Food Cost Basics for a Jordanian Restaurant

What is the food cost percentage formula?

The basic formula is: food cost percentage = food used cost ÷ food sales × 100. For a period, food used cost is usually opening inventory plus purchases minus closing inventory. Use the same date range for inventory, purchases, and food sales. Nexara can hold the ingredients, counts, purchases, and food-cost data used in that review.

Example: a branch starts the week with 1,200 JOD of food, buys 2,800 JOD, and finishes with 1,000 JOD. Food used cost is 3,000 JOD. If food sales are 10,000 JOD, the food cost percentage is 30%.

Choose one definition and use it every week. If packaging, staff meals, or cleaning materials enter one period's calculation but not the next, the comparison will be misleading.

How do you cost a restaurant recipe?

Recipe costing starts with the quantity used in one portion and the usable purchase cost of each ingredient. A 5 kg box of chicken may produce less saleable cooked chicken after trimming and cooking, so record the yield before setting the portion cost.

1. Record the supplier purchase unit and price, such as 5 kg of chicken for 24 JOD.
2. Record the usable yield after trimming or preparation.
3. Convert the usable quantity into grams, millilitres, or pieces.
4. Enter the quantity used in one portion.
5. Add sauces, garnishes, and included sides.
6. Divide the portion cost by the selling price to calculate the item's theoretical food cost percentage.

If the meal sells for 4.50 JOD, the illustrative portion food cost is 1.30 ÷ 4.50 × 100, or 28.9%. This is a theoretical result. The period result may be higher when waste, over-portioning, spoilage, staff meals, missing counts, or unrecorded purchases affect stock.

Nexara includes ingredients, units, recipes, recipe costing, and prep yield. A manager can review those figures beside stock counts and waste records.

What does inventory tracking add?

A recipe tells you what should be used. Inventory tracking records what was bought, counted, wasted, requested, and left in the branch. The gap between theoretical and actual usage points to portion control, spoilage, receiving errors, or unrecorded consumption.

Count high-value and fast-moving ingredients more often. Use the same unit each time. A tomato counted by the piece one day and by kilograms the next will create a false movement. Keep unopened stock separate from prepared food when the recipe or yield requires it.

Nexara provides inventory counts, count progress, branch inventory, suppliers, purchase orders, stock alerts, stock suggestions, waste analytics, and food-cost analytics. It also supports branch stock requests when more than one branch shares supply responsibility.

How often should a Jordanian restaurant count stock?

There is no single schedule for every branch. A small restaurant may count key proteins, dairy, cooking oil, and high-value produce daily, then complete a wider count weekly. A larger operation may assign daily counts to critical items and a full count at month end.

• Count at the same time, preferably before deliveries and preparation change the stock.
• Use receiving records, waste entries, transfers, and purchase orders.
• Check the items with the largest theoretical and actual difference first.
• Record a reason for waste instead of editing the count.
• Compare the result with sales for the same period.
• Review supplier price changes before changing menu prices.

A morning count gives the kitchen a known starting point. Nexara has a morning inventory workflow template in NexaraFlow. The count still depends on accurate measuring and entry.

For a practical routine, see the morning inventory count guide and how to do the morning count.

What can Nexara do, and what does it not do?

Nexara sits beside the till as the order and operations layer. Orders from the website, app, call center, table QR, Talabat, and Careem can arrive in one live order queue. Its inventory and costing tools cover ingredients, recipes, counts, waste, suppliers, purchase orders, branch requests, and food-cost analysis.

Accounting software or an accountant handles statutory accounts, financial statements, and filings. Nexara handles restaurant operating data and costing.

See the features page for the order and operations layer and the FAQ for its role beside the cash register. Plans include a free plan plus paid plans per branch in JOD; current rates are available on request.

How should an owner review food cost each week?

End the review with decisions the kitchen can act on. Compare the actual percentage with the recipe expectation, then inspect the items causing the gap. Nexara's food-cost analytics and stock records give the manager a place to make that comparison.

1. Confirm opening and closing counts use the same units and valuation method.
2. Check purchases against supplier invoices and receiving records.
3. Compare theoretical recipe usage with actual stock movement.
4. Review waste by ingredient, reason, branch, and date.
5. Check whether portion sizes or recipe yields changed.
6. Review menu prices when supplier costs have moved materially.
7. Assign one person to verify the next count.

Use food cost beside other restaurant measures. The restaurant KPI guide covers the wider operating picture. Labour, rent, delivery commissions, discounts, taxes, and other operating costs require their own review.