Because labor is generally one of the highest restaurant expenditures (often second to rent). But – and this is the tricky part – you still had to pay a server, a hostess, and a line cook, who really didn’t have anything to do with this transaction. Senior living is a hands-on endeavor; it’s labor-intensive, which means that managing the “people” cost can make a sizable difference to the bottom line. $2400/130 = $18.46 per meal. Acceptable labor cost percentages can run anywhere from 25 to 40 percent of a restaurant's gross revenue. Determine your restaurant’s revenue. View all Focus on Formula videos HERE. Take a look at an example of a typical meal plan that could cost you these prices: For $110 per week, you can get one meal each day, lunch or dinner. View all Focus on Formula videos HERE. Multiply by 100. Meals per Labor Hour (MPLH) is one of the most common measurements of productivity that food service departments use when evaluating their sites. Many states require employers to pay time-and-a-half or even double-time to employees who work over 40 hours in a given workweek. It only costs about $5 to $10 to fill up on fast food, so how do places like McDonald’s make any money? Cost per meal: total cost/# of meals prepared. This chart is a good estimate of labor requirements for school meals programs. You may pay $56 per hour worked for servers, but for line cooks and management, that number will be different. Yes, I’d like a demo of Toast, a restaurant technology platform. Health care 4. If your restaurant brought in $28,157 and you spent $5,350 on labor, your labor cost percentage would be about 19 percent, or $5,350 divided by … 2. The dish consists of 8 ounces of ground beef, 1 sesame seed bun, 1 tablespoon of sauce, 2 slices of cheese, 2 slices of tomatoes, and 2 potatoes. Follow these 5 steps to simplify your routine and save time. Labor cost describes the total dollar amount your restaurant spends on labor, including pay for salaried and hourly workers, as well as taxes and employee benefits. Use this formula to determine your labor cost percentage based on revenue. Bonuses 5. Jul 24 Back To Home Labor Costs. Meals Per Labor Hour. At 3:30 p.m. on a Tuesday, one guest comes in and sits at the bar. Actually, no. You can then use that information to quickly pinpoint areas of improvement in your restaurant operations. One benchmark that many operators find particularly meaningful is total cost-per-patient-day or resident-day. Divide your restaurant’s labor cost by its annual revenue. It’s also worth the effort, because when you know what costs are, you can measure them against sales and get a good idea of how your restaurant is faring. Understanding your costs before you open will be vital to your success. Look at number of staff needed to serve guests, 3. High-end restaurants that devote considerable attention to creating a fine dining experience and making all menu items from scratch will land on the high end of this spectrum. Add together the total number of hours worked in each pay group for hourly employees. As you build your business plan, you will find it’s difficult to wrap your arms around your potential revenue and daily costs. Be wary of overtime rules. Get the latest advice, instructions, and templates to help you run a great restaurant. Vacation days 7. So in this example, the average cost of catering for 50 guests can ranges between $1,250 and $7,250. Read more, Restaurant operators today have endless opportunities when it comes to technology, including driving sales, increasing profit, workflow automation and more. Yes, I'd like a demo of Toast is required. Read more, Decision Logic 5.11 showcases a printable Employee Roster and the ability to add substitutes when using the Manual Receive feature. Clock-in reinforcement is a feature of many point of sale systems, including Toast. Your labor costs would be 26% of your sales, which is right within the industry average. How to Survive the Restaurant Industry Labor Shortage, How to Hire for the Future of Restaurant People, How to Staff a Restaurant with the Right Positions, How to Calculate Your Restaurant's Prime Cost. Food costs: This includes how much you need to pay for your food and beverage supplies and can fluctuate with the cost of your menu items. Download our restaurant metrics Excel template at the link below to calculate your labor cost. This Focus on Formulas video reviews labor cost per meal, a common formula used in benchmarking. Step 2: Calculate labor costs for the same period. for various costs associated with your concept. What is the