costed plateresources
The kitchen ledger
Research on food costs, prices and the economics of a working kitchen.
Benchmarks
Food cost is a comparison, not a target
The National Restaurant Association reports median food and nonalcoholic beverage costs of 32.0% of sales for full-service and 32.4% for limited-servi.
BenchmarksA margin needs a definition
The National Restaurant Association reports 2024 median pretax income of 2.8% of sales for full-service respondents and 4.0% for limited-service respo.
BenchmarksWatch the combined cost, then find the cause
The National Restaurant Association reports a 2024 limited-service median prime cost of 65% of sales.
BenchmarksCount the full labor cost
The National Restaurant Association reports 2024 median labor costs of 36.5% of sales for full-service respondents and 31.7% for limited-service respo.
Prices
Two price baskets. Two different questions
BLS food-at-home and food-away-from-home indexes describe consumer price changes in different baskets.
PricesAustralian menu inflation needs Australian context
ABS reports that meals out and takeaway food prices rose 3.9% in the year to September 2026.
PricesRead the UK index before using the percentage
The ONS restaurants and cafes CPIH annual index was 144.0 in 2024 and 150.0 in 2025, on a 2015 base of 100.
Research
Operating models
The cup has to pay for the cafe
A coffee ingredient margin is not a cafe profit margin.
Operating modelsCost the batch you can sell
A bakery margin depends on saleable output and sell-through as well as ingredient prices.
Operating modelsPrice the service before chasing volume
A food truck needs enough contribution from each service to cover that service’s fixed commitments and the business’s wider costs.
Operating modelsStart with the money retained per order
A delivery-only kitchen should model the amount retained after channel fees, packaging and variable production costs.