Many restaurant owners think underperforming dishes just "happen" and there's nothing you can do. That's wrong. A focused 10-minute team meeting with the right questions will pinpoint exactly what's driving up your food costs.
The 5 crucial questions for your team
If a dish consistently underperforms, ask these questions in this exact order:
? Example team meeting:
"Our steak's hitting 38% food cost - way too high. Let's figure this out:"
- Are we serving 200g or closer to 250g?
- What garnish actually goes with it?
- How much sauce per plate?
- Did our supplier bump up prices?
"Boom. Root cause found in under 10 minutes."
1. "Are we serving the right portion size?"
This trips up more restaurants than anything else. Generous portions kill profits fast. Ask your kitchen team:
- How many grams of protein hit each plate?
- Do we actually weigh it or just eyeball it?
- Does portion size change depending on who's cooking?
- Have portions crept up since we set the original spec?
⚠️ Watch out:
Just 50 grams extra meat per portion burns through €1,000+ annually if you're doing 100 portions weekly.
2. "What's actually going on this plate?"
List every single ingredient - even the ones you think don't matter:
- Which garnish and how much?
- Sauce quantity per serving?
- Cooking fats - oil, butter amounts?
- Seasonings, herbs, finishing salts?
- Any microgreens, edible flowers, or fancy touches?
From analyzing actual purchasing data across different restaurant types, those "little" extras often account for 15-20% of hidden food costs.
3. "Are our ingredient costs up to date?"
Supplier price hikes happen constantly, but cost calculations rarely get updated:
- When did we last verify these prices?
- Which supplier provides this ingredient?
- What did we pay before vs. now?
- Have we shopped around recently?
? Real price shock example:
Beef jumped from €18/kg to €22/kg (+22%)
- Previous steak cost (200g): €3.60
- Current steak cost (200g): €4.40
- Per-portion increase: €0.80
Serving 50 steaks weekly? That's €2,080 yearly impact!
4. "Are we calculating waste and trimming correctly?"
If you're processing whole proteins or fresh produce, verify your actual yields:
- How much usable protein comes from whole fish?
- What's our real vegetable trimming loss?
- Do our yield calculations match reality?
- Does this change by supplier or season?
5. "What's our target outcome here?"
Get everyone aligned on the goal:
- What food cost percentage are we shooting for?
- Can we bump the menu price?
- Should we adjust portion sizes?
- Is there a cost-effective ingredient swap?
- How do we maintain quality standards?
Act fast after your meeting
Once you've identified the problem, fix it immediately:
✅ Action plan:
- Track portion weights for 3 consecutive days
- Revise cost calculations with accurate numbers
- Brief entire kitchen team on new specs
- Follow up in exactly 2 weeks
Tools like a food cost calculator help you see the financial impact of changes instantly, so you don't have to crunch numbers manually.
How do you organize an effective team meeting? (step by step)
Prepare the figures
Gather the current food cost, sales figures and latest cost calculation for the dish beforehand. This way you won't waste time during the meeting searching for information.
Keep the meeting short and focused
Plan a maximum of 15 minutes. Ask the 5 questions systematically and note the answers. Avoid discussions about other topics.
Make concrete agreements
End with concrete actions: who does what, when do we check the results. Schedule a follow-up meeting within 2 weeks to discuss progress.
✨ Pro tip
Track portion weights for your top 3 dishes every Tuesday morning for 4 weeks straight. Ask your team: 'Are we hitting our target weights?' and 'What's causing any variance?' This 5-minute weekly check prevents cost creep.
Calculate this yourself?
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Calculate it yourself?
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Frequently asked questions
How often should I hold this kind of meeting?
What if my team can't pinpoint the cause?
Should I analyze every underperforming dish this way?
How do I get my team on board with portion changes?
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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