Restaurant Guides
Restaurant Guides & Resources
Three in-depth guides are published today: food cost, break-even, and profit with prime cost. For every other restaurant number on this site, the calculator page itself carries the explanation, the formula and a worked example.
- Three published guides
- Seven calculators with explanations
- Free to read and use
The guides
The Published Guides
Each one explains a method from the beginning, with worked examples whose figures are invented and recomputed, the limits of the method and links to the matching calculator.
How to Calculate Food Cost for a Restaurant
Learn how to calculate food cost percentage, understand the food cost formula and use food cost when pricing restaurant dishes.
Read the guideHow to Calculate a Restaurant's Break-Even Point
Fixed and variable costs, the contribution ratio, break-even sales and orders, a profit target and the margin of safety, with worked examples and the limits of the model.
Read the guideRestaurant Profit and Prime Cost: How to Read Your Numbers
Food cost, labor cost, prime cost, operating profit and net profit defined and read line by line, with worked examples, scenarios and the limits of each figure.
Read the guideBy need
Start From What You Need to Work Out
Each path below leads to a page that exists today. Food cost, profitability and break-even have a guide; the other four topics are covered by their calculator page, which explains the formula, shows a worked example and states the limits.
Understand Your Costs
Guide and calculator
What does a plate or a recipe cost me, and what share of its price is that?
Set Your Prices
Calculator
What price reaches the margin I chose, and what does a price increase or a delivery platform change?
Evaluate Profitability
Guide and calculator
Where does the money go, line by line, and what if sales or costs change?
Plan Your Labor
Calculator
What does this schedule cost, overtime and employer costs included?
Estimate Your Break-Even
Guide and calculator
How much must I sell to cover the costs I list, and how does a new lease or channel change it?
Prepare Your Seating Capacity
Calculator
How many seats, turns and covers do my tables and a service window allow?
Calculate and Split Tips
Calculator
What tip results from a bill, and how is a bill or a tip pool shared to the cent?
Which one to open
Guide or Calculator?
Read a Guide to Understand
A guide explains a topic from the beginning, with worked examples and its sources. Today there are three: food cost, break-even, and profit with prime cost.
Open a Calculator to Decide
A calculator takes your own numbers and returns a result. Its page explains the formula, an example and what the result leaves out.
Check How They Are Built
How formulas, rounding and checks work, and what the results cannot replace, is on the About page.
Good to know
Frequently Asked Questions
Which topics do the guides cover?
Each guide is listed on this page with the topic it covers. The calculator pages explain the other calculations.
Are the restaurant guides free?
Yes. The guides are available to read for free.
Do the guides include calculators?
Guides explain the concepts and formulas, while the related RestoCalculator tools let you calculate your own numbers.
Where should I start?
Food cost is a useful starting point because it connects ingredient costs with menu pricing. You can start with the Food Cost Guide and then use the Food Cost Calculator.
Are the calculator results accounting or legal advice?
No. The tools provide calculations and estimates based on the information entered. They are not a substitute for professional accounting, tax, legal or regulatory advice.
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Restaurant Tools
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