Food cost calculator for every dish on your menu
If you don't know what each plate costs, you can't tell which dishes make money. Send your recipes and your latest supplier invoice, and your agent builds an Excel food cost calculator: cost per portion, food cost percentage, a suggested menu price for your target, and the dishes that need a fix.
The prompt
- Build me a food cost calculator in Excel for my [TYPE OF BUSINESS]. Ingredient prices: [ATTACH INVOICES OR PRICE LIST]. Recipes with quantities per portion: [RECIPES]. Current menu prices: [MENU PRICES]. Make 3 sheets. Ingredients: purchase unit, pack price, yield % (trim and waste, use typical values if I didn't give one and mark them), cost per gram, ml or each. Recipes: one block per dish with each ingredient, quantity, cost, total plate cost, food cost % at the current price and the price needed to hit [TARGET FOOD COST PERCENT]. Summary: all dishes sorted by food cost %, flagged red above target. Use real formulas, so when I change one ingredient price every dish updates. Prices are [CURRENCY], tax [INCLUDED OR NOT]. Then tell me in 5 bullets which dishes to reprice or re-portion.
What to change
- [TYPE OF BUSINESS]: E.g. "burger restaurant", "café", "catering company".
- [ATTACH INVOICES OR PRICE LIST]: Attach supplier invoices (PDF or photos) or an Excel price list. Your agent reads them.
- [RECIPES]: Each dish with quantities, e.g. "Classic burger: 150 g beef patty, 1 brioche bun, 20 g cheddar...". Or attach recipe cards.
- [MENU PRICES]: Selling price for each dish, or attach your menu.
- [TARGET FOOD COST PERCENT]: Many restaurants aim for about 28 to 35%. Use your own target if you have one.
- [CURRENCY]: E.g. USD, EUR, GBP.
- [INCLUDED OR NOT]: Whether your menu prices include sales tax or VAT, so the % is calculated on net price.
Example result
- Summary sheet (illustrative numbers)
- • Fries (side): plate cost 0.62, price 4.50, food cost 13.8%
- • Classic burger: plate cost 3.48, price 13.00, food cost 26.8%
- • Chicken sandwich: plate cost 3.95, price 12.00, food cost 32.9% (red)
- • Double smash burger: plate cost 5.40, price 15.00, food cost 36.0% (red)
- • Steak salad: plate cost 6.10, price 16.00, food cost 38.1% (red)
- Classic burger: recipe block
- • Beef patty 150 g at 11.20/kg, yield 100%: 1.68
- • Brioche bun 1 each: 0.55
- • Cheddar 20 g at 12.50/kg: 0.25
- • Lettuce, tomato, onion 45 g: 0.22
- • House sauce 25 ml: 0.18
- • Pickles 15 g: 0.10
- • Packaging / napkin allowance: 0.50
- • Plate cost: 3.48. Price for 32% target: 3.48 / 0.32 = 10.88. You're at 13.00, so this dish is healthy.
- Formulas used
- • Cost per gram = pack price / (pack weight x yield %)
- • Ingredient cost = quantity x cost per gram
- • Food cost % = plate cost / net menu price
- • Target price = plate cost / target %
- What to fix first
- • Steak salad (38.1%): steak is 4.20 of the cost. Cut from 180 g to 150 g and add grains, or raise the price to about 19
- • Double smash burger (36.0%): raise to 16.50 or switch to a 2 x 90 g build
- • Chicken sandwich (32.9%): close to target. A small price rise of 0.50 fixes it
- • Lettuce yield was set to 75% (a typical value). Weigh your trim for a week to replace it
- • Re-run this when your supplier prices change: attach the new invoice and say "update the calculator"
How to do it with todo.is
- Copy the prompt and fill in your business type, target and currency.
- Attach your supplier invoices and recipes, or paste them into the message.
- Send it in todo.is. Your agent builds the Excel file with live formulas and explains the results.
- Ask follow-ups like "what if beef goes up 10%?" or set a monthly to-do to refresh prices from new invoices.
Tips for a better result
- Use yield, not purchase weight. A whole salmon or a head of lettuce loses a lot in trimming, and ignoring that hides real cost.
- Include small things: oil, sauces, garnish and takeaway packaging add up per plate.
- Calculate on net price. If your menu price includes VAT or sales tax, take it out first.
- Look at contribution margin too. A dish with high food cost % can still make more cash per plate than a cheap one.
food cost calculator: FAQ
- What is a good food cost percentage? Many full-service restaurants aim for roughly 28 to 35%, but it varies by concept. Fine dining, pizza, bars and cafés all run different targets.
- How do you calculate food cost per plate? Add up the cost of every ingredient in one portion, using the cost per gram or unit after trim and waste. Divide that by the net menu price to get the food cost percentage.
- Can it read my supplier invoices? Yes. Attach PDFs or photos and your agent pulls out items, pack sizes and prices. Check the ingredient sheet once, since handwritten or blurry invoices can be misread.
- Is the food cost calculator a Google Sheet? You get an Excel (.xlsx) file, which you can also open in Google Sheets. With Google Drive connected, your agent can save it there.
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