Guides

Restaurant food costing guides

Plain-language answers for independent restaurant owners: what a plate really costs, what a good food cost percentage is, and how to catch a vendor price hike before it eats your margin.

• How to calculate plate cost

  A step-by-step method for costing a restaurant plate: ingredient prices, yield and trim, portion size, and a worked example with real numbers.

• What is a good food cost percentage?

  Most full-service restaurants aim for roughly 28% to 35%. How to calculate food cost percentage, what moves it, and how to set a menu price from a target.

• How to track vendor price increases

  Vendors raise prices without a heads-up. A simple way to catch increases on every invoice and see which dishes they hit.

• Food costing: spreadsheet or software?

  When a spreadsheet is enough for food costing, where it breaks, and what to look for in food costing software.