The situation
A city-centre restaurant ran for six years without a system. Nothing was tracked coming in or going out, there were no costings, and nobody knew exactly what it cost to produce any given dish. The owner sensed the kitchen was not running efficiently enough – and asked for my help.
The challenge
The entire kitchen cost control system had to be built from scratch in a place where no foundations had been laid in six years. At the same time, day-to-day operations could not be allowed to stop.
The solution
I built the system – recipes, costings, inventory management, goods receiving. Once everything was in place, it turned out that the kitchen’s core figures – food cost and pricing – were surprisingly sound. The owner’s concern was understandable, but the numbers were reassuring.
At the same time, the system also revealed where there was room for improvement: several ingredients were being bought above market price, waste and staff meals were not being handled properly, and a few menu changes were needed for the sake of sustainability. By reducing purchase prices and renegotiating supplier relationships, we achieved a noticeable saving.
The result
The owner can finally see what is happening in the kitchen. It is no longer just a feeling that things are working – the numbers confirm it. And where there was room to improve, concrete steps were taken.
