Which dishes on your menu really pay?
Enter the portions sold of each dish, its price and its food cost: the menu engineering matrix tells you what to keep, what to push and what to drop to waste less.
Your figures
€
€
€
€
€
€
€
€
€
€
€
€
%
The result
Weighted average margin
€6.78
Popularity threshold
11.7%
| Dish | Share of sales | Margin | Class |
|---|---|---|---|
| Margherita pizza | 38.6% | €4.76 | Workhorse |
| Spicy salami pizza | 21.7% | €5.63 | Workhorse |
| Spaghetti carbonara | 25.3% | €8.81 | Star |
| Sliced beef steak | 7.2% | €11.50 | Hidden gem |
| Porcini mushroom risotto | 4.2% | €11.35 | Hidden gem |
| Octopus salad | 3% | €6.23 | To rethink |
Sells a lot and earns well: keep it, feature it and leave it alone.
Sells a lot but earns little: review the portion and the recipe, or adjust the price.
Earns well but sells little: give it a better spot, rename it or have the staff recommend it.
Sells little and earns little: rethink the recipe and the price or take it off the menu, along with the stock you risk throwing away.
Use the sales of one period for every dish, the last month for instance. A dish is popular when it sells at least 70% of the share it would have if every dish sold the same; it is profitable when its margin excluding VAT reaches the weighted average of the menu. The four groups are those of Kasavana and Smith's method (Stars, Plowhorses, Puzzles, Dogs).
Sales per dish, without counting by hand
Menu engineering is only as good as the data you feed it. With Takeat you already have it.
Every order is recorded
Guests order from their phone and every dish sold is tracked: no order pads to add up at the end of the month.
Bring out the hidden gems
In the digital menu you reorder categories and dishes in a moment: move the ones that earn well and sell little to the top.
Rethink a dish without reprinting
Price, description or place on the menu change with one tap, and the digital menu is updated at once.
More free tools for restaurant owners
Frequently asked questions
What is menu engineering?
A method from the 1980s (Kasavana and Smith) that rates every dish on two axes: how well it sells and how much margin it leaves. The result is four groups, which here are called Stars, Workhorses, Hidden gems and To rethink (Stars, Plowhorses, Puzzles and Dogs in the original method).
How do I know which dishes to take off the menu?
The candidates are the dishes to rethink: they sell little and leave a below-average margin. Try a new recipe or price first; if that is not enough, dropping them simplifies the kitchen and cuts stock, and so food waste. Before removing one, check whether it has a role, such as being the only vegan option.
Which sales period should I use?
The same period for every dish, long enough to be representative: usually a month, or a season if the menu changes with the seasons. Leave out daily specials and dishes just introduced.
Is the margin worked out with or without VAT?
Without: VAT (usually 10% in Italy) comes off the menu price, then the food cost. What is left is what the dish really contributes to staff, rent and profit.
Sales of every dish, without counting
With Takeat every order arrives digitally: you already have the sales per dish, without counting them by hand. The first five restaurants to sign up use it for free.
Try Takeat for free