Food cost: the five leaks that quietly eat your margin

Food cost is rarely a pricing problem. It is a habit problem, and habits leak in five predictable places.

Portioning without scales. If the same dish leaves the pass at different weights, your cost is a range, not a number. Scales and portion tools pay for themselves within weeks.

Prep without a par list. Over-prep becomes waste; under-prep becomes panic and improvised substitutions at full price. A written par list, adjusted weekly, removes both.

Purchasing without comparison, receiving without checks, and menus that never get re-costed. Prices move every month; a menu priced last spring is quietly financing your supplier. Re-cost your top ten sellers every quarter and the margin comes back on its own.