Calculators

How to price a dish and a set lunch menu (menú del día) in your restaurant

Work out the selling price from your ingredient costs, using a target food cost or a margin, and price the set lunch menu by adding up its dishes. With worked examples and Spanish restaurant VAT.

By Equipo de Weko · Reviewed on · 4 min read

A fish dish with potatoes and lentils, glasses and a basket of bread on a wooden table in a restaurant

The price of a dish comes from two figures: what it costs you to make and the share of the price you want to go on ingredients. With those, one division and VAT, you get a price that tells you what you earn, instead of one copied from the menu next door.

The dish

Choose how you want to give the cost: if you already know what one portion costs you, type it in; if not, work it out from the ingredients.

What you want to achieve

The 30% you see to begin with is a starting point, not a rule: every venue has its own numbers. Change it to yours.

Enter the cost of the dish and the percentage to get the result by email.

First: the cost of a portion

Before pricing anything you need to know what it costs to make. That figure comes from the costing sheet for the dish (escandallo): the sum of what all its ingredients cost, divided by the number of portions. If you do not have it yet, start there.

Method 1: by target food cost

You choose what percentage of the price before VAT you want to go on ingredients, and calculate:

Price before VAT = portion cost ÷ food cost (as a decimal)

Example: a dish that costs you €4.80 in ingredients and for which you are aiming for a 32% food cost.

  • Price before VAT: €4.80 ÷ 0.32 = €15.00
  • Price with VAT (10% in hospitality, article 91 of the Ley 37/1992): €15.00 × 1.10 = €16.50

Method 2: by margin

If you think more about what you want to earn than about what you spend, use the margin: the percentage of the price before VAT that is left after paying for the ingredients.

Price before VAT = portion cost ÷ (1 − margin as a decimal)

Example: a dish that costs you €2.40 and for which you want a 65% margin.

  • Price before VAT: €2.40 ÷ (1 − 0.65) = €2.40 ÷ 0.35 = €6.86
  • Price with VAT: €6.86 × 1.10 = €7.55

Both methods say the same thing: a 65% margin is a 35% food cost. Pick whichever you find more comfortable.

From the calculated price to the menu price

The result of the formula is rarely a nice-looking price. Rounding is the norm, but do it sensibly:

  1. Work out the price with VAT using the formula.
  2. Round to the menu price you prefer: up if the dish sells well, down if you need to give it a push.
  3. Take the VAT off the new price and recalculate the food cost, so you know what margin you really have left.

Rounding €7.55 down to €7.50 leaves you with a slightly higher food cost; rounding it up to €8.00, a slightly lower one. It is neither good nor bad: it is a decision you can now make with the numbers in front of you.

How to price a set lunch menu

A set lunch menu (menú del día) is a fixed price that bundles several dishes, so you price it by adding up the cost of everything it includes:

  • Starter: €1.10
  • Main course: €2.60
  • Dessert: €0.70
  • Bread and drink: €0.60

Total cost of the menu: €5.00. If you are aiming for a food cost of 38%, which is common for a set menu because the fixed price leaves less margin per dish:

  • Price before VAT: €5.00 ÷ 0.38 = €13.16
  • Price with VAT: €13.16 × 1.10 = €14.48

On the menu you would put it at €14.50. Check that price: before VAT it is €13.18, and €5.00 ÷ €13.18 = 37.9% food cost.

Tips to make the menu add up

  • Mix expensive dishes with cheap ones. If the main course is expensive, keep the starter and the dessert simple.
  • Offer choices, but few. Every extra dish on offer is one more recipe to cost and more stock that can go to waste.
  • Count the bread, the water and the coffee. Small amounts per diner that add up when repeated every day.

When to review your prices

Review the price of a dish when the price of its main ingredients changes, when you change the portion size, or when your other costs go up, such as staff or rent. If you recalculate with the tool above each time, it takes a minute.

And how much do you need to sell to cover your costs?

Pricing each dish properly is half of the sum. The other half is knowing how much has to go through the till each month to pay for everything: rent, wages, electricity, and also the food and drink that leave with every sale. That figure is your break-even point: below it you lose money, right on it you end up at zero, and from there on you start to earn.

If you also enter what you currently bill, you will see your margin of safety: how far your sales could fall before you start losing money. It helps you decide whether you can ride out a slow month or whether it is worth raising a price.

Lo que pagas cada mes, venda mucho o poco

Son los gastos que llegan igual aunque un mes no entre nadie: el alquiler, los sueldos, la luz y el agua, la gestoría… Pon los que tengas; los demás déjalos en blanco. Sin impuestos.

Lo que se te va por cada cosa que vendes

Estos gastos suben y bajan con las ventas. Pon qué parte de lo que cobras se va en cada cosa: si de cada cien que cobras treinta se van en ingredientes, pon 30. Con la comida o con la bebida basta; pon la que tengas.

Tu día a día

Con el gasto medio de cada cliente y los días que abres, pasamos la cifra del mes a clientes y a días.

¿Y cuánto facturas ahora? (opcional)

Si lo pones, te decimos si estás por encima o por debajo del punto de equilibrio y cuánto margen de seguridad tienes: cuánto podrían caer tus ventas antes de empezar a perder dinero.

Pon al menos un gasto fijo, lo que se va en comida o en bebida, el gasto medio por cliente y los días que abres para poder recibirlo por correo.

Do it yourself, for free

Food cost and selling price calculatorTell us what one portion costs you and the food cost or margin you want. We tell you what price to sell it at.Calculadora del punto de equilibrioPon lo que pagas cada mes y lo que te cuesta la comida y la bebida. Te decimos cuánto tienes que facturar, y cuántos clientes tienes que servir, para no perder dinero.

And if you want this to run by itself

Weko keeps up to date what you have just read, so you do not have to repeat it or remember every change: you take care of your business and Weko takes care of the rest.

See how Weko handles it day to dayCreate your Weko account

Frequently asked questions

How do I calculate the selling price of a dish?

Divide the ingredient cost of one portion by the food cost you are aiming for, written as a decimal. That gives you the price before VAT; then add VAT to get the menu price.

What VAT rate applies to food in a restaurant?

Food served in the hospitality sector is taxed at 10%, under article 91 of the Ley 37/1992. Always check your specific case with your accountant or on the Agencia Tributaria website.

Can I put a round price on the menu?

Yes, and it is the usual practice. Work out the price with the formula first, then round it to the nearest figure that suits your menu, checking what your food cost becomes at that price.

How do I calculate the price of a set lunch menu?

Add up the cost of the dishes it includes (starter, main, dessert, bread and drink) and treat the total as the cost of a single portion. Then apply the same formula.

Keep reading

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