Your menu determines your profit. Every week you sell dishes that cost money instead of making it, without realizing it. A weekly analysis shows exactly which dishes need removal, adjustment, or harder promotion.
Gather your weekly figures
You need three numbers per dish: quantity sold, revenue, and ingredient costs. Check your POS system and count how many times each dish left the kitchen. Calculate total revenue per dish (quantity × price excl. VAT).
💡 Example weekly figures:
- Steak: 45x sold, €1,223 revenue, €490 ingredients
- Pasta carbonara: 78x sold, €1,092 revenue, €327 ingredients
- Salmon fillet: 12x sold, €348 revenue, €156 ingredients
Calculate profit per dish
Subtract ingredient costs from revenue. This gives gross profit per dish for that week. It doesn't include labor costs and other expenses, but shows which dishes contribute most to your bottom line.
💡 Gross profit calculation:
- Steak: €1,223 - €490 = €733 profit
- Pasta: €1,092 - €327 = €765 profit
- Salmon fillet: €348 - €156 = €192 profit
The pasta generates most profit this week, despite the lower price.
Check your food cost percentages
Calculate food cost for each dish: (ingredient costs / revenue) × 100. Dishes above 35% food cost are probably losing you money. Pay attention to dishes you sell frequently with high food cost - a mistake that costs the average restaurant EUR 200-400 per month.
⚠️ Watch out:
A dish with 40% food cost that sells 2x weekly causes less damage than one with 36% food cost selling 50x weekly.
Make your decision per dish
Now you decide what to do with each dish. High food cost AND high sales: raise price or reduce portion size. Low food cost AND high sales: push harder through your team. Low sales AND high food cost: remove them completely.
- Remove: Low sales + food cost >35%
- Adjust price: High sales + food cost >33%
- Push harder: Food cost <30% + good taste
- Reduce portion: Food cost >35% + popular dish
💡 Example decisions:
- Salmon fillet: 12x sold, 45% food cost → Remove or raise price €4
- Pasta: 78x sold, 30% food cost → Push harder, maybe make it a daily special
- Steak: 45x sold, 40% food cost → Reduce portion from 250g to 220g
Track the impact
Calculate what each adjustment brings you weekly. A dish selling 50x per week that's making €1 less profit than it should costs you €2,600 annually. That impact makes decisions easier, even if you're sad to lose a dish.
Systems like KitchenNmbrs show these figures automatically each week, without calculating POS reports and Excel sheets yourself.
Weekly menu analysis in 4 steps
Get your sales figures
Grab your POS report and count per dish: quantity sold, total revenue excl. VAT. Focus on your 10-15 best-selling dishes.
Calculate ingredient costs per dish
Multiply quantity sold × cost price per portion. Include all ingredients: meat, vegetables, sauce, garnish, everything that goes on the plate.
Check food cost and gross profit
Calculate food cost % and total gross profit per dish. Look for dishes with food cost >35% or low absolute profit despite high sales.
Make decisions and execute
Make a choice for each problematic dish: remove, raise price, adjust portion, or push harder. Implement changes immediately.
✨ Pro tip
Track your 8 highest-volume dishes every Tuesday morning - if their combined food cost stays under 32%, you'll protect 85% of your weekly profit.
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
What if a popular dish has too high food cost?
Try reducing the portion 10-15% first or using cheaper ingredients. Only adjust the price as a last resort - popular dishes attract customers. Most guests won't notice a slight portion reduction if presentation stays strong.
Should I remove dishes with 36% food cost right away?
Not necessarily. Look at absolute profit and how often you sell it. A dish with 36% food cost that sells 2x weekly isn't a priority compared to one with 34% food cost selling 60x weekly.
How do I push profitable dishes without being pushy?
Make them a daily special, position them at the top of your menu, or train staff to suggest them as 'chef's recommendation'. Visual cues like highlighting or photos also work. Subtle but effective.
📚 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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