Updated October 25, 2026
When food cost climbs, the first instinct is to call the supplier or swap to cheaper product. Sometimes that helps. More often the money is being lost inside the building: portions that drift, prep that gets thrown out, items priced from a recipe card nobody has updated in two years.
For many full-service restaurants, food cost lands somewhere around 28–35% of food sales, depending on the concept. The useful number is not the industry average, though; it is the gap between what your food cost should be on paper and what it actually is. Here is how to find and close that gap.
1. Know your theoretical food cost
You cannot fix a number you have nothing to compare against. Cost every recipe from current invoices, multiply by what you actually sold from the POS product mix, and you have your theoretical (ideal) food cost. Compare it to actual: beginning inventory plus purchases minus ending inventory, divided by food sales.
A gap of a point or two is normal. A gap of five points or more means product is leaving without being sold: over-portioning, waste, comps that aren’t rung in, or theft.
2. Cost every recipe, then re-cost it
Recipe cards with real yields and current prices are the foundation of everything else. Proteins and produce move quickly, so re-cost your top sellers whenever a key price changes, not once a year.
3. Control portions on the line
Portion drift is the most common leak in busy kitchens. An extra ounce of protein on every plate rarely looks like much at the pass, but over a month of covers it can be a full point or more of food cost.
- Scales, portion scoops and ladles at every station
- Plate photos posted on the line for each dish
- Pre-portioned proteins where the menu allows it
- Spot-checks during service, not just at training
4. Track waste for two weeks
Put a waste sheet next to every station and log everything thrown away, with the reason. Two weeks of honest data usually shows a pattern: over-prepped items, a dish that doesn’t sell, product dying in the walk-in. Fix the pattern, not the individual mistakes.
5. Order to pars and receive properly
Set par levels from actual usage and order to them. At the back door, check weights, counts and quality against the invoice before signing; short deliveries and substitutions add up. Rotate stock first in, first out, and label everything with dates.
6. Count inventory on a schedule
Count high-value items such as proteins, seafood and cheese weekly, and the full inventory at least monthly, on the same day and at the same time. Consistent counts are the only way the food cost number means anything.
7. Engineer the menu
Menu engineering ranks every item by profit per plate and popularity. It usually shows that a handful of dishes carry the business, a few popular items earn very little, and some items should simply go. A shorter menu also means less inventory, less prep and less waste.
8. Cross-utilize ingredients
Every ingredient that appears in only one dish is a waste risk. Build specials and new items from product you already carry, and design the menu so trim and by-products have a home.
9. Price from cost and value
If an item cannot hit its target cost at the price your guests will pay, change the recipe, the portion or the price, or take it off. Small, staged increases on the right items are far less noticeable than across-the-board price hikes.
