Your signature dish is at the top of the menu, but your boring steak often earns more. Picture this: you've spent weeks perfecting that duck breast with fig jus, yet customers keep ordering the basic steak and fries. Simple dishes quietly outperform your creative masterpieces in pure profit margins.
Why simple dishes make more profit
It seems contradictory: you spend weeks perfecting your signature dish, but your simple steak and fries generates more. This happens for three main reasons.
💡 Example:
Signature dish: Marinated duck breast with fig jus and seasonal vegetables (€34.00)
- Ingredients: €13.50
- Selling price excl. VAT: €31.19
- Food cost: 43.3%
Steak and fries (€28.00)
- Ingredients: €7.80
- Selling price excl. VAT: €25.69
- Food cost: 30.4%
The steak earns more per euro of revenue.
Reason 1: Fewer ingredients means lower costs
Signature dishes often have 8-12 ingredients. Each ingredient costs money. Simple dishes have 4-6. Fewer ingredients = lower cost price.
- Steak: meat, fries, salad, sauce
- Signature dish: main ingredient + 6 garnishes + special sauce + decoration
Plus, specialty ingredients are often more expensive per kilo than basic products.
Reason 2: Higher inventory turnover
You sell simple dishes more often. That means:
- Ingredients get used up faster
- Less waste from spoilage
- Better purchase prices through larger volumes
- Lower inventory costs
💡 Example:
You sell per week:
- Signature dish: 8 portions
- Steak: 45 portions
For the signature dish, you buy specialty ingredients that you only use 8 times. The rest can spoil.
Reason 3: Faster preparation = lower labor costs
Complex dishes take more time to make. Time = money in the kitchen.
- Steak: 8 minutes prep time
- Signature dish: 25 minutes prep time
At €20/hour labor costs, each signature dish costs €8.33 in labor, versus €2.67 for a steak.
⚠️ Note:
Many entrepreneurs only calculate ingredient costs and forget labor time. With complex dishes, labor can mean 20-30% extra costs.
The hidden costs of complexity
Signature dishes have more hidden costs:
- Training: Every team member needs to learn how to make the dish
- Error margin: More complex preparation = more chance of mistakes
- Inventory risk: Specialty ingredients spoil faster
- Inconsistency: Harder to get the same result every time
Complex dishes can pay off
Signature dishes aren't always bad for your profit. They pay off if:
- You sell them often enough (at least 15-20 times per week)
- You can charge a higher price for them
- They attract customers who also order other dishes
- They differentiate your restaurant from competitors
💡 Example calculation:
Signature dish sold 25 times per week:
- Margin per portion: €17.69 (€31.19 - €13.50)
- Per week: 25 × €17.69 = €442.25
- Per year: €23,000
Steak sold 45 times per week:
- Margin per portion: €17.89 (€25.69 - €7.80)
- Per week: 45 × €17.89 = €805.05
- Per year: €41,862
The steak generates €18,862 more per year.
Measuring profit in your own kitchen
From analyzing actual purchasing data across different restaurant types, the most profitable kitchens track four key metrics. You need to measure:
- Food cost per dish: Including all ingredients
- Prep time: From start to plated
- Sales numbers: How many do you sell per week?
- Waste: How many ingredients spoil?
A food cost calculator like KitchenNmbrs helps you track this without having to do the math yourself. You see directly which dishes generate the most revenue.
How do you analyze the profitability of your dishes?
Calculate the actual cost price
Add up all ingredients, including garnishes, sauces and decoration. Don't forget labor time: complex dishes take more time to make.
Measure sales numbers per week
Track for 4 weeks how many of each dish you sell. This gives you the real popularity, not what you think is popular.
Calculate total profit contribution
Multiply margin per portion by sales numbers. A dish with lower margin but higher sales can generate more total profit.
✨ Pro tip
Track your 3 highest-selling dishes over the next 14 days and calculate their true food cost including prep time. You'll often find your "boring" grilled chicken outperforms that elaborate pasta creation by 8-12% in pure profit margin.
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 then remove all complex dishes from my menu?
No, but focus on dishes that sell frequently. A signature dish that sells 5 times per week earns less than a simple dish that sells 50 times per week.
How do I calculate labor time in my cost price?
Measure how long each dish takes from start to finish. Multiply by your hourly rate (including social contributions). For complex dishes, this can mean 15-25% extra costs.
What if my signature dish attracts customers?
Then it has value, even if it earns less. Measure whether customers who order your signature dish also order other (profitable) dishes.
Can I just raise the price of my signature dish?
You can, but test carefully. Increase by €2-3 and see if sales drop. Sometimes it's better to add a profitable alternative instead.
How do I handle seasonal ingredients in complex dishes?
Seasonal ingredients often spike in price and availability. Track your food costs weekly during transition periods. Consider menu adjustments if costs exceed 35% for more than two weeks.
Should I track prep time for every single dish?
Start with your top 10 sellers first. Use a kitchen timer for one week to get accurate averages. Most restaurants find 2-3 dishes account for 60% of their labor time.
What's the maximum food cost percentage I should accept?
For casual dining, aim for 28-32% food cost on simple dishes, 35-38% on complex ones. Fine dining can handle 32-40% if you're charging premium prices and maintaining consistent volume.
📚 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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