The Menu: The Foundation for Control
Step #: Determine the average contribution margin required per guest.
This can be accomplished by using the following formula:
NonFood Costs Required Profit
Number Expected Guests Average Contribution
Margin Required per Guest
$
Step #: Determine the base selling price for a menu item. This is done by
adding the average contribution margin required per guest to the menu item's
precosted food cost. The base selling price for a menu item with a $ food
cost in this example Step # would be $$ or $
Advantages of this method are its ease of use and practicality when reason
ably accurate information is available from the operating budget. It is also useful in
those operations where costs associated with serving each guest are basically the
same, with the exception of varying food costs. Also, this method tends to reduce
the range of selling prices on the menu, since the only difference is reflected in the
precosted food cost incorporated in the selling price. This method also assumes
that each guest should pay the same share of the property's nonfood costs and
profit requirements sometimes called the "seat tax"
Ratio Pricing Method. The ratio pricing method determines the relationship