In the restaurant business, there are a huge number of little things that can negate all outwardly visible success. Competent accounting and strict cost control should be introduced from the very beginning of the restaurant, so that the hired staff immediately feel responsible for their actions. Otherwise, the staff will have time to get used to mismanagement and permissiveness, and as a result there will be a circular bail. And there is no cure. The staff will collectively resist all your attempts to introduce later strict control. The only way to fight in this case is to fire them. But firing the staff en masse while the restaurant is in operation, and even worse during its “promotion” period, can do irreparable harm.
Often, beginning restaurateurs, under the concept of “accounting” understand the measures for the safety of products in the warehouses of their enterprise. However, trivial theft of products is not the only article of loss. In a time of crisis the cost of many raw foods may change almost daily. Therefore it is necessary to control as often as possible calculating charts of dishes for price changes for these or those ingredients. A significant increase in the price of one ingredient of a dish can reduce or “eat up” the entire markup. If this happens and a further increase in retail price is no longer reasonable, it is necessary to review the technology of cooking a dish, removing or replacing expensive ingredients or refusing to include this item on the menu altogether. You can also check instagram for restaurant professionals.
Restaurant Inventory
Carefully review the results of inventory. In addition to the “pluses” and “minuses” on the balances of “raw” products in the warehouses of the company, in the results of the inventory you can find “frozen” items that were part of dishes that were removed from the menu a long time ago. The same thing can happen with the wine list. Wines that have not been sold in a long time gradually “go away” from the wine list and store in your wine cabinet. Do not forget that the unsold goods are your invested money, as well as the occupied place in the warehouse or in the refrigerator, and this is also money! Award-winning chefs, technologists, food buyers and accountants certainly shouldn’t be bored in these troubled times.
Review your operating expense items very carefully. Divide expenses into fixed and variable. Try to work with both.
Start with the rate of rent of the premises, if it is overstated or the rent is calculated in conventional units. Ask what the average rental rate currently is in neighboring units and go to the landlord for a conversation.
Replace towels in restrooms that require washing after each use with electric hand dryers or disposable paper towels. If possible, opt out of laundry services and find a way to wash napkins and tablecloths in a washing machine in the back room.
Save energy and water. Have cooks set the heat equipment to “standby” during downtime.
There are a lot of little things that are impossible to list. You can list them all yourself by going deeper into each expenditure item. Save money everywhere and on everything, but wisely! Your guests should not notice your savings! For all of your planned activities, always look through the eyes of your guest. Usually, in crisis years, when there is a decrease in demand, businesses begin to look for internal reserves with great care. But if you approach the issue intelligently, why not always do it?
I’m a 20-something stay-at-home mother and wife. I have an amazing husband, a beautiful daughter, two loving dogs, and a lazy cat. I wouldn’t change my life for anything! I love to read, listen to music, cook and blog!
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