Low margins on random days cost you thousands of euros per year. Many restaurant owners only see at the end of the month that profits are disappointing, but by then it's too late to adjust. By tracking your margin daily and recognizing patterns, you can act quickly when something goes wrong.
Why daily margin control is crucial
You can have a full restaurant and still earn little. That's because your margin per day can fluctuate due to different factors: more expensive purchases, different dishes being sold, or more waste.
⚠️ Note:
Waiting until the end of the month means you're 30 days late in making adjustments. By then the damage is already done.
Which figures you need to track daily
For a good overview you need this data per day:
- Total revenue (excl. VAT)
- Total food costs for that day
- Number of dishes sold per type
- Special events (supplier change, new chef, event)
💡 Example:
Tuesday January 15:
- Revenue: €2,400 excl. VAT
- Food costs: €900
- Margin: €1,500 (62.5%)
- Covers: 85
Wednesday January 16:
- Revenue: €2,350 excl. VAT
- Food costs: €1,100
- Margin: €1,250 (53.2%)
- Covers: 82
Difference: 9.3 percentage points lower margin with comparable revenue!
How to recognize patterns in low margins
Once you have a few weeks of data, you can start looking for patterns. Look at these relationships:
Day of the week
Some days have structurally lower margins. For example:
- Monday: Often more fish sold (more expensive purchases)
- Friday: More drinks, less food (different mix)
- Sunday: Different chef, different portion sizes
Suppliers and purchasing
Check which supplier you used on days with low margins:
💡 Example pattern:
Every Thursday lower margin because:
- Main supplier doesn't deliver on Thursday
- You buy from more expensive backup supplier
- Fresh fish is more expensive at the end of the week
Solution: Plan purchasing differently or adjust menu on Thursday
Seasons and weather
External factors also affect your margin:
- Bad weather: More soup sold (lower margin)
- Summer: More salads (higher margin due to cheap vegetables)
- Winter: More meat dishes (lower margin)
Concrete actions for structurally low margins
Once you've found a pattern, you can take targeted action:
For supplier-related patterns
- Find alternative supplier for those days
- Order earlier in the week for the whole week
- Adjust your menu on those days
For day-related patterns
- Promote different dishes on those days
- Adjust portion sizes
- Increase prices for those days
💡 Example action:
Problem: Every Friday 8% lower margin due to more expensive dishes being sold.
Action: Friday special menu with 3 high-margin dishes prominently on the menu.
Result: Friday margin back to normal level
Tools to track this
You can do this manually in Excel, but that takes a lot of time. A system like KitchenNmbrs automatically tracks your daily margins and shows patterns in clear graphs.
The most important thing is that you track consistently. Better to spend 5 minutes every day than 3 hours once a month trying to figure out what happened.
How do you create a margin overview? (step by step)
Collect daily basic data
Note every day your total revenue (excl. VAT), total food costs for that day, and the number of covers sold. Do this for at least 2 weeks to be able to see patterns.
Calculate your daily margin percentage
Use the formula: Margin % = ((Revenue - Food costs) / Revenue) × 100. For example: (€2,400 - €900) / €2,400 × 100 = 62.5% margin.
Look for patterns and deviations
Mark days with more than 5 percentage points deviation from your average. Note what was different: different supplier, different menu, different chef, or special circumstances.
Plan targeted improvement actions
For each pattern found, think of a concrete action. For example: find a different supplier, adjust menu on certain days, or standardize portion sizes.
✨ Pro tip
Especially check your 3 best-selling dishes. If those have a stable margin, you've solved 70% of your problem. The rest are details.
Calculate this yourself?
In the KitchenNmbrs app you can do this in just a few clicks. 7 days free, no credit card.
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Frequently asked questions
How often should I check my margins?
Daily is ideal, but at least 3 times per week. The more frequently you measure, the faster you can spot problems and make adjustments.
What is a normal margin for a restaurant?
A healthy margin is between 60-70% (revenue minus food costs divided by revenue). At 50% or lower you're probably losing money after all other costs.
What deviation is concerning?
If your margin deviates more than 5 percentage points from your average, investigation is needed. At 10+ percentage points there's probably something structurally wrong.
Should I include all food costs?
Only count direct ingredient costs for that day. Fixed costs like rent and staff are factored into your margin, not into your food costs.
How do I prevent this from taking a lot of time?
Use a system that automatically tracks your revenue and food costs. Manual entry easily takes 30+ minutes per day.
What if I don't see clear patterns?
Then your margins are probably stable, which is good. Focus then on increasing your average margin by optimizing food costs.
📚 Sources consulted
- EU Verordening 852/2004 — Levensmiddelenhygiëne (2004) — Official source
- EU Verordening 853/2004 — Hygiënevoorschriften voor levensmiddelen van dierlijke oorsprong (2004) — Official source
- EU Verordening 1169/2011 — Voedselinformatie aan consumenten (2011) — Official source
- NVWA — Hygiënecode voor de horeca (2024) — Official source
- NVWA — Allergenen in voedsel (2024) — Official source
- Codex Alimentarius — International Food Standards (2024) — Official source
- FSA — Safer food, better business (HACCP) (2024) — Official source
- BVL — Lebensmittelhygiene (HACCP) (2024) — Official source
- Warenwetbesluit Bereiding en behandeling van levensmiddelen (2024) — Official source
- WHO — Foodborne diseases estimates (2024) — Official source
Food Standards Agency (FSA) — https://www.food.gov.uk
The HACCP standards shown in this application are for informational purposes only. KitchenNmbrs does not guarantee that displayed values are current or complete. Always consult the FSA or your local authority for the latest regulations.
Written by
Jeffrey Smit
Founder & CEO of KitchenNmbrs
Jeffrey Smit built KitchenNmbrs from 8 years of hands-on experience as kitchen manager at 1NUL8 Group in Rotterdam. His mission: give every restaurant owner control over food cost.
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