Food cost and recipe cards: how to cost a dish correctly
Food cost is the ratio between the cost of the ingredients in a portion and its selling price excluding VAT. It is calculated from a recipe card, not from intuition. This guide shows how to cost a dish correctly, with a complete recipe card, real numbers and target ranges by category.
The formula, in short
- List every ingredient with its net weight, exactly as it lands on the plate.
- Divide the purchase price by the unit of measure and multiply it by the weight on the recipe card.
- Add technical loss: what disappears during cleaning, trimming and cooking.
- Add up all the lines — the result is the production cost of the portion.
- Divide the production cost by the selling price excluding VAT: food cost % = cost ÷ net price × 100.
A complete recipe card: carbonara, one portion
Recipe card with weights, purchase prices and plated cost
| Ingredient | Net weight | Purchase price | Plated cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spaghetti | 120 g | 9.00 RON/kg | 1.08 RON |
| Guanciale | 60 g | 45.00 RON/kg | 2.70 RON |
| Egg yolks (2) | 40 g | 0.55 RON each | 1.10 RON |
| Pecorino | 30 g | 90.00 RON/kg | 2.70 RON |
| Pepper, salt, oil | — | — | 0.25 RON |
| Total raw materials | 250 g | — | 7.83 RON |
| Final cost (incl. 5% technical loss) | — | — | 8.22 RON |
What the example tells you
The menu price is 42.00 RON, VAT included. At the 11% reduced rate for restaurant services, the net price is 42.00 ÷ 1.11 = 37.84 RON.
Food cost = 8.22 ÷ 37.84 = 21.7%. The gross margin left on the portion is 37.84 − 8.22 = 29.62 RON.
21.7% is a good result for pasta. If it had climbed above 35%, you would have three options: raise the price, cut the portion or change supplier for the priciest ingredient — here pecorino and guanciale, which together account for 66% of the cost.
Yield matters more than the price on the invoice
Example: you buy beef tenderloin at 120 RON/kg. After trimming, 780 g per kilo remain usable — a 78% yield.
The real cost of the meat that reaches the plate is not 120 RON/kg but 120 ÷ 0.78 = 153.85 RON/kg. A recipe card that ignores yield understates the meat cost by almost 22%.
Rule of thumb: for meat, fish and root vegetables, record the yield measured in your own kitchen, not the textbook percentage.
Table: target food cost, by category
Usual food cost ranges across the categories of a restaurant menu
| Category | Usual range | What drives the result |
|---|---|---|
| Alcoholic drinks | 18–24% | Pour size and discipline behind the bar |
| Coffee and hot drinks | 12–20% | The milk and the cup, not the coffee |
| Pasta and pizza | 20–28% | Weighing portions instead of estimating them |
| Meat and fish dishes | 30–40% | Trim and cooking yield |
| Soups and sides | 15–22% | They balance the menu average |
| House desserts | 20–28% | Labour, which is almost always ignored |
What the law says
- The recipe card (the dish's technical sheet) is the internal document that yields the ingredient list and, with it, the allergen declaration.
- The 14 allergens must be communicated to the guest for non-prepacked food (EU Reg. 1169/2011, art. 44).
- The price and the portion size must be fully displayed on the menu; ANPC checks that consumers are correctly informed (OG 21/1992).
- Restaurant services carry the 11% reduced VAT rate, so food cost is always computed against the net price.
- Any recipe change that alters the allergens requires an immediate update of the menu shown to guests.
Common mistakes
- Calculating food cost against the VAT-inclusive price — the result comes out about 10% lower than reality.
- Using the gross weight from the supplier invoice instead of the net weight on the plate.
- Forgetting the side, the sauce and the delivery packaging — three lines that often add 15–20% to the cost.
- Updating the recipe card once a year, even though purchase prices change monthly.
- Looking only at the percentage and ignoring the margin in cash: a dish at 35% food cost with a 40 RON margin earns more than one at 20% with a 12 RON margin.
How 4restaurants.net helps
- Every dish has a recipe card with weights, and the production cost is recalculated automatically when an ingredient price changes.
- Yield is set per ingredient, so the cost of trimmed meat enters the calculation correctly.
- The QR digital menu shows exactly the prices and weights from the recipe cards, with no second list to maintain.
- Reports show the food cost and margin of every dish sold, not just the venue average.