Plate Cost and Menu Pricing
Plate cost, suggested menu price at target food-cost %, contribution margin, sanity flag.
Example
You enter
- Ingredients name ribeye 8oz, lbs 0.5, cost per lb 16; name potato, lbs 0.4, cost per lb 1.2; name veg side, lbs 0.25, cost per lb 3
- Target food cost (%) 30
You get
- Plate cost $9.23
- Suggested price $30.77
- Contribution margin $21.54
- Sanity ok
Checked against published worked examples from: NRA / CIA menu-engineering practice.
Details, formula, and sources
Formula or tablePlate cost = Σ (ingredient EP cost × portion size). Suggested menu price = plate cost / target food-cost % (typical 28-32% in casual dining, 22-28% fine dining). Contribution margin = price − plate cost.
Source and editionEngineering-practice food-cost benchmarks (NRA / National Restaurant Association published industry medians) by name; USDA FoodData Central for ingredient costs when bundled.
Free accessNRA Restaurant Industry Forecast free at restaurant.org.
What governsThe thermometer on the food is the verdict. Local health department governs.
API field namesingredients, target_food_cost_pct, plate_cost, suggested_price, contribution_margin, sanity_flag
- Default target food-cost % 30% unless user supplies (casual-dining median per NRA)NRA Restaurant Industry Forecast