The restaurant business is a cutthroat business where benefits are made on well-sharpened lines only. With the manner in which the typical cost of living has been rising, food is getting expensive and as a restaurateur, for you, this implies greater food costs and lesser profits. There are a number of hidden restaurant costs in the food industry which is intensely dependent on the import of raw materials. A significant piece of these hidden expenses is related to this dependence.

And, if you think about transferring all the weight of these expenses by increasing the menu costs, it would also mean lesser customers. Keeping in mind the end goal to control your final food costs, there are various things that you can do. Some are perfect in any country whatsoever, some, then again, is more geography specific because of current market trends. Here are some ways to control your food costs.

  • Waste Control: Dealing with the measure of waste produced and attempting to re-utilize that waste can truly diminish your food costs. In a period where food cost is increasing every single day, waste control in restaurants is an unquestionable requirement for controlling food costs. First to manage and decrease waste that is produced, classify the waste in categories. These are:-
    • Food returned because it was made incorrectly
    • Food spilled or burnt
    • Extra portion size
    • Food getting spoiled because of lack of consumption

Now that you know what all causes food wastage, you can work on your restaurant’s food cost control by tackling one category at a time.

  • Inventory Management: As said before, the greatest cost of depleting the restaurant industry is the cost of ingredients. In the event that you need to control your food costs, just like managing waste, managing stock is also a must. You need to monitor the items consumed in a day, the number of ingredients consumed in preparing each dish, and the amount remaining at the end of every day. The part of a smart inventory management system ends up being essential at this stage.
  • Menu Analysis: In the event that you need to hold your food costs within proper limits, analyze your menu. Menu analysis implies reading between your menu, seeing what works and what does not, analyzing which dish can be let go of, which dish should be included, which two dishes share a similar base ingredient and thus cost less, which dishes cost more to you etc. By analyzing your menu, you can take important decisions for your restaurant food cost control.
  • Portion Control: Food cost control can also come through portion control. As said before, controlling portions is necessary to guarantee that food costs are minimized. Clients may be delighted looking at a plate full of noodles yet in the event that your portions are too huge, they will ultimately weigh you down as waste will increase. In the event that your portions are too less, the food won't appear to be justified regardless of its cost and you will lose customers.
  • Credit Purchases: Given that you know your inventory and consumption of each item deeply, you can save money over the long haul by going for credit buys rather than just cash. Credit buys are usually discounted bulk purchases. Not only does the discount decrease your cost, the fact that it is bulk implies that you can order all your stock in a single go when contrasted with ordering it in smaller units utilizing cash.

The restaurant business is a relentless one, with one individual taking the other over every day. Getting by in this industry is no simple assignment and keeping in mind the end goal to survive simply making profits is not sufficient, controlling costs goes a long way as well. Having an efficient restaurant management system that can track the sales and analytic report of the restaurant can also prove a boon for your restaurant business. Follow these tips to keep your food costs in control and your profits high.