Wednesday, May 12, 2010

The Master Costing Spreadsheet Is a Tool Every Restaurateur Must Master!

Making and maintaining a master costing spreadsheet is probably one of the most important tasks of a restaurant owner. Yup, you got it! If you’ve been feeling lazy lately and have been putting this off, you need to wake up, my friend. This needs to be updated everyday. After all, the restaurant business doesn’t really take off properly until it has been a few months.

Initially, you’ll have to run at a loss, so if you’re just starting out, having the right tools will make your job a whole lot easier and trust me, a master costing spreadsheet is definitely a tool you want to be using!

How It Works

So what really is this master costing spreadsheet? Well, this lists all the items in the menu and the profit you make from them, in simple layman terms. It sounds quite easy to maintain it, but seasoned restaurateurs will know exactly what I’m talking about when I say it’s a hellishly difficult task. Moreover, how much of math can you take in a day? You’re a restaurant owner, not an accountant! Well, sometimes, it really is hard to distinguish between these two professions!

Menu Engineering

A lot of menu engineering also comes into the picture when you’re working on your master costing spreadsheet. Have no clue about what I’m talking about, do you? Menu engineering is an important part of the restaurant business. In fact, all of us have had some experience with it at some point or the other; only, we have not put a name to it!

Menu engineering is basically a branch of study where you gauge the popularity of the various items on your menu card and predict the sales of these items.

As you can already guess, prediction of future profit is very important in the restaurant business and determining the number of plates of a particular item which you can sell on a particular day is a very important part of the master costing spreadsheet!

What it Entails

So what do we include in our master costing spreadsheet? First off, the names of all the items on the menu should be included. The next thing to include will be the cost required to prepare each item. Follow this up with the cost you sell each item at and the quantity of each item sold on a particular day.

Next, you need to put in the percentage profit you make on every item. Total it up to get your net profit. A master costing spreadsheet is pretty complicated business, so don’t pass up the opportunity of getting a free master costing spreadsheet from my website, it’s going to help you a whole lot!

Thursday, February 11, 2010

FREE Restaurant Prep Spreadsheet The Perfect Checklist For Busy Restaurants


There are many parts involved with running a restaurant and being able to maintain all aspects at once isn't always possible. Finding little tricks here and there to make things easier on you and your staff are huge assets. One example of this is having a spreadsheet that details what needs to be prepped at the beginning of a shift or day, depending on the type of restaurant being ran. Free restaurant prep spreadsheet downloads are available all over the internet, with some being much more helpful than others. One such site is freerestaurantforms.com and the important thing is that it is absolutely free to download this spreadsheet, just like the website implies.

This spreadsheet is set up in a specific format, but the products listed are able to be easily altered to your own restaurant's needs. The column on the far left lists all the items that need to be thawed first thing, then the columns to the right are as follows; wk day par, wk end par, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

The boxes below the days of the week are completely empty, which provides a perfect spot for placing a check next to each item that has been thawed. There is a second sheet that is attached to this download which lists side duties to perform.

Having a checklist that details what areas need to be cleaned and organized are very helpful in a restaurant setting. There are too many areas that can easily be passed now and then, due to the busy schedule that is generally kept. The days of the week are listed along the top of this list as well, again, providing a simple checklist to maintain.

This free restaurant prep spreadsheet is perfect for providing a back-up cook with necessary information needed while the head cook is away. Using this checklist, instead of asking what needs to be done will be easier on you and the cook.



Wednesday, July 29, 2009

How Restaurant Newsletter Marketing Can Make A Difference


Today's economy has landed many of us without the things we need, let alone those little extras we once enjoyed. Uncertainty in the market and rising unemployment has forced millions to change the way they live, the way they spend. Unfortunately, the things we love to do have become extravagances we can no longer afford.

One of the quickest and easiest ways to minimize expenses for many individuals and families is by cutting back on meals eaten outside of the home. It's less expensive and time consuming for families to buy groceries and make meals at home. It's much easier to get creative with the menu from home. It may not be as exciting or rewarding, but it's what many have to face today.

When families cut back or completely stop dining out, it causes a drain on the local economy. The trickle down effect is massive. A reduction in the restaurant industry causes a handful of consequences, not just for restaurant owners, but for every vendor that deals with each business owner. Without a change in the way the industry is handled and marketed, there will be crucial businesses disappearing from the landscape.

When business stops flowing in, it's hard to make expenditures that you as a business owner would usually make. Advertising seems to be one of the quickest venues to be affected. Unfortunately, when there's a drop in business, what we need to do most is push our business name out onto the streets. Whether you usually advertise in print, on the radio or television or other medium, when there's no money, no amount of catchy jingles are going to help.

What you need is to find a new, inexpensive way to get your name back in front of people. You have probably begun to offer specials and discounts to get people in the door. Make sure you have the means to draw the public in. It's the dawn of a new era, the dawn of a new breed of email marketing. Restaurant Newsletter Marketing is making a break in advertising woes. Find out more about how you can improve your business with Restaurant Newsletter Marketing, today.