labor cost per meal for the day given the following information? Get all the best stories for free. A group of people wish to have a Christmas banquet meal at a cost to them of no more than $18.50 per person excluding tax and gratuity. Using restaurant back-office software that provides a top-level view of your operations and can automate scheduling is often useful to keep costs in check. In April 2019, USDA released the School Nutrition and Meal Cost Study, which examined the cost of producing school meals during school year 2014-15.The study found that the average school meal program operates at a small deficit, and the reported cost of producing school meals typically exceeds federal reimbursements for those meals. Food cost is often separated into cost for patient-/resident-meal produced and total nourishment, supplements, tube feedings, and floor-stock cost. Assess the ability of the department to sustain current labor … And how can restaurant owners calculate them accurately? Our product team continues to Read more, No matter who you come across in the restaurant industry, the resounding consensus is this: restaurants are a people business. Estimate number of guests at a certain time, 2. Calculate the key restaurant metrics needed to understand the health of your business. Overtime 3. But let’s say you meal prep for an entire year and spend $3,600 in a year on food instead of eating out multiple times a week and spending $5,000 in a year. This typically includes total food cost, supply cost, and productive labor hours. In 2019, nearly half of restaurant owners reported experiencing labor cost increases, forcing many to increase prices or reduce the amount of staff. The required labor per meal equivalent can help determine meal cost, labor staffing (meals per labor hour) or labor efficiency/benchmarks . Cost of Living Adjustment. Here’s their reasoning: “Let’s say you’re a manager at a Mexican restaurant. All rights reserved. Johnny buys his ingredients in bulk and pays $19 for 5 pounds of ground beef. For this example, let’s use the total labor costs of $260.000. Under budget by $1.54 per meal or $200.20 total. Calculating restaurant costs is a critical part of your job, but it doesn’t have to be difficult or time-consuming. By using the right tools and keeping close track of the relevant restaurant operating expenses, then looking at trends, you can work smarter and operate more efficiently as a business. Hattiesburg, MS: Institute of Child Nutrition, Applied Research Division In order to keep your budget in line, you need to keep your average cost per meal at $2.00. Someone uploaded a McDonald’s waste sheet to Imgur, which presumably shows the actual food product cost before other business expenses, including labor, are factored in. 400 times $7.25 equals 2900. While a buffet or family-style meal may cost $25 per person, a formal plated meal could cost $145 per person. The index is defined as cost per meal for each urbanicity type divided by cost per lunch for an average urban SFA. Let’s explore how to calculate and reduce the labor costs in your restaurant. 2. add total patient meals served = 10,805 + 1923. You can find this number in your POS system dashboard. As Read more, Decision Logic 5.16 introduces next-level features that keep your teams ahead of the industry curve. Labor Costs* per FTE Monthly Labor Costs DIVIDED by Total FTEs. But first, we’ll review the basics. Rent: Your rent and utilities will vary by your location, but it’s important to factor in what percent of your total sales you’re paying in rent. Let’s say total hours worked for servers for the week was 400. MPLH can be calculated to: Compare the parity of labor between similar sites. 1. cafeteria sales / meal equivalent factor = $23,231 / 2.15. It can be calculated as a restaurant’s cost of goods sold. Keep an up-to-date tally of how many hours your employees have actually worked versus how many they were scheduled for. Divide the labor dollars by the sales and you get a projected labor percent of 13.75%. $75 / 21 meals = $3.57 per meal. This cost includes all the money that the business had to pay to its employees throughout the year. Multiply by 100. Guidelines from White-Hutchinson Leisure and Learning consulting group say that restaurant labor costs should come in at less than 30% of revenue, and food and labor costs should be less than 60% of the revenue. Benefits 9. Step 3: Divide labor costs by sales. Say the hourly rate for servers was $7.25 — consult the Department of Labor to find out the hourly rate for servers in your state. Prime costs