Ever wonder why your food costs keep creeping up despite your careful planning? Teaching your team to do the math is the smartest investment you can make. When your chef and sous-chef truly feel what ingredients cost, they handle portions and waste completely differently.
Why your team needs to understand what things cost
Most kitchen teams have zero clue what ingredients actually cost. Sure, they know salmon costs more than chicken, but by how much? This creates unconscious leaks everywhere:
- Oversized portions ('a little extra doesn't hurt')
- Expensive garnishes on cheap dishes
- No sense of what cutting waste costs
- Waste because nobody knows what it's worth
💡 Example:
Your chef gives 250 grams of steak as standard, while you calculate on 200 grams. Difference: 50 grams per portion.
- Beef: €24/kg = €1.20 per 50 grams
- 50 portions per week = €60 extra per week
- Per year: €3,120 in 'free' meat
That €3,120 disappears without anyone noticing.
Choose the right dish for the first session
Don't start with your most complex dish. Pick a popular, relatively simple dish that everyone knows. Perfect options are:
- Pasta carbonara - few ingredients, clear portions
- Steak with fries - main ingredient with sides
- Fish of the day - good for explaining cutting waste
- Salad with chicken - mix of cheap and expensive ingredients
⚠️ Watch out:
Avoid dishes with 15+ ingredients the first time. Everyone loses track and it becomes a math lesson instead of an aha-moment.
Gather all ingredients and invoices
Lay out everything that goes into the dish. Really everything:
- Main ingredient (meat, fish, pasta)
- All vegetables and garnishes
- Sauces and dressings
- Oil, butter, spices
- Decoration and finishing touches
Get the invoices from your suppliers. Show your team what each kilo actually costs. Often this is an eye-opener.
💡 Practical example - Pasta Carbonara:
Lay all ingredients on the table with the invoices:
- Spaghetti: €2.40/kg
- Bacon: €8.50/kg
- Eggs: €3.20 per 30 pieces
- Parmesan: €18.00/kg
- Cream: €1.80/liter
Now let's calculate together what one plate costs.
Calculate the cost price per portion together
Go through each ingredient step by step. Let your team estimate the quantities first, then correct together. This works way better than giving the right numbers straight away.
The formula per ingredient:
(Quantity per portion ÷ 1000) × Price per kilo = Cost per portion
💡 Carbonara calculation (1 portion):
- Spaghetti 120g: (120 ÷ 1000) × €2.40 = €0.29
- Bacon 40g: (40 ÷ 1000) × €8.50 = €0.34
- Egg 1 piece: €3.20 ÷ 30 = €0.11
- Parmesan 15g: (15 ÷ 1000) × €18.00 = €0.27
- Cream 50ml: (50 ÷ 1000) × €1.80 = €0.09
Total cost price: €1.10 per portion
Calculate the food cost percentage
Now comes the moment of truth. Based on real restaurant P&L data, this is where most teams get their biggest shock. Grab your menu and see what you charge for this dish:
Food cost % = (Cost price ÷ Selling price excl. VAT) × 100
💡 Food cost calculation:
Carbonara on menu: €16.50 incl. VAT
- Excl. VAT: €16.50 ÷ 1.09 = €15.14
- Cost price: €1.10
- Food cost: (€1.10 ÷ €15.14) × 100 = 7.3%
That's a very healthy margin!
Discuss what you've discovered
This is the most important part. Ask your team:
- What stood out about the prices?
- Which ingredient was more expensive than expected?
- Where can we save without compromising quality?
- What happens if we make portions 20% larger?
⚠️ Watch out:
Don't make it a lesson about saving. Focus on awareness. Once your team understands what things cost, they'll naturally work differently.
Plan the next session
One dish is just the beginning. Plan a session every month where you calculate a different dish. Vary between:
- An expensive dish (steak, lobster)
- A popular dish
- A dish with many ingredients
- A seasonal dish
After a few sessions, your team will know the cost prices of your entire menu. Then a culture of cost awareness naturally develops.
How do you calculate a dish together? (step by step)
Choose a simple, popular dish
Start with a dish that everyone knows and doesn't have too many ingredients. Pasta carbonara, steak with fries, or a classic salad work perfectly the first time.
Gather all ingredients and invoices
Lay out everything that goes into the dish, including oil, spices, and decoration. Get the supplier invoices so everyone sees the real purchase prices.
Calculate the cost price per ingredient together
Let your team estimate the quantities, correct together, and calculate: (grams per portion ÷ 1000) × price per kilo. Add up all ingredients for the total cost price.
Calculate the food cost percentage
Divide the cost price by your selling price excl. VAT and multiply by 100. This percentage shows how much of your selling price goes to ingredients.
Discuss the discoveries with your team
Ask what stood out, which ingredient was more expensive than expected, and what happens if portions get bigger. Focus on awareness, not saving.
✨ Pro tip
Have your sous-chef calculate your 3 most expensive dishes within the next 2 weeks. When they lead the calculation and explain it to others, there's way more buy-in than when you as the owner do all the talking.
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
How often should I do this with my team?
Start with one dish per month. After a few sessions, your team will know the cost prices and cost awareness naturally develops. Then you can do it less often.
What if my team finds it boring to do the math?
Don't make it a math lesson. Focus on the surprise of real prices and what it means for your profit. Most chefs find it interesting to know what things actually cost.
What if the food cost comes out too high?
Use it as a learning opportunity. Discuss together which ingredients are most expensive and where you can optimize without compromising quality.
How do I prevent it from becoming a cost-cutting session?
Focus on awareness, not cutting. Say: 'Now we know what it costs' instead of 'We need to use less'. Awareness naturally leads to better behavior.
📚 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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