Ken Burgin

Restaurant Productivity

Cost Control

restaurant profitability

What Profits Are Used For: An Explanation for Restaurant Staff

February 12, 2018 No Comments

Sales – costs = profit. It’s simple. If profits are good, there are more smiles and generosity – the fundamentals of hospitality. If money is tight, there’s not much for extras, and shortcuts will usually cut into service and quality. Everyone needs to understand restaurant profitability. It’s easy for staff to misunderstand the profitability of a business – they assume that you’re making money on the first coffee sold on Monday morning, and it’s $3.50

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The ‘Stage 2’ Error That Can Fatally Weaken a Cafe or Restaurant

February 3, 2018 No Comments

A conversation with a new operator during the week got me thinking about a classic and potentially lethal startup mistake: Stage 1 and Stage 2 thinking. This approach basically says “let’s get this new place open as quickly as we can, even though we don’t have enough money to do it properly. After a few months when we are profitable, we can afford Stage 2 and get the job finished.” Stage 2 items include things

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Simplifying Business – a Good Theme for 2018

January 8, 2018 No Comments

Simpler is usually better. Processes can be done more quickly, there are fewer costs, fewer moving parts, less need for highly-skilled staff, and fewer mistakes – this is not about ‘dumbing down’. Make SIMPLIFY your theme for 2018, rather than a list of ‘resolutions’ that are soon forgotten. To get started, make a list of things that seem to be complicated and difficult. Ask your staff – they’ll have plenty of suggestions! Here are a few

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How to Measure Restaurant Kitchen Costs and Efficiency

January 6, 2018 No Comments

There’s a business saying: ‘if you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it!’ Smart managers need reliable and accurate figures on which to base decisions. If there are problems, you can take corrective action quickly. If you are having success, you’ll know what to do more of! They also give a fuller understanding of what happened – if it’s a quiet month (when  suppliers are telling you ‘everyone’s quiet!’) you may see that some of

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Payment and Ordering Systems seen at the Fine Food Show…

September 20, 2017 No Comments

Credit card processor Tyro were at the recent Fine Food Show in Sydney, well known for their POS integration and keen pricing. For the very small operators, note that you can buy now buy a Square system from Officeworks for $25! A quick win for every operator is to get onto the merchant services department of your bank and ask for a  rate review – most people don’t even know what they’re paying. Your challenge is

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Another day, another story of restaurant fraud…

September 3, 2017 No Comments

Trusted, helpful staff given too much responsibility by weary owners, and a lack of systems for proper checking. How many times do operators make ‘trust’ their default mode with employees, instead of ‘check and verify’. When you work with cash, food and alcohol and have haphazard security, the thieves will soon find you. It was a bit sad to go through ‘the facts of life’, again, with a couple of new cafe owners… Your Point

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How to Get Restaurant Wage Costs Down to 20%

August 23, 2017 No Comments

There was an audible gasp and some alarmed looks when business accounts expert Trudi Yip told our Smart Operator workshop that 20% wage costs are achievable. In a restaurant or cafe. With Australian wages. I received a couple of concerned emails the next day about this figure, and asked Trudi to explain her bold statement. It fitted in with the final part of her presentation when she reminded us of the importance of sales building

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