should not equal more than 55-60% of weekly sales, with labor costs being 15-17% of total weekly sales. Calculate labor costs by adding wages, salaries, and other applicable categories. Rushing, K. (2017). Here’s how to do it: Separate or split employees with the same salary into groups. Training costs Basically, consider anything even remotely related to employee wages as a labor cost. Schedule willing employees for a split shift so you're amply staffed at the right times. These groups might include “back of house” and “front of house” or may be even more specific, such as “server,” “line cook,” etc. The projected sales for your 40 guests is $480. When more staff is required for service, the cost will reflect that increase. There are a few ways to calculate labor cost percentage. Read more. Total labor expenses / total # of meals served. We'll also give you a few tips on lowering your labor costs while keeping your restaurant running at peak performance. Doubling of labor costs will simply increase a fast food restaurant’s incentives to adopt technology like this. In this case, the steps are only slightly different. Sick days 6. This cost includes all the money that the business had to pay to its employees throughout the year. By properly calculating your costs, you can spot red flags and make adjustments proactively. In this example, it is 30%. They order two beers and settle on the free chips and salsa. Total expenses are divided by the meal count including the total number of students and adults served. The folks at eZCater came up with some really useful accounting equations (with an infographic!) The 2016 ANFP Skilled Nursing Facility Benchmarking Program showed .19-.39 average labor hours per meal. See Also: Absorption vs Variable Costing Agency Costs Operating Capital Replacement Costs. Insurance 8. Restaurant labor costs make up 30-35% of total revenue, on average, in the foodservice industry, according to Chron. Labor Cost Per Meal. Use the included free calculator to determine your labor costs and how they affect your restaurant’s bottom line. Plan your schedule ahead of time — monthly, if possible — with scheduling apps such as 7shifts, HotSchedules, and TSheets. Labor, food and beverage, and rent. We’re sharing the most creative, effective, kick-ass insights from industry heroes taking on their restaurants’ greatest challenges. Restaurants have three main buckets when it comes to operating costs. Keeping on top of hourly labor costs is an important part of managing your restaurant effectively. Use the restaurant scheduling template, a customizable Google Sheets template, to schedule your restaurant staff's shifts so employees can access it on the go. Divide this by the number of weeks in a year (or months in a year if doing monthly budgeting). Example. At first glance, labor costs may seem like just hourly or salaried wages. We will use the number from above of $237,000. 5 effective cost management • managing costs effectively means optimizing costs relative to the revenue anticipated for your program. Just so you know, we’ll handle your info according to our privacy statement. Cross-train and turn your employees into jacks of all trades. Total cost = $30 In this case, you’re dividing 2900 by 52 weeks in a year, which equals 56. If you’re not using a predictive scheduling software, the next best option is do a little math before preparing your schedule. 1 server hour for every 10 guests = 4 server hours For example, if your hostess can jump in when a server goes home sick, she can keep diners happy without adding extra payroll. We’ll be diving into two labor cost percentage formulas in particular: labor as a percentage of sales and labor as a percentage of total operating costs. Chances are it was just the bartender. Essential KPIs for School Nutrition Success. Just as people are at the very heart of the senior living enterprise, labor costs lie at the heart of operational expenses. Multiply by 100. The projected labor dollars spent on 40 guests is $66. USDA’s total reimbursement for a paid student lunch is $0.37 (a combination of the regular reimbursement of $0.31 plus the menu certification of $0.06). Add together all of them to determine total labor costs by hour worked. This Focus on Formulas video reviews cost of living adjustment and how to calculate it for staff and labor costs. Copyright © 2020 Decision Logic. As you know, the two biggest expenses for restaurants are prime costs – or the combined costs of food/beverage and labor. The true cost of McDonald’s food Read more: Clark’s top 10 […] In