Food cost · 5 min de lectura
How to calculate restaurant food cost without hiding waste
A practical guide to separating inventory, purchases, usage, and waste before changing menu prices or portions.
Start with the inventory equation
Food cost = beginning inventory + purchases - ending inventory. Use the same currency, units, and period so the percentage can be compared with food sales.
- Value inventory with consistent units.
- Record purchases in the period, not only payments that cleared.
- Count ending inventory before starting the next period.
Keep waste visible
The basic equation can hide over-portioning, spoilage, returns, or urgent purchases. Track waste separately and calculate an adjusted cost so the operation shows what did not reach a customer.
Compare with a target and test one cause
When adjusted food cost is above target, do not change the menu price, recipe, and supplier at the same time. Choose one cause, assign one action, and measure again at the next close.
- Compare served portions with the recipe.
- Review purchase prices for the same ingredient.
- Find high-volume products with low contribution.