Menu engineering gives you concrete figures on which dishes generate the most revenue. While most restaurants just discuss overall turnover with their accountant, smart operators use dish-level data to demonstrate which menu items drive real value. This transforms your annual review from basic number-crunching into strategic planning.
What is menu engineering for your accountant?
Menu engineering analyzes each dish on two critical dimensions: popularity and profitability. This analysis creates four distinct categories that your accountant will grasp immediately:
- Stars: Popular and profitable (keep and promote)
- Plowhorses: Popular but not profitable (raise prices or lower costs)
- Puzzles: Not popular but profitable (more marketing)
- Dogs: Not popular and not profitable (remove)
Gather the right data for your accountant
Your accountant needs concrete figures. Menu engineering requires this specific data:
💡 Example data collection:
Dish: Steak with fries
- Sold in 2024: 1,847 portions
- Total dishes sold: 18,450
- Popularity: 10.0% (1,847 ÷ 18,450)
- Food cost: 32% (€9.60 ingredients on €30.00 excl. VAT)
- Gross profit per portion: €20.40
Total contribution: €37,699 gross profit
These numbers reveal to your accountant not just what you're selling, but what's actually generating profit.
Calculate the financial impact per category
Separate your menu into the four categories and calculate total impact. This is the kind of thing you only learn after closing your first month at a loss—every dish either helps or hurts your bottom line:
💡 Example category breakdown:
- Stars (3 dishes): €127,000 gross profit (42% of total)
- Plowhorses (4 dishes): €89,000 gross profit (29% of total)
- Puzzles (2 dishes): €31,000 gross profit (10% of total)
- Dogs (6 dishes): €58,000 gross profit (19% of total)
This reveals that 80% of your profit comes from just 7 of your 15 dishes.
Present improvement opportunities to your accountant
Menu engineering delivers concrete action points with measurable financial impact:
- Optimize Plowhorses: €89,000 turnover with improved margins can generate €15,000+ extra
- Remove Dogs: Cuts purchasing costs and streamlines operations
- Promote Stars: More sales of top performers boosts overall results
⚠️ Note:
Always calculate using selling prices excl. VAT. Your accountant uses these figures for profit and loss calculations.
Link menu engineering to your P&L
Your accountant can connect menu engineering directly to your profit and loss statement. Show them:
💡 P&L linking example:
Food cost 2024: €298,000 (31.2% of turnover)
- Stars average: 28% food cost
- Plowhorses average: 37% food cost
- Puzzles average: 25% food cost
- Dogs average: 39% food cost
Action: Removing Dogs can reduce food cost to 29.8% = €13,400 extra profit
Plan concrete actions for next year
Use menu engineering data to support your 2025 strategy:
- Which dishes deserve more marketing budget?
- Where will you raise prices and by what percentage?
- Which ingredients can you source more affordably for Plowhorses?
- How much additional profit do you project from these changes?
With solid figures from menu engineering, you transform your business review into strategic planning rather than just looking backward.
How do you prepare menu engineering for your business review?
Gather sales data per dish
Pull from your POS system how many of each dish you sold in 2024. Also note your total number of covers. This gives you the popularity percentages your accountant needs.
Calculate food cost and gross profit per dish
Calculate the exact ingredient costs and food cost percentage for each dish. Work out the gross profit per portion: selling price excl. VAT minus ingredient costs. Multiply by number sold for total contribution.
Categorize and prioritize your dishes
Divide each dish into Stars, Plowhorses, Puzzles or Dogs. Calculate per category the total turnover and profit contribution. This gives you concrete action points and potential profit increases to discuss with your accountant.
✨ Pro tip
Pull your top 12 dishes from the past 18 months and calculate their combined profit contribution as one figure. This single number typically represents 75-85% of your menu's total profitability and gives your accountant immediate insight into where your real money comes from.
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 period should I analyze for menu engineering?
Analyze at least a full year for reliable data. Seasonal fluctuations and trends become visible over 12 months. For your business review, the entire previous year provides the most accurate foundation.
How do I calculate popularity if I have different menus?
Divide portions sold of each dish by total covers during the period that dish was available. If a dish appeared on your menu for only 6 months, calculate popularity using that timeframe, not the full year.
Should I include labor costs in menu engineering calculations?
Focus on food cost and gross profit per dish for menu engineering. Labor costs remain relatively consistent across dishes and can distort comparisons. Address labor costs as a separate topic during your business review.
What if my POS system lacks detailed sales data?
Estimate proportions based on available information. Even rough data reveals which dishes perform well. Set up better tracking systems for the coming year to capture more precise metrics.
How do I handle dishes with multiple portion sizes?
Calculate each portion size as a separate menu item. A small Caesar salad and large Caesar salad have different costs, prices, and popularity rates. Treat them as distinct dishes in your analysis.
Can I use menu engineering for beverage sales too?
Absolutely. Apply the same four-category system to wines, cocktails, and other beverages. Many restaurants discover their wine program needs serious optimization through this analysis.
How often should I perform menu engineering analysis?
Annual comprehensive analysis works perfectly for business reviews. Additionally, run quarterly checks on your top 8-10 dishes to catch trends early and make timely adjustments.
📚 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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