A restaurant owner opens the monthly P&L and looks at the sales, then skips to the bottom line and closes the report.
Sounds familiar?
The report may be perfectly correct, but if they are the only two numbers to be reviewed, most of its value is left unreviewed.
A good restaurant bookkeeping system should not increase the dependence of restaurant owners on accountants. They should be more confident of their financials. It’s not necessary to stay up all night entering invoices or knowing every accounting principle. However, you must understand the reason why profits moved and what happened to the cost of food and labor and which issues require attention next week.
That’s the idea Bookkeeping Chef’s mission: to Automate the bookkeeping process that doesn’t require a proprietor’s time. It also provides restaurant owners with more precise financial data they can utilize.
Start With the Weekly Numbers Instead of just the month-end
A monthly P&L matters, but restaurants do not operate on a monthly basis. The managers schedule the labor for the week. The chef has ordered food for today. Vendors change prices now.
Bookkeeping Chef offers weekly flash reports on top costs together with monthly financial reports.
Prime cost includes cost of goods sold and labor. These are two main areas that can be swiftly moved in an establishment. The information provided by the Bookkeeping Chef indicates that the prime cost typically accounts for approximately 60% of sales in restaurants.
Imagine that sales have barely changed, but the cost of production increased. The percentage doesn’t give the answer. It gives the owner an opportunity to research.
Was there an increase in hours employed? Was overtime a factor? Did food cost move? A vendor invoice seemed unusually big? Did sales mix changes?
It’s better to identify the issue sooner rather before it gets worse.
Let Automation Handle the Repetitive Work
DIY bookkeeping doesn’t have to be a manual process of transferring POS amounts into spreadsheets after service.
Automating the bookkeeping process in restaurants can reduce repetitive data movements. The system integrates with systems like POS Payroll, QuickBooks, vendor platforms, and inventory management.
Automating just for the sake of automating is not the main goal.
This helps to cut down on the time spent on manually entering data. Also, it keeps current financial records so that owners can spend time on reviewing information, rather than collecting it.
It’s a totally new bookkeeping process for restaurants. Technology takes care of the mechanical aspects while the proprietor is involved with the financial aspects.
Ask more questions about P&L
A P&L will be much more manageable when you stop treating it like an accounting exam.
Start with the sales. Examine the costs that are required to generate the sales. Compare the performance of food and beverages. Consider labor. Continue to reduce your operating expenses.
Comparing the time spans is crucial.
If profits increased but sales grew, but profit wasn’t, something else between those two lines occurred. What did happen when prices for food went up? If the labor rate changed, compare staffing and sales activity. Investigate any numbers that seem strange, rather than assuming that the restaurant experienced a poor week.
Bookkeeping Chef provides monthly P&Ls, which are finished in five days. Owners can review the performance of their business without waiting for months before receiving financial statements.
Speed is essential, but the aim is to comprehend.
It’s not necessary to handle everything on your own when you DIY
It’s not necessary to become your own bookkeeper full-time If you’d like to avoid giving the entire financial responsibility over to another person.
Owners are still able to participate in the accounting process, without having to perform every task by hand.
It could be as simple as the use of automated system connections in order to keep information flowing, reviewing a weekly prime-cost report, analyzing the monthly P&L, and asking questions when something moves unexpectedly.
Bookkeeping services for restaurants that are specialized in restaurants can help owners understand the meaning of the reports by arranging the books and ensuring they are organized.
This does not mean that the bookkeeper is in a position to complete all bookkeeping functions.
The owner should be able to have a conversation with an P&L and have a stimulating discussion about the company.
The goal is financial independence, not more reports
Restaurants already generate massive amounts of data. A different dashboard might not be useful.
Value is realized when an employee can open the P&L report, be aware that there was a change, and then review the report on the primary cost.
Bookkeeping Chef’s approach combines restaurant bookkeeping automation, weekly reporting, monthly P&Ls, and restaurant-specific financial support to make that possible.
Automatize repetitive tasks. Check the primary cost every week. Learn to speak the language of your P&L.
You don’t have to be an accountant.
Owners who know the financial aspect of their own restaurants will be able make better choices.