Mise n' Price

Guides for costing food

Short answers to the questions chefs actually type in at midnight. Real numbers, worked out, ex-VAT.

  1. GP calculator inc VAT: take the VAT off firstWork out GP on the price without VAT. On an £18 dish costing £4.50, GP is 70%, not the 75% you see on the VAT-inclusive price.
  2. What should my food GP be? UK targets and food cost %Most UK kitchens aim for 65–75% GP on food, which is a 25–35% food cost, both worked on the ex-VAT price. Here is how to check yours and move it.
  3. How to cost a dish: a UK chef's worked examplePrice each ingredient per gram, multiply by what goes on the plate, add it all up, then divide by the ex-VAT menu price. Worked example inside.
  4. Automatic food cost from supplier invoices: how it worksCost one dish from one supplier invoice by hand: case size to price per kg, ex-VAT, which recipes it hits. Then what an invoice scan does for you.
  5. Recipe costing spreadsheet vs software: an honest guideA recipe costing spreadsheet works for about 10 dishes. Here is how to lay one out properly, where it breaks, and when software is worth paying for.
  6. Yield and waste in recipe costing: why your dish costs more than you thinkCost what you buy, not what you plate. How to test yield, account for trim and cooking loss, and stop your dish cost reading 15% too low.
  7. How to price a menu in the UK: GP target first, then the dish next to itWork out each price from your GP target, take VAT into account, then check it against the rest of the menu. Why markup is not margin.
  8. How to cost a tasting menu: budget per cover, then fit each course inside itSet the ingredient budget per guest from the menu price and VAT, split it across courses, and count the snacks, bread and swaps everyone forgets.
  9. Best recipe costing software in the UK: a fair look at who fits whomMise n' Price, KitchenNmbrs, Jelly, MarketMan, Apicbase and meez compared by who they suit, what they do and what they cost. Written by one of them.
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