How to Use a Budget to Predict Restaurant Profitability

 In 1. David Scott Peters, budget, Food Costs, SMART Systems, Video Blog

If you wish you could make more money in your restaurant, let me tell you how to use this system: a restaurant budget.

Have you ever said this?

“I don’t need a restaurant budget. I know my numbers.”

You certainly aren’t the first restaurant owner to say it. And for some reason “budget” is a bad word for many restaurant owners. But you have to plan to be profitable and you can’t plan without a restaurant budget.

I am a broken record at times, repeating the same messages over and over again. I know it! Certain messages are that damn important. I teach that the two most important systems any restaurant should have in place are a restaurant budget and recipe costing cards.

You know what two systems most restaurants never have in place? Budgets and recipe costing cards! The number one reason I hear is, “They’re too hard.” I usually answer back with, “waaaa, waaaa,” the sound of a crying baby.

It’s not that I don’t care. It’s that it’s an easy excuse to not do a budget and also to set yourself up for failure.

A budget is critical. Here is why:

1. A budget takes you from being a reactive management team to a proactive management team.
2. A budget ensures that you know what your financial goals and targets are. This allows you to examine how you are operating, determine what systems you have in place that people are not using and what systems you need to put into place to change your bottom line.
3. Budgets are the keystone to being profitable on purpose, rather than just being lucky.

To learn more about the importance of budgets, read our free special report, Breaking Away from the Insanity: How to easily take control of your restaurant and make more money. Download it here

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