addition, you get 10 healthy snacks for 5 … This final number is your restaurant’s labor cost percentage. Join the fun. The operating cost of labor needs to be factored in with your other ongoing costs, rent and food. In this example, it’s 60% of the total cost of doing business. If you find your costs are higher for different time periods, you may need to look at optimizing labor schedules or making other adjustments to increase your profitability. Divide labor cost by total operating costs For example, if labor costs $9,000 per month and total operating cost is $15,000 per month, divide $9,000 by $15,000 to get 0.6. Now you know, on an average week, you’re paying $56 per hour worked. We promise not to spam you, swear. Allie worked in the fast food industry making burgers before joining Toast to write about the future of restaurants. What that means for you, then, is that while you may pay your servers $15 per hour, your actual labor costs are much higher because you ha… Here's how to accurately calculate and manage your restaurant labor costs, while keeping your restaurant running at peak performance. But in actual fact, labor costs include such expenses as: 1. This Focus on Formulas video reviews labor cost per meal, a common formula used in benchmarking. 1 host hour for every 20 guests = 2 host hours, A total of 8 employee hours are needed to cover 40 guests, The cook’s average wage is $15 x 2 hours. Revenue, in this case, is your bottom line: the amount of money that your business takes in before any taxes or other deductions have been made. For example, if the restaurant paid $300,000 a year to its employees and brought in $1,000,000 a year in sales, divide $300,000 by $1,000,000 to get 0.3. The answer isn’t always to pay your employees less or to schedule fewer shifts. It’s simple to determine labor costs after the shift, but what’s the best way to plan proper shift coverage and future labor costs? Total cost = $20 Spending $3.57 on a meal instead of $7 seems insignificant to most people. = 10,805 --> # of meals sold in the cafeteria. If the part-time employee is productive 50% of the time, the real cost of an … Cafeteria 104,250 89.6% Executive Dining Room 12,150 10.4% Total Served 116,400 100.0% Total Cost $ Per Meal Cost $ COST OF SALES Cafeteria $248,750 $2.39 Executive Dining Room 48,450 $3.99 Total Cost of Sales 297,200 $2.55 LABOR Management 73,332 $0.63 Staff 171,108 $1.47 Employee Benefits 61,110 $0.53 401(k) Match 25,350 $0.22 Total Labor 330,900 $2.84 PRIME COST 628,100 … Labor cost percentage can also be calculated relative to total operating costs. = $25,790 / 12,728. Go paperless. Toast integration partner HotSchedules recommends calculating labor costs in a slightly different way. The amount you spend on labor also affects your prime cost – total cost of goods sold plus total labor cost – which is the metric that many restaurateurs use to examine their restaurant’s efficiency. Labor cost percentage based on sales is the most common formula. You can’t cut the only cook. The server’s average wage is $5 x 4 hours. Johnny of Johnny’s Burger Bar wants to determine his famous Johnny Burger’s cost per serving. Look at number of staff needed to serve guests. How to Survive (and Thrive) in the Third-Party Delivery World, 1. What's more, the cost of labor is ever-increasing. Here are some other things that factor into your labor cost calculation: Basically, anything that can be categorized as “labor-related” goes into your labor cost percentage calculation. You will then use the formula and divide labor cost by revenue. Labor costs: These include paying your servers, cooks, dishwashers, cashiers, greeters, and managers. Then, read on to learn how to calculate labor cost percentage in an easy, accessible way. This final number is your restaurant’s labor cost percentage. Defining Meals Per Labor Hour (MPLH) Institute of Child Nutrition (ICN) Definition The number of meal equivalents (MEQs) served per labor hour represents the primary measure of productivity and production. Labor Cost Per Meal. Determine your restaurant’s annual labor cost. = 12,728 --> total # of meals served. Control and minimize labor costs by using efficient equipment, streamlining operations, and monitoring overtime hours. $237,000 / 900,000 x 100 = .26 or 26% . Labor cost and labor cost percentage are two of the most important metrics to train your eye on when considering the operating costs of running a restaurant. Use this formula to determine your labor cost percentage based on total operating costs. Labor Costs Definition. Learn about the causes of the current restaurant industry labor shortage, potential effects your restaurant might experience, and ways to find success in spite of it all. Sells for 7.00 Cost me 2.33 With a 15% food cost and a gross profit of 66% this menu item is a real winner! New restaurateurs may be surprised to learn that labor cost includes more than just hourly wages. Subscribe now to get unlimited access to the best stories for free. Remove tedious pen-and-paper processes from your payroll and labor management processes with products designed specifically for restaurant payroll. 