Restaurant Small Business Loans Serving Fond du Lac, WI

Restaurants Across Fond du Lac County, WI: 2023 and 2024 Census Counts

For full-service restaurants (NAICS 722511), County Business Patterns counted 76 employer establishments in Fond du Lac County, WI in 2023, with 1,321 paid employees and $23.3 million in annual payroll; 21 of them, or 27.6%, had fewer than five employees, and 37 used a ZIP 54935 address (ZIP Code Business Patterns 2023; the ZIP is not the city limits). That works out to about 17.4 employees per establishment and about $17,613 of payroll per employee (our arithmetic).

Nonemployer Statistics, a separate Census program built on NAICS 2022 codes, counted 7 businesses without paid employees in full-service restaurants (NAICS 2022 722511) in the county for 2024, with $0.9 million in combined receipts, or about $131,714 each (our arithmetic). The two programs count different businesses, so this page keeps them apart.

Limited-service restaurants (NAICS 722513), the counter-service and quick-service group, counted 68 employers with 1,555 employees and $27.9 million in payroll; 10 had fewer than five employees, and 42 used a ZIP 54935 address (County Business Patterns and ZIP Code Business Patterns 2023). Together the two groups had 144 employer establishments (our sum).

Where to buy commercial kitchen equipment in Fond du Lac, WI?

Commercial kitchen equipment comes from restaurant supply dealers, manufacturers' distributors, used-equipment dealers and auctions of closed restaurants. New equipment comes with warranties and dealer financing offers; used equipment needs inspection before its price is compared. Either way, get a written quote with model numbers.

For used equipment, ask the seller for service records. Partners financing used kitchen gear may want photos and the age of each piece.

Finance commercial kitchen equipment for Fond du Lac County, WI businesses

Ranges, hoods, walk-in coolers, fryers, dish machines and point-of-sale systems can be financed. The equipment secures the agreement, and the term can follow the item's life. A hood and fire-suppression system is often installed into the building, which affects whether a partner treats it as removable collateral.

Illustration only, invented figures: a $42,000 kitchen package financed over 48 months at 10% costs about $1,065 a month and about $9,131 in interest (our arithmetic). Equipment financing in Fond du Lac, WI covers leases too.

Commercial loans for restaurants: what Fond du Lac, WI owners should know

Commercial loans for restaurants are judged on sales, food and labor costs, rent and existing payments. Partners read bank statements for daily card deposits and tax returns for profit. A restaurant that knows its food cost and labor cost as shares of sales can answer the questions partners ask.

Full-service restaurants in the county paid about $17,600 of payroll per employee in 2023 ($23.3 million across 1,321 employees, our arithmetic), a figure shaped by part-time work and tips.

Business loans for restaurants around Fond du Lac, WI

The main funding needs for a restaurant are equipment, working capital for food and wages, and remodeling. Working capital covers the gap when a large catering order needs food bought before it is paid, or wages are due before a slow stretch ends.

Working capital explains payroll uses. Daily card sales also make restaurants candidates for a merchant cash advance, which is not a loan; compare its total cost first.

How to get a small business loan for a restaurant

1. Know the cost: a quote for equipment, a contractor bid for a remodel, or a list of expenses.
2. Pull six to twelve months of bank and card processing statements.
3. Have the latest tax returns and a year-to-date profit and loss statement.
4. Send the request with the three range answers.
5. Compare offers by total dollars, collateral and payment frequency.

Payment frequency matters for restaurants: a daily debit follows card deposits, a monthly installment needs a cash cushion.

How to get a loan for a new restaurant for a Fond du Lac County, WI business

For a new restaurant opened by an operator who already runs one, partners read the existing restaurant's records. A first-time owner with no operating history is a startup, and A brand-new practice with no history is a startup, which Bellcrest does not arrange. Buying an existing restaurant is a purchase, financed with a term loan on the seller's records.

Illustration only, invented figures: an owner opening a second location budgets $60,000 for the build-out, $45,000 for equipment and $15,000 for opening food and wages, $120,000 in all (our sum). The equipment can be financed separately from the build-out.

Food Cost, Labor Cost and the Payment a Fond du Lac, WI Kitchen Can Carry

Illustration only, invented figures: a restaurant with $70,000 in monthly sales, food cost at 32% and labor at 30% spends $22,400 on food and $21,000 on labor, leaving $26,600 for rent, utilities, other costs, debt payments and profit (our arithmetic). A new $1,065 equipment payment uses about 4% of that remainder (our arithmetic). Working through the same steps with real numbers shows a partner, and you, whether a payment fits.

Records Fond du Lac County, WI Restaurants Bring

• Station bank statements and the card processor's monthly summaries.
• Returns plus a profit and loss statement for this year.
• Food and labor cost as a share of sales.
• The dining room lease and the years left on it.
• Quotes for equipment or the remodel.

Taverns have their own page: business loans for bars. Stores buying food stock see retail funding. See all industries or Census counts for Fond du Lac County, WI.

By Bellcrest Lending Group · Updated October 21, 2026