[DuckFat]

Is 25% based on actual sales Vs invoices or is this just the number you get when you cost out and average your menu?
Your food cost % is determined at the end of the month after you do inventory and compare stock and purchases Vs sales.
If your boss just thinks you are on track at 25% what exactly is he/she expecting? I think I've had my food cost under 30% a few times but 33-35% is the norm. and that number has been a good bit higher in Clubs I have worked at and hotels that serve free breakfast or staff meal.

[greyeaglem]

A rule of thumb (and it's just that as every restaurant is different) is breakfast should run between 20-25%, lunch between 30-35% and dinner around 40%. Then you start fudging things. For instance, a diner that serves a grilled cheese sandwich will have that item at about 10-15% food cost and a steak that's maybe 40% food cost because to price the steak where it should be on a percentage basis would put it at too high a price for a lunch item. Suppliers have recently been on the "you don't take percentages to the bank, you take $" bandwagon which is true, but they don't want you looking at your portion costs on things that are overpriced. The truth is a combination of both percentage markup and profit amount. If you have a very high volume facility, you could make a fortune on grilled cheeses. If you have a small place like the one I work at, you need to focus on the amount of $ profit on each item. I could fill the place up 3X per service and if I have low priced items, the total profit I can realize won't keep us in business very long. I only have so many seats, so we focus on items that will generate higher $ profits. Also, if you have inventory on hand that you need to get rid of, don't be afraid to let it go for less than you'd want. It isn't doing you any good sitting around and if you don't sell it, it's a loss. Better to try to get at least your cost back out of it. A profit would be nice, but a push is better than a loss. Now we're seeing resataurants running big discounts in order to get their volume up. Trouble with that plan is that their profit margin is so low they're not really gaining anything and they're paying it out on labor. Better to cut staff to adjust to slower traffic and keep your prices where they need to be. That's what we did. We ramped up the quality, charged what we needed to and the owner says this is the second best year he's had in 17 years of business.

[gollihughj]

Food Cost and menu cost are very different beasts. The menu cost is pretty much theoretical. It is what the food cost would be if there were no other variables to influence it. It doesn't take into account labor cost or even overhead. It doesn't take into account that maybe your prep cook had an all nighter the night before so producing the normal items may have taken a bit longer today, which ups your labor cost and ultimately your food cost.
If you have a low labor cost, you can afford to run your food cost a little higher. There are so many things that can influence your food cost that you just can't put it all into one reply on a thread. I suggest you do some heavy reading and studying in your spare time, you won't regret it! "The Menu and the Cycle of Cost Control" by is a great start.
Don't be afraid to shop around with your suppliers either. Compare prices and let them know you're doing so! Saving a dollar here and there ads up over time.
Be strict about portion control, this is another item that can influence your food cost, it's amazing how much food you give away that you don't realize.
Hope this helps.