aside from excellent food and drink, one of the reasons I love to eat there is atmosphere. The restaurant design reflects the theme perfectly, elegant and simple. Brick walls, copper topped tables and an open kitchen don�t hide the fact that the restaurant used to be a warehouse. Bags of potatoes and canned goods are openly displayed instead of artwork. Extra chairs are stored on the walls, an ingenious way of saving space.

If you are planning on opening a new restaurant, give careful consideration to the design of your dining room. Restaurant design is a balance between ambience and seating capacity. You can hire a professional designer (expensive) or tackle it yourself, which is totally doable, so long as you understand the basics of restaurant design.