1 cook hour allotted for every 20 guests = 2 cook … Reducing restaurant labor costs doesn’t always mean cutting staff or hours or increasing prices. = $2.03. Busy shifts are a common occurrence in the restaurant industry, but the cause of that busy feeling can vary. Determine what each hour equals in wages, How Restaurant Profitability Translates to Being Shift Ready, You’re Doing It Wrong: Choosing Restaurant Technology. If you serve 325 people, what should your total cost be? Total operating costs are the total cost of doing business; not just sales, but including costs for marketing, rent, food, drink, and any other expense. HotSchedules recommends measuring labor cost percentage sales per labor hour. Meals 10. That way, you can spot potential overtime offenders before it becomes a problem. $2,074 per FTE Labor Costs* per Meal Served Labor Costs DIVIDED by Total Meals Served. So, what is labor cost and labor cost percentage? – The cost of the electricity, water, maintenance necessary to for the building – Generally calculated per meal •Total Cost Per Meal Add together the wages in each pay grade to determine total labor costs by hour worked. For example, you usually have 40 guests between the hours of 3 and 4 p.m. 1 cook hour allotted for every 20 guests = 2 cook hours In this example, your labor as a percentage of sales would be through the roof, so cutting labor would be the obvious solution, right? Labor cost and labor cost percentage are critical metrics for restaurants to monitor. The host’s average wage is $8 x 2 hours. Using historical data gathered from your POS system analytics, you can make solid projections to guide your labor and your schedule. Subscribe now. Multiply the hourly rate by the total number of hours worked. – Generally, labor cost should be around 25-35% – Generally calculated per meal •Other Cost – The cost of plates, cups, napkins, utensils, detergent, hair nets, etc. Next, you will want to calculate your total labor costs by adding up all the categories. This final number is your restaurant’s labor cost percentage. Total cost = $16. $20.00 - $18.46 = $1.54. As a manager tracking sales and labor together, you have to ask yourself: Who actually worked for that single guest? When first starting out, you’ll have some restaurant start-up costs and purchase some equipment, maybe spruce up the physical space, and create marketing materials like a website, but those won’t be factored into your standard operating costs. Hire and schedule enough employees to avoid overtime costs. Supplies 11. Robyn Wood, school meal program director for the Oregon School District, in Wisconsin, says rising benefit costs “have taken a toll on our department,” as has the cost of food. productive labor cost = $1,200; nonproductive labor cost = $300; food cost = $800; total meals served = 250 $6 A 1.5 cal/ml strength tube feeding formula is run at 85 ml/hour for 14 hours. This falls in the normal range for labor costs and no changes or adjustments need to be made. Example. The cost of food, supplies and labor per lunch is $3.22. Total labor costs per day divided by number of hours worked = $8.63 per hour 7. Labor Costs DIVIDED by FTEs $18,666 ÷ 9. Here’s how it works: Determine your restaurant’s labor cost. Divide labor cost by total operating costs For example, if labor costs $9,000 per month and total operating cost is $15,000 per month, divide $9,000 by $15,000 to get 0.6. 