High food cost eats into your profit, even with a full restaurant. Many restaurant owners only see the problem when it's too late: at the end of the month there's nothing left. A systematic menu revision reveals exactly which dishes are draining your money.
Focus on your 5 highest-volume dishes
Skip the full menu review initially. Target your top 5 best-selling dishes instead. These drive your total food cost because you're plating them dozens of times each week.
💡 Example:
Restaurant De Eetkamer sells 50 steaks per week at €32.00 (incl. 9% VAT):
- Steak 250g: €8.50
- Fries: €0.80
- Salad and garnish: €1.20
- Sauce: €0.60
Total ingredient costs: €11.10 per portion
Sales price excl. VAT: €32.00 / 1.09 = €29.36
Food cost: (€11.10 / €29.36) × 100 = 37.8%
This is too high! Standard is 28-33% for steak.
Calculate precise ingredient costs
For each of your top 5 dishes, total up every ingredient that touches the plate. Don't overlook:
- Garnish (parsley, tomato, cucumber)
- Sauces and dressings
- Butter and oil for cooking
- Bread as a side
- Salt, pepper, spices
Use current purchase prices from your supplier. Prices from 6 months ago are worthless now.
⚠️ Important:
Always calculate with your sales price excluding VAT. The price on your menu includes 9% VAT. Divide by 1.09 to get the price excl. VAT.
Spot the profit killers
Calculate your food cost percentage for each dish with this formula:
Food cost % = (Ingredient costs / Sales price excl. VAT) × 100
Dishes above 35% food cost are profit killers. They're costing you money instead of generating it. This is the kind of thing you only learn after closing your first month at a loss - every percentage point over 35% directly steals from your bottom line.
💡 Example analysis:
Top 5 dishes at Restaurant De Eetkamer:
- Steak: 37.8% food cost → LOSER
- Pasta carbonara: 28.5% → OK
- Salmon fillet: 41.2% → BIG LOSER
- Caesar salad: 24.1% → WINNER
- Chicken satay: 31.8% → OK
Conclusion: Steak and salmon need immediate attention.
Pick your strategy for each dish
For each dish with excessive food cost, you've got three options:
- Raise the price: Fastest fix, but might drive away customers
- Reduce portion size: Fewer ingredients, same price
- Source cheaper: Different supplier or different quality
Often a combination works better. For example: 10% smaller portion plus €2 price bump.
💡 Example steak approach:
Current situation: 37.8% food cost at €32.00
Option 1 - Raise price to €36.00:
- New price excl. VAT: €33.03
- New food cost: (€11.10 / €33.03) × 100 = 33.6% ✓
Option 2 - Steak from 250g to 220g:
- New ingredient costs: €9.62
- New food cost: (€9.62 / €29.36) × 100 = 32.8% ✓
Test changes one dish at a time
Don't overhaul your entire menu simultaneously. Start with one dish and track results for 2-3 weeks. Monitor:
- Does this dish still sell as well?
- Do guests complain about the price or portion size?
- Has your food cost actually dropped?
If it works, move to the next dish.
Menu revision: step by step
Select your top 5 dishes
Check your POS system to see which 5 dishes you sell most frequently. These have the biggest impact on your total food cost and deserve priority.
Calculate exact cost prices
Add up all ingredients for each dish that go on the plate. Use current purchase prices from your supplier, not prices from months ago.
Calculate food cost percentage
Divide the ingredient costs by your sales price excl. VAT and multiply by 100. Dishes above 35% food cost are usually losers.
Choose approach per dish
For each unprofitable dish choose: raise price, reduce portion, or buy cheaper. Test one dish at a time for 2-3 weeks.
✨ Pro tip
Start by analyzing your 3 highest-cost ingredients per dish within the next 48 hours. Usually 70% of your food cost lives in just 3 products, so optimizing these delivers the biggest savings fastest.
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 food cost percentage is acceptable for restaurants?
For most restaurants, healthy food cost runs between 28% and 35%. Fine dining can push slightly higher (up to 38%), while fast casual often runs lower (25-30%). Above 35% and you're usually losing money on the dish.
How often should I check my food cost calculations?
Check your top 5 dishes monthly, the rest quarterly. Suppliers raise prices regularly, so what worked last month might be bleeding money now. Stay on top of it or watch your profits disappear.
What if customers complain about price increases?
Consider shrinking portion size instead of raising the price. A 10% smaller portion is way less noticeable than a €3 price jump, but delivers the same food cost improvement.
Should I factor in waste and theft when calculating food cost?
Absolutely. Add 3-5% to your ingredient costs to account for spoilage, over-portioning, and theft. Restaurants that ignore this consistently underestimate their true food cost by several percentage points.
Can I use food cost software instead of calculating manually?
Software speeds things up, but you still need to input accurate ingredient costs and portion sizes. Tools like food cost calculators help with the math, but garbage in equals garbage out.
What's the biggest mistake when revising menu pricing?
Changing everything at once. Customers notice when their entire favorite menu suddenly costs more or has smaller portions. Test one dish at a time over 2-3 weeks to avoid shocking your regulars.
How do I handle dishes with seasonal ingredient price swings?
Build a 10-15% buffer into seasonal dishes during planning. When asparagus costs triple in winter, you're covered. Alternatively, rotate these items off your menu during expensive months rather than killing your margins.
⚠️ EU Regulation 1169/2011 — Allergen Information — https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2011/1169/oj
The allergen information on this page is based on EU Regulation 1169/2011. Recipes and ingredients may vary by supplier. Always verify current allergen information with your supplier and communicate this correctly to your guests. KitchenNmbrs is not liable for allergic reactions.
In the UK, the FSA enforces allergen regulations under the Food Information Regulations 2014.
📚 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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