Restaurant Tents Key Terms

Learn some of the terms associated with installing and using restaurant tents

Restaurant tents are a great way for a restaurant to enhance its business by allowing customers to eat outside. Not only will the customers enjoy the experience, but you've automatically expanded the seating capacity of your dining room. However, the days of a simple little tent covering the patio are gone. Now restaurant tents, coverings and awnings are made of both permanent and semi-permanent materials. Here are some key terms you may run across when dealing with restaurant tents.

 

Frame tent

A frame tent refers to a tent that is placed over an assembled framework. That assembled framework is usually made of aluminum or steel. A frame tent is a free-standing tent that is usually tethered to the ground using ropes and stakes for extra support. Some frame tents at restaurants need to adhere to building codes depending on their size.
Try: Main Awning and Tent offers a description and price list.

Pole tent

A pole tent refers to a series of poles that are placed below the fabric of the tent. When the fabric is stretched over the poles they are held in place. A pole tent differs from a frame tent in that there is not one cohesive skeleton. Pole tents are often secured with ropes and stakes as well. Another characteristic of a pole tent is that there are one or two large poles in the center, forming the pinnacle of the tent.
Try: All Seasons Tent Sales has information about, and pictures of, pole tents.

Brush sweep

Brush sweep refers to a piece of nylon that is found on the edges of high-end restaurant tents. The additional piece of nylon helps keep dust, dirt, rain or other inclement weather from entering the dining area.
Try: Restaurant Enclosure has some specifications for brush sweeps. 

Retractable awning

A retractable awning is an overhang that comes off one side of the restaurant and covers a patio where patrons are dining. Retractable awnings are popular solutions for restaurants that want to allow patrons to dine in the open air when the weather is favorable, but still want to provide some protection when it is not. Some retractable awnings also have side panels that can be added.
Try: American Covering Systems has more information about awnings.

Ratchet buckles

A ratchet buckle is the hardware that secures the strap from the tent to the stake. The slack of the strap can be pulled tighter by pulling the excess strap through the buckle. The slack can be loosened by pressing down on the buckle, thus releasing the buckle's grasp on the strap.
Try: Celina Tent has information and a video on how tents are set up with ratchet buckles.

Stake puller

A stake puller is a piece of hardware that is used to loosen the stakes that are holding the tent into the ground. Because some stakes are driven into hard surfaces, the stake pullers use leverage to remove the stakes.
Try: Stakepuller Corporation has videos on how its devices work. 

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