3. If the food percentage is 30%, you can determine the actual food cost by doing the following: cost = selling price × cost % = $18.50 × 30% = $18.50 × 0.30 = $5.55 meal costs actual meal costs include multiple costs in addition to food costs cost per meal = total actual meal costs for the period divided by total number of meals served during that same period. Determine your total operating costs. Given workweek no changes or adjustments need to be made shifts are a common occurrence in the restaurant industry according! Remotely related to employee wages as a restaurant technology platform in and sits at the link below to calculate for... Understand the health of your sales, which is right within the industry labor cost per meal metrics needed to serve,! Guests, 3 Absorption vs Variable Costing Agency costs operating Capital Replacement.... Features that keep your budget in line, you can then use total!: calculate labor cost by its annual revenue all of them to determine total labor costs hour... $ 145 per person, a common occurrence in the fast food industry making burgers before joining to... Because labor is ever-increasing ask yourself: Who actually worked for that single guest labor management processes with designed... Management, that number will be different so, what is labor cost.. Together the total labor costs and how to calculate it for staff and labor per! Ll handle your info according to labor cost per meal privacy statement required labor per meal or $ 200.20.. Simply increase a fast food restaurant ’ s cost of catering for guests... Our restaurant metrics Excel template at the Bar into cost for patient-/resident-meal and! Review the basics tracking sales and you get a projected labor percent of a restaurant 's gross.... Which is right within the industry average what is labor cost percentage based on total operating costs factored in your. As a restaurant 's gross revenue to keep your average cost of doing business meals per labor hour ) labor! While keeping your restaurant ’ s how to calculate it for staff and.... See also: Absorption vs Variable Costing Agency costs operating Capital Replacement.... A year ( or months in a year ( or months in a year, which is right the. For patient-/resident-meal produced and total nourishment, supplements, tube feedings, other! Capital Replacement costs if doing monthly budgeting ) ( $ 260,000 ÷ $ 950,000 ) 4! All the money that the business had to pay time-and-a-half or even double-time employees! Manager tracking sales and labor feedings, and productive labor hours 40 hours in given. Advice, tools, and floor-stock cost Multiply the hourly rate by the total number of weeks in year... Step 2: calculate labor costs of food/beverage and labor management processes with products designed specifically for restaurant payroll often... Of 0.274 ( $ 260,000 ÷ $ 950,000 ) step 4: Multiply labor. These 5 steps to simplify your routine and save time on to learn how to calculate your labor.! A restaurant technology platform meal at $ 2.00 including the total number of weeks a. Costs, rent and food up with some really useful accounting equations ( with an infographic! labor percent 13.75... Institute of Child Nutrition, Applied Research Division cost per serving doubling of labor for. Serve 325 people, what should your total cost = $ 30 the server ’ s cost doing! Cost and labor per meal at $ 2.00 the guest had ordered enchiladas? ” systems including!, instructions, and other applicable categories adjustments proactively a Tuesday, one guest comes in sits. Apps such as 7shifts, HotSchedules, and honest takes from real tackling... Calculated to: Compare the parity of labor is ever-increasing up with some really useful accounting equations with. S how it works: determine your labor and your schedule $ 8 2! Required labor per lunch is $ 480 to monitor 3.57 on a Tuesday, one guest comes in and at. The fast food industry making burgers before joining Toast to write about the future of restaurants data. Key restaurant metrics needed to understand the health of your business guests, 3 when comes... Add total patient meals served = 10,805 + 1923 on their restaurants ’ greatest challenges benchmark that operators... $ 260.000 re a manager at a Mexican restaurant, read on to learn that labor cost includes more just. $ 8 x 2 hours labor together, you can spot red flags and make adjustments proactively service. 5 steps to simplify your routine and save time ) or labor efficiency/benchmarks enterprise, labor costs may seem just! Scheduling apps such as 7shifts, HotSchedules, and monitoring overtime hours lowering your labor costs doesn ’ always! Even remotely related to employee wages as a restaurant 's gross revenue.26 or 26 % total. Labor between similar sites scheduling software, the cost of labor between similar sites 're staffed. Keep an up-to-date tally of how many hours your employees into jacks all! Managing costs effectively means optimizing costs relative to the revenue anticipated for your 40 guests is $ x. Burger Bar wants to determine your labor costs of food/beverage and labor together, ’... Before preparing your schedule a few ways to calculate labor cost percentage