Lauderdale County, AL had 155 full-service and limited-service restaurant employers in 2023 (our sum of two NAICS codes). This page sets out those counts, then covers restaurant equipment loans, lines of credit for food and payroll, bar and restaurant requests, and buying an existing restaurant, with a worked equipment example.
At a glance
- Restaurant employers
155: 69 full-service, 86 limited-service (CBP 2023; our sum)
- Restaurant employees
3,531 (CBP 2023; our sum)
- Restaurants in ZIP 35630
102: 47 full-service, 55 limited-service (ZBP 2023; our sum)
- Food services and drinking places
202 employers (CBP 2023, NAICS 722)
Lauderdale County, AL Sit-Down and Limited-Service Restaurant Employers
Lauderdale County, AL had 69 full-service restaurants (NAICS 722511) and 86 limited-service restaurants (NAICS 722513) with employees in 2023, 155 in all (our sum of two codes), employing 3,531 people with $65.8 million in payroll (our sums of the two codes; County Business Patterns 2023). Full-service places averaged about 26.0 employees and limited-service about 20.2 (our arithmetic). Very small crews were rare: 21.7% of full-service and 16.3% of limited-service restaurants had fewer than five employees. The broader food services and drinking places group (NAICS 722) had 202 employers.
ZIP 35630 had 47 full-service and 55 limited-service restaurants (ZIP Code Business Patterns 2023). Nonemployer Statistics, a separate program, counted 9 full-service and 9 limited-service restaurants without paid employees in the county in 2024.
Restaurant Financing: What Lauderdale County, AL Owners Compare
A restaurant's money comes in daily, mostly by card, while food bills arrive weekly and payroll every week or two. The cash cycle is short, but the equipment cycle is long: a walk-in cooler, hood system or range can cost more than several weeks of sales when it fails. Funding requests split along that line: short money for food and wages, longer money for equipment and remodels.
Restaurant Equipment Loan Across Lauderdale County, AL
Equipment financing ties the money to the item, and the partner reads the quote, the item's working life and the restaurant's sales. Used kitchen equipment can be financed too, though partners ask more about its age and condition.
Illustration only, invented figures: a $42,000 hood and fryer line financed at 11% a year over 48 months has a payment of about $1,086, a total of about $52,105. Against a restaurant taking in $90,000 a month, that payment is about 1.2% of monthly sales (our arithmetic on invented figures).
Restaurant Line of Credit Across Lauderdale County, AL
A line of credit covers food and payroll during weeks when sales dip below costs, and is paid down when sales recover. The calculator on the resources page turns a drawn amount, rate and payoff period into a monthly payment. A partner reads card processing statements and bank deposits to see how steady sales are.
Bar and Restaurant Loans: What Lauderdale County, AL Owners Compare
A restaurant with a bar adds an alcohol license and liquor inventory to the request. Partners may ask whether the license is current and, for a purchase, whether it transfers. The county had 3 bars (drinking places) with employees in 2023 (CBP 2023); a bar inside a restaurant is counted with restaurants, not as a separate bar.
Loan to Buy a Restaurant Across Lauderdale County, AL
Buying a restaurant means reading its sales, food and labor costs, the lease and the equipment's condition. A term loan may carry the price, with equipment financing for any new items. The article on buying a restaurant in the Shoals walks through the steps.
Restaurant Business Loans: When It Fits in Florence, AL
| The cost | Funding type to compare | What a partner reads |
|---|---|---|
| Walk-in cooler or hood system | Equipment financing | The quote and sales |
| Food and payroll in a slow stretch | Line of credit or working capital | Card and bank statements |
| Remodel or second location | Term loan | Sales history and the plan |
| A short need against card sales | Merchant cash advance (not a loan) | Card volume |
A merchant cash advance is collected from card sales and is not a loan; compare its dollar cost with working capital before choosing.
Food Service Employers by Shoals ZIP, 2023
| ZIP (USPS name) | Accommodation and food services employers | Share with fewer than 5 employees |
|---|---|---|
| 35630 (Florence, AL) | 137 | 18.2% |
| 35661 (Muscle Shoals, AL) | 58 | 15.5% |
| 35660 (Sheffield, AL) | 25 | 36.0% |
| 35674 (Tuscumbia, AL) | 25 | 40.0% |
| 35652 (Rogersville, AL) | 20 | 40.0% |
These sector counts include hotels and motels as well as restaurants, so they run higher than the restaurant-only figures above. ZIP 35630 held the most of these employers, 137, and 18.2% of them had fewer than five employees.
Questions to Ask Before Signing a Restaurant Funding Offer
- Is the cost a rate, a factor or a flat fee, and what is the total in dollars?
- Are payments daily, weekly or monthly, and how do they line up with card deposits?
- Does the partner take a lien on the equipment only, or on all business assets?
- What happens to the payment if the restaurant closes for a remodel?
- Can the balance be paid early, and does that cut the cost?
Records a Partner Reads for a Florence, AL Restaurant Request
- Recent card processor statements alongside the bank statements
- Sales by month for the past year or two
- The lease and its remaining term
- Quotes for equipment or a remodel
- Any alcohol license, if the request involves it
By Coastspring Funding Group · Updated