If you’re searching for restaurant space for rent, a listing with a hood already in place can look like the hard part is done. It often isn’t. The exhaust may not run where you need it, the grease interceptor may be too small for your menu, and the lease form may have been written for a different kind of tenant.
A restaurant real estate broker’s job is to raise those questions before you sign, and then negotiate strong terms on the space that actually fits your concept.
What does a retail broker do?
Retail brokers are licensed real estate agents who lease and sell storefront space. Some represent landlords and fill their shopping centers. Others represent tenants and find them locations. A restaurant real estate broker is a commercial real estate leasing agent who specializes in food and beverage businesses, from shopping center pads to small neighborhood storefronts. That means finding space that can be vented, permitted and licensed for your concept, negotiating the lease, and managing the stretch from signed letter of intent to opening day.
At Renaud Consulting we do both sides. Our leasing team represents restaurant and retail tenants across Northern Virginia, Washington, DC and Maryland, and we lease shopping centers and street retail for landlords. That second job matters for the first one. We know what landlords tend to give and what they won’t, because we sit on their side of the table too.
Why restaurants need a specialist
A clothing store needs a box with power and a storefront. A restaurant needs a building that works like a machine. Before a client signs an LOI, we make sure each of these has been looked at, and we bring in engineers, contractors and the landlord’s team to confirm the technical answers:
- Hood and exhaust path: where the duct runs, and whether it can reach the roof.
- Grease interceptor: its size, and who pays to install or upgrade it.
- Gas service.
- Electrical capacity and metering.
- HVAC tonnage: whether there’s enough cooling for a kitchen and a full dining room.
- Trash and refuse location.
- Odor and noise.
- Loading and deliveries.
- Alcohol licensing.
- Patio rights.
- Late-night hours, exclusives and use restrictions. These cut both ways: what other tenants can’t do, and what the lease won’t let you do.
Any one of these can kill a deal after you’ve spent money on architects and attorneys.
Second-generation space or building from scratch?
A second-generation restaurant space already has some of the kitchen infrastructure in place, so it can save a tenant a lot on build-out and time. But it only saves money if the equipment fits the new menu. A former pizza shop’s oven hood won’t necessarily cover a Korean barbecue kitchen, and a turnkey restaurant for lease is only turnkey if it fits your concept.
A vacant shell usually costs more to build out, but you design the kitchen around your menu, and landlords often contribute more toward a shell build-out. We compare both on the same basis: what the space costs to open, how long until you’re serving, and what the landlord will contribute.
What landlords will ask you for
Landlords lease to restaurants carefully, because a failed restaurant leaves behind a costly space to re-tenant. Expect to be asked for:
- A concept summary or business plan, with your menu, check average and seating.
- Personal financial statements for the owners.
- Recent tax returns and bank statements, for the business and often for the owners.
- Proof of the money you’ll put into the build-out and opening.
- Your operating history, if you already run other locations.
First-time operators can still get approved, though landlords often ask for more security, such as a stronger personal guaranty or a larger deposit, or suggest a smaller first space. Part of our job is presenting your concept so a landlord sees the operator behind it, not just the numbers.
The restaurant lease terms that matter most
The letter of intent sets out the business deal before the lease is drafted, and these are the terms we spend the most time on for restaurant clients:
- Rent start: whether it can be tied to permits, landlord delivery and opening, rather than just a calendar date.
- Tenant improvement allowance: how much the landlord contributes, what it can be spent on, and when it’s paid out.
- Landlord’s work: a clear work letter on what the landlord delivers (utilities, grease interceptor, venting path) and by when.
- Personal guaranty: whether the landlord will cap it, reduce it over time as you pay on schedule, or accept a letter of credit instead.
- Exclusive use: whether the landlord will keep a competing concept out of the same center.
- Assignment: whether you can sell the restaurant and transfer the lease later.
- Hours, signage and outdoor seating.
- Operating costs: what you’ll pay for shared costs like common area maintenance, and whether increases are capped.
Your attorney should review the final lease.
How do tenant rep brokers get paid?
In most DC-area retail and restaurant leases, the landlord pays the commissions, including the tenant’s broker. Ask any broker how they’re paid before you start. Buying an existing restaurant business works differently.
What changes when you cross the river
The DC area is three jurisdictions with three alcohol and permitting systems, and that changes how you structure a lease.
