Weekly figure reviews are like taking your restaurant's pulse – skip them and small problems become financial emergencies. Most owners wait until month-end to examine their numbers, but by then it's damage control, not prevention. A systematic weekly routine spots trouble early enough to fix it.
The 5-step weekly check (30 minutes)
Same sequence every Monday morning. You'll never miss anything and the routine becomes automatic.
💡 Example weekly check:
Restaurant De Eik, Monday morning 9:00
- Revenue last week: €12,400 (target: €11,500) ✓
- Number of covers: 420 (last week: 380) ✓
- Average check: €29.50 (last week: €30.20) ⚠️
- Top sellers sold: 85 steaks, 62 salmon, 48 pasta
- Inventory value: €3,200 (last week: €2,900) ⚠️
Actions: Check why check average is dropping. Inventory too high?
Step 1: Compare revenue and covers
Start with the fundamentals: sales volume and guest count.
- Revenue last week vs. same week last year
- Number of covers vs. last week
- Average check amount (revenue / covers)
More revenue from additional guests signals growth. Higher revenue from price increases? Monitor guest reaction carefully.
Step 2: Check food cost of your top sellers
Your 5 bestselling dishes drive 80% of profitability. Verify their food costs haven't drifted.
💡 Example check:
Steak (85x sold last week):
- Selling price: €32.00 incl. VAT = €29.36 excl. VAT
- Ingredient costs: €9.20
- Food cost: (€9.20 / €29.36) × 100 = 31.3%
Still within the 33% limit. Good.
Supplier price increases happen constantly. Without tracking, your food costs creep upward unnoticed – a pattern we see repeatedly in restaurant financials where margins slowly erode over months.
Step 3: Inventory value and waste
Calculate what's in your cooler, freezer, and dry storage. Compare against last week's total.
- Inventory value climbing weekly? You're over-purchasing
- Excessive waste? Planning issues or oversized portions
- Expired products? Rotation system failing
⚠️ Watch out:
Rising inventory values every week means you're locking up cash in unsold products. This drains cashflow.
Step 4: Compare purchases vs. sales
Match your buying against selling. These numbers should align closely.
Rule of thumb: Food purchases = 28-35% of revenue. Consistently over 35%? Money's leaking somewhere.
💡 Example calculation:
Last week:
- Revenue: €12,400
- Food purchases: €4,200
- Purchase percentage: (€4,200 / €12,400) × 100 = 33.9%
Within the norm, but on the high side.
Step 5: Determine actions for the coming week
Every review ends with specific actions. Spotting problems isn't enough – you need solutions.
- Food cost too high? Adjust pricing or verify portions
- Excess inventory? Reduce orders, create specials from surplus
- Low check averages? Train staff on upselling techniques
Digital vs. manual tracking
Excel works for these checks, but it's time-consuming. Systems automatically calculate dish-level food costs and show multi-week trends.
The benefit: instant problem identification without manual calculations and comparisons.
How do you perform a weekly check? (step by step)
Gather your weekly figures
Pull revenue, number of covers, and purchases from last week from your POS system. Calculate the average check amount by dividing revenue by covers.
Check food cost of your top sellers
Take your 5 best-selling dishes and calculate their current food cost. Use the formula: (ingredient costs / selling price excl. VAT) × 100.
Count your inventory value
Walk through cooler, freezer, and dry storage. Add up all products at purchase price. Compare with last week to spot trends.
Compare purchases with revenue
Calculate your purchase percentage: (total purchases / revenue) × 100. For restaurants, 28-35% is normal. Higher usually means leakage.
Determine actions for the coming week
Write down 2-3 concrete actions based on your findings. For example: adjust prices, buy less, or check portions.
✨ Pro tip
Always review your top 3 sellers within the first 5 minutes of your Monday morning routine. These dishes control 70% of your profit margins.
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 long does a complete weekly check take?
A thorough weekly review takes 20-30 minutes once you establish the routine. Your first attempt might need an hour, but speed improves quickly with practice.
What day works best for reviewing weekly figures?
Monday mornings are ideal. You'll have complete weekend data and can still make adjustments for the current week.
What if my food cost consistently exceeds 35%?
You're likely losing money. Start by auditing your portions and recipes, then examine menu pricing. Small portion creep adds up fast.
Should I count my entire inventory every week?
An estimate works fine for trend tracking. Save precise counts for monthly bookkeeping requirements – weekly estimates show direction, which is what matters.
How do I calculate if my purchases are excessive?
Use this formula: (purchases / revenue) × 100. Results above 35% usually indicate overbuying, unless you're deliberately building inventory for events.
What's the minimum check if I'm short on time?
Review revenue and food costs for your top 3 sellers. This 10-minute check catches 70% of potential problems and prevents major issues.
📚 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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