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Food cost has crept from 28% to 36%

Same menu, same guests, only the margin is gone

Typical for: resort hotels with half board · properties without their own F&B controller · operations after a change of head chef

Documented by Hospis

Updated: 23 October 2026

How you recognize it

  • The food cost ratio appears on a sheet of paper once a month, and is a surprise every time
  • Supplier prices have risen, selling prices have not moved in two years
  • Portion sizes depend on who happens to be on the pass
  • Buffet and banqueting are costed like à la carte, or not at all
  • The head chef orders what he needs; nobody sees what sits unused or gets thrown away
  • Food cost exists only for the whole property, not split by kitchen, bar, breakfast and banqueting

Matching Hospi

VW

Valentin Walch

MAJOVA · F&B · Wine · Menu Architecture, Lech am Arlberg
Works with protel · Mews · Mews POS · Smart Host
AdviseImplement

Re-costs menu and recipes from the ground up, and builds a menu that carries margin instead of losing it.

Mapped to root cause
CostingMenu architectureRecipes & portionsPurchasing & stock
View profilePersonally vetted · independent match

Software that solved this problem

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POSPartnerExample

Beispiel Kassensystem

Implementation Hospi: Head of customer success

One POS for restaurant, bar and spa that talks to the PMS and makes margin visible.

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Which path fits your situation?

01

Diagnosis

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Cause fields and how to tell them apart

Food cost rarely rises for a single reason. Usually three or four small leaks run at once, and none of them shows up in the monthly report.

These fields are complete, and many properties get there on their own. That is what this page is for. The cost simply does not appear on an invoice: internal hours, a few attempts, and a season that keeps running in the meantime.

01

The menu was never re-costed

How you spot it

Recipes were costed once, years ago. Since then purchase prices have risen and selling prices have not, or only by "a few euros" across the board. Nobody knows which dish still carries margin today and which one eats it.

The way out

Cost every dish from scratch, with current purchase prices and real portions. Then rebuild the menu: put the high-margin sellers up front, remove or re-price the margin killers. That is a week of work, not a strategy project.

02

Portions and recipes are not fixed

How you spot it

The same dish weighs noticeably different depending on the cook and the time of day. There is no recipe card with quantities, or it sits in a drawer. Food cost fluctuates with the staff rota.

The way out

Fix recipes in writing with grammages and yields, use portioning aids, and train new cooks on them. Not as a control exercise from the chef, but so the kitchen delivers the same result with any team on shift.

03

Purchasing and stock run without control

How you spot it

Ordering follows instinct and habit, suppliers have not been compared for years, stock levels and spoilage are not recorded. What gets thrown away never appears as a number anywhere.

The way out

Set an ordering rhythm and minimum stock levels, record spoilage and write-offs consistently, and tender the three largest product groups once a year. Food cost often drops simply because someone is finally looking.

04

The number arrives too late and too coarse

How you spot it

Food cost is derived monthly from accounting and stocktaking, and never split by outlet. By the time the number exists the month is over, and the cause can no longer be traced.

The way out

Calculate food cost weekly, split by kitchen, bar, breakfast and banqueting. Only when the number is fast and granular enough can the kitchen react at all.

Frequently asked

Do I have to raise menu prices for this?
Not necessarily. Often it is enough to fix portions, record spoilage and replace three margin killers. Price increases are the last tool, not the first.
Do I need an inventory management system?
Recipes and a calculation rhythm come first. A system without fixed recipes only gets the wrong answer faster.
How fast will an effect show?
Recipe and menu measures take effect from the next ordering cycle. A reliable statement about the ratio needs at least one full month with a clean stocktake.
In Germany the VAT on food fell in 2026. Does that distort our ratio?
Possibly, yes. Since 1 January 2026, food in German hospitality has been permanently taxed at the reduced rate of 7 percent, while drinks stay at 19 percent. Food cost is calculated against net revenue. If you keep gross food prices unchanged, net revenue rises by a good eleven percent (1.19 divided by 1.07). A ratio of 36 percent then looks like roughly 32 percent on paper, without anything improving in the kitchen. So compare food net and separate from drinks, and restate prior-year figures at the new rate. For bundled rates such as half board, allocation rules apply, so check with your tax adviser. The rule applies to Germany only.

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Food cost has crept from 28% to 36%

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