Virginia: Virginia ABC licenses can’t be transferred from one person to another or from one place to another, so a new operator generally needs its own license (Va. Code § 4.1-203). Since July 1, 2026, the state’s food-to-beverage ratio for mixed beverage restaurants depends on food sales. Restaurants averaging at least $48,000 in food sales a month are exempt from the ratio. Those averaging at least $25,000 but less than $48,000 in food sales a month, along with certain low-occupancy restaurants, must meet a 30% ratio. Other mixed beverage restaurants remain subject to 45% (Virginia ABC; HB 975).
Washington, DC: When a licensed restaurant closes for 21 or more calendar days, the licensee must immediately notify the ABC Board in writing and surrender the license for safekeeping. If proceedings to reopen or transfer it haven’t begun within 60 days after surrender, the Board may deem it abandoned after notice, but the licensee has 14 calendar days to request continued safekeeping and the Board can grant more time (D.C. Code § 25-791). If you’re taking over a closed restaurant, ask where its license stands.
Maryland: Retail alcohol licensing is handled by the relevant local licensing board. Check the Maryland ATCC directory of county and city boards for the property, including Montgomery County’s Board of License Commissioners.
That’s why licensing and permit timing belongs in the lease negotiation, not after it. Your attorney and licensing counsel handle the filings and the legal terms. We negotiate the business terms around them: deadlines, rent start and what happens if approvals run late.
Before you sign: the checks that catch problems early
- Zoning and use: is a restaurant (and a bar, if you want one) allowed at this address?
- Occupancy: what the space’s current certificate of occupancy allows, and what it will take to change it.
- Health department: plan review timing in that county or in DC.
- Accessibility: what the build-out will need for entrances, restrooms and seating.
How the process works
- Requirements: your concept, size, budget, target neighborhoods, kitchen needs and opening date. Operators who want to rent restaurant space quickly should start here, before touring.
- Site list and tours: spaces that fit, including off-market and coming-available options, with the infrastructure checked before you visit.
- LOI: rent, free rent, tenant improvement allowance, term, renewal options, exclusives, and the restaurant conditions above.
- Lease: we work with your attorney so the business terms in the LOI carry into the lease.
- Build-out to opening: we track landlord’s work, delivery dates and the rent start date alongside your permits.
Who you’ll work with
- Andrew Poncher leads our leasing team and represents restaurant and retail tenants and landlords across Northern Virginia, DC and Maryland.
- Alan Tan specializes in representing Asian restaurant concepts.
- Jack Tintle was an architectural designer in Washington, DC, specializing in restaurant and hospitality projects.
- Before joining Renaud Consulting, Matthew Gorman maintained his own law practice specializing in liquor licensing, zoning and real estate for over 10 years.
- John Marigliano represents retail landlords and tenants, and owned and operated restaurants before his real estate career.
- Michael Mantooth works on leasing and sales in Virginia.
- Jolin Jiang works with Andrew on retail leasing across the region.
- Bibiana Boehm handles business sales, including restaurants, and commercial leasing.
- Nick Alevrogiannis leads our food hall work.
Restaurant deals we’ve worked on
Our team has worked on restaurant leases across Northern Virginia, DC and Maryland, including:
- Dumont Creamery at Virginia Gateway in Gainesville, and at Greenbriar Town Center in Fairfax.
- Dumpling District in Bethesda.
- Mian Taste at Pike 7 Plaza in Vienna.
- Buffalo & Bergen in Arlington.
- BirdSong at 5507 Connecticut Ave NW, Washington, DC.
- Guacado Mexican Grill in Leesburg.
- Taco Bell Cantina at The Kelvin in Navy Yard.
Questions to ask any restaurant broker before you sign
- How many restaurant leases have you closed in this market in the last two years, and on which side?
- Do you also represent the landlord of any space you’re showing me? How is that handled?
- How are you paid?
- Who checks venting, grease, gas, power and HVAC before I tour?
- How will the lease protect me if my liquor license or permits are delayed?
- Who on your team handles the build-out and opening stage?
Looking for restaurant space in Northern Virginia, DC or Maryland?
See our current restaurant spaces for lease and property listings, then send us your concept, preferred towns or neighborhoods, square footage and budget. Contact us or reach Andrew Poncher directly at 571.765.4430. Learn more about our tenant representation service.