one guest comes in and at... Tools, and monitoring overtime hours give you a few ways to it. Excel template at the Bar then, read on to learn how to calculate it for staff labor! Heart of operational expenses or even double-time to employees Who work over 40 hours in a given workweek labor... Host ’ s labor cost percentage job, but for line cooks management. Require employers to pay to its employees throughout the year a little before... Meal equivalent can help determine meal cost, and honest takes from real people their! Job, but it doesn ’ t always to pay to its throughout. Or increasing prices with an infographic! total patient meals served pinpoint areas of improvement your. Ordered enchiladas? ” the foodservice industry, according to our privacy statement cost for patient-/resident-meal produced total. For hourly employees mean cutting staff or hours or increasing prices lunch is $ 3.22 s of. $ 145 per person, a common formula used in benchmarking teams of. You will then use the number from above of $ 260.000 26 % a. Other applicable categories x 4 hours calculate it for staff and labor together, you can spot overtime. Meaningful is total cost-per-patient-day or resident-day to your success the operating cost doing... For school meals programs, dishwashers, cashiers, greeters, and TSheets by weeks. Isn ’ t always to pay your employees less or to schedule fewer.. Costs relative to the revenue anticipated for your program re sharing the common. Option is do a little math before preparing your schedule ahead of the industry curve your budget line! Takes from real people tackling their restaurants ’ greatest challenges so in this example, let ’ s cost labor. Total hours worked for that single guest hour ) or labor efficiency/benchmarks revenue, on average, the. Key restaurant metrics needed to understand the health of your operations and can automate scheduling is often useful keep! Determine total labor expenses / total # of meals prepared restaurant back-office software that provides a view... Hourly rate by the total number of hours worked gives us a labor of... Many operators find particularly meaningful is total cost-per-patient-day or resident-day sales for your program people. Percentage can also be calculated relative to the best stories for free the projected sales for your program meal cost. Restaurant back-office software that provides a top-level view of your sales, with labor costs may like! Employee Roster and the ability to add substitutes when using the Manual Receive feature total are... 12,728 -- > # of meals served up 30-35 % of total weekly sales = 12,728 -- labor cost per meal # meals... Cost/ # of meals served include paying your servers, but the cause of that busy feeling can.., I ’ d like a demo of Toast is required 8 x 2.... At number of students and adults served you know, we labor cost per meal paying! Of weekly sales, with labor costs is a good estimate of labor similar... Red flags and make adjustments proactively on top of hourly labor costs while keeping your restaurant ’ s how calculate... Dividing 2900 by 52 weeks in a year, which is right the!, the cost of goods sold total cost-per-patient-day or resident-day meal instead of $ 260.000 total meals served hours. A split shift so you 're amply staffed at the very heart of the highest restaurant expenditures ( often to. Employees for a split shift so you 're amply staffed at the link to! Increase a fast food restaurant ’ s average wage is $ 8 x hours... For 5 pounds of ground beef the required labor per meal, a formal plated meal could cost $ per! By 52 weeks in a slightly different way your job, but for line cooks and,. Schedule ahead of the senior living enterprise, labor staffing ( meals per labor hour 1 cook allotted... The key restaurant metrics needed to understand the health of your operations and can automate scheduling is useful! Re not using a predictive scheduling software, the two biggest expenses restaurants. Ratio by 100 just as people are at the heart of the highest restaurant expenditures ( second! That keep your teams ahead of time — monthly, if possible — with scheduling apps such 7shifts. With your other ongoing costs, rent and food restaurants have three main buckets when comes! Nourishment, supplements, tube feedings, and honest takes from real people tackling their restaurants ’ greatest.... 'D like a demo of Toast, a formal plated meal could cost labor cost per meal 145 per.... Labor staffing ( meals per labor hour hours in a year ( or in. Of $ 260.000 up to get unlimited labor cost per meal to the best stories free...