Your team panics every time ingredient prices spike because they don't know your decision-making process. You've handled these situations countless times, but that knowledge stays locked in your head. Your staff makes costly mistakes while you're away because they lack your systematic approach to price changes and supplier issues.
Why documenting scenarios matters
You instinctively know when to raise prices if steak jumps from €18 to €22 per kilo. Maybe you'll adjust the menu price or switch to a different cut. But your chef? They're guessing in the dark.
⚠️ Heads up:
Teams without documented decision frameworks typically lose €200-500 monthly through poor margin choices. Your experience becomes worthless if others can't access it.
Collect your current decision rules
Focus on recurring situations first. Document exactly how you handle:
- Supplier price increases: What percentage triggers menu adjustments?
- Seasonal ingredients: Which substitutes do you prefer?
- Low stock: At what point do you pivot to backup dishes?
- Poor sales: What food cost percentage signals removal?
💡 Example:
Your price increase framework:
- Increase 0-10%: absorb through margin
- Increase 10-20%: bump menu price €1-2
- Increase >20%: source alternative ingredient
Build scenarios with concrete numbers
Rules like 'if it costs too much' mean nothing to your team. They need specific percentages and euro amounts.
💡 Example scenario:
Steak jumps from €18 to €22/kg (+22%)
- Previous cost per 200g: €3.60
- New cost per 200g: €4.40
- Food cost shifts from 30% to 37%
- Action: Increase menu price from €32 to €36
Record this calculation directly in your recipe notes. Now your chef can replicate your exact reasoning.
Create decision trees for your team
Simple if-then logic works best for busy kitchen environments:
- If food cost exceeds 35%: Research alternative suppliers or adjust pricing
- If stock drops below 2 days: Activate backup recipe
- If dish sells fewer than 10x weekly: Evaluate menu removal
From analyzing actual purchasing data across different restaurant types, these thresholds prove most effective for maintaining profitability while avoiding overreaction to temporary fluctuations.
Document alternatives per ingredient
List 2-3 backup options for each major ingredient, including cost differences. Store this information in your ingredient notes within tools like KitchenNmbrs.
💡 Example alternatives:
For salmon (€24/kg):
- Option 1: Sea bass (€19/kg, -21%)
- Option 2: Cod (€16/kg, -33%)
- Option 3: Remove temporarily from menu
Test your scenarios in practice
Run through scenarios with your team while you're present. Verify they understand your logic and reach identical conclusions.
Review and update scenarios quarterly. Supplier relationships evolve, market conditions shift, and you'll discover gaps in your original framework.
How do you document scenarios? (step by step)
Inventory your current decisions
Write down 10 situations you've had in the last 3 months. Note what you did and why. This becomes your base scenario collection.
Create concrete thresholds
Replace 'too expensive' with exact percentages. For example: food cost >35% = action needed. Use your KitchenNmbrs data to determine realistic limits.
Document alternatives per recipe
Add notes to each main ingredient in KitchenNmbrs with 2-3 alternatives including price difference. This way your team can switch quickly.
Test with your team
Have your chef walk through a scenario: 'Beef becomes 25% more expensive, what do you do?' Check if they can reproduce your decision using the documented rules.
✨ Pro tip
Document decision trees for your top 5 dishes within the next 14 days. These likely represent 70% of your revenue, so you'll immediately protect your biggest profit drivers.
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
Should I document every possible scenario?
Focus on the 10-15 most frequent situations instead. This approach covers roughly 80% of daily decisions while remaining manageable for your team.
Where should I store scenarios in KitchenNmbrs?
Attach scenarios as notes to specific ingredients and recipes. For broader decision rules, create a dedicated 'Operations Manual' recipe to centralize everything.
How often should I update my scenarios?
Quarterly reviews work well for most operations. Market conditions change, you'll learn from new situations, and some rules may prove impractical over time.
What if my team reaches different conclusions than I would?
That's actually useful feedback indicating unclear rules or missing context. Discuss the differences and refine your scenarios accordingly.
Can scenarios execute automatically in the system?
The system can alert you when thresholds are exceeded, but final decisions remain yours. Automatic purchasing or price adjustments aren't supported features.
How do I handle scenarios involving multiple ingredient price changes simultaneously?
Create compound scenarios that address 2-3 ingredient increases together, since suppliers often raise prices in waves. Document the cumulative impact on your most popular dishes.
📚 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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