Running a restaurant without daily KPIs is like driving blindfolded – you won't know you're headed for a crash until it's too late. Most owners check their food, labor, and prime costs monthly, but that leaves 30 days of potential profit bleeding. A daily dashboard shows you immediately if costs are spiraling out of control.
What are the three core KPIs?
Your daily dashboard centers on three numbers that decide if you turn a profit:
- Food cost %: Percentage of revenue spent on ingredients
- Labor cost %: Percentage of revenue going to staff wages
- Prime cost %: Food cost + labor cost combined
A solid prime cost sits between 55% and 65%. Go above that and there's barely enough left for rent, utilities, and profit.
Calculate food cost (daily)
Food cost tracking becomes simple if you monitor daily purchases:
💡 Example daily food cost:
Yesterday:
- Revenue: €2,400
- Purchases: €720 (vegetables, meat, fish)
- Food cost: €720 / €2,400 = 30%
That's a solid food cost for most restaurants.
This gives you a rough but useful calculation. For precision, you'd factor in inventory changes, but daily purchases divided by revenue shows the trend clearly.
Calculate labor cost (daily)
Labor cost equals yesterday's total wage expenses divided by revenue:
💡 Example labor cost:
Yesterday's shifts:
- Chef: 10 hours × €18 = €180
- Sous chef: 8 hours × €15 = €120
- Service: 16 hours × €12 = €192
- Total wages: €492
Revenue: €2,400
Labor cost: €492 / €2,400 = 20.5%
⚠️ Note:
Don't forget employer contributions (roughly 25% on top of gross wages). The real labor cost above would be €615, or 25.6%.
Prime cost: the make-or-break number
Prime cost combines food and labor costs. This figure determines if your restaurant survives:
- Below 55%: Excellent margins, plenty of breathing room
- 55-65%: Healthy range, normal profits achievable
- 65-75%: Tight margins, vulnerable to surprises
- Above 75%: Red alert territory, losses likely
💡 Example prime cost:
Using our example:
- Food cost: 30%
- Labor cost: 25.6% (including employer contributions)
- Prime cost: 55.6%
This leaves adequate room for rent, utilities, and profit.
Building your dashboard in practice
Create a straightforward table you complete each morning:
| Date | Revenue | Purchases | Wage Cost | Food % | Labor % | Prime % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 15/1 | €2,400 | €720 | €615 | 30% | 25.6% | 55.6% |
After a week, patterns emerge: which days drain your budget? Which ones stay profitable? From years of working in professional kitchens, I've seen how this simple tracking prevents costly surprises.
Red flags to monitor
Your dashboard acts as an early warning system for trouble:
- Food cost spikes suddenly: Supplier price increases or portion control issues
- High labor cost on slow days: Overstaffing problems
- Prime cost above 65% for several days: Systematic issues requiring immediate action
⚠️ Note:
One rough day won't sink you. Focus on weekly trends. Consistent deviations demand swift intervention.
Digital tools for your dashboard
Manual Excel tracking works but eats up time. Tools like KitchenNmbrs automatically calculate food costs using your recipes and sales data. You just input wage costs for complete prime cost visibility.
Digital systems show you trends across weeks and months, not just yesterday's numbers. This reveals seasonal patterns and long-term shifts you'd otherwise miss.
How do you set up a daily KPI dashboard? (step by step)
Gather yesterday's basic data
Note yesterday's revenue (from your register), all purchases (supplier receipts), and the number of hours worked per employee. These are your three basic ingredients for all calculations.
Calculate your three percentages
Food cost = purchases / revenue × 100. Labor cost = total wage costs / revenue × 100. Prime cost = food cost + labor cost. Don't forget to include employer contributions (approximately 25% on top of gross wages).
Compare with your targets and previous days
Put your figures next to your targets (for example 30% food, 25% labor, 55% prime cost). Also look at yesterday and the same day last week. Large deviations mean something is wrong.
✨ Pro tip
Set a daily alarm for 9:30 AM to review yesterday's numbers before the lunch rush starts. This gives you 2 hours to adjust staffing or portion sizes if costs are running high.
Calculate this yourself?
In the KitchenNmbrs app you can do this in just a few clicks. 7 days free, no credit card.
Was this article helpful?
Frequently asked questions
Should I include employer contributions in my labor cost?
Absolutely yes. Employer contributions add roughly 25% on top of gross wages. Skip these and you'll underestimate your real labor costs, making your prime cost look artificially healthy.
What if my prime cost hits 70% one day?
Don't panic over one bad day. Track the weekly average instead. If you're consistently above 65%, then it's time for action: adjust prices, tighten portions, or optimize scheduling.
Can I just estimate my food cost instead of calculating daily?
That's playing with fire. Many owners think their food cost runs 25% when it's actually 35%. That 10-point gap costs you €50,000 annually on €500,000 revenue.
How do I handle seasonal fluctuations in my targets?
Review your target percentages quarterly. Summer produce costs, holiday staffing, and supplier changes shift your baselines throughout the year.
What if food cost looks good but labor cost is high?
You've got an efficiency issue, not a purchasing problem. Check your scheduling during slow periods and see if prep work is taking too long.
Should I track tips as part of labor cost?
Only if you're paying out tips directly from revenue. Tips customers pay with cards that go straight to staff don't count toward your labor percentage.
How do I account for waste in my food cost calculation?
Track waste separately for the first month to see your real loss percentage. Then build that percentage into your food cost targets going forward.
📚 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.
All your financial KPIs in one dashboard
Food cost percentage, gross margin, revenue per cover — KitchenNmbrs calculates it all automatically based on your recipes and purchases. Start your free trial.
Start free trial →