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Operations Glossary

The operator's vocabulary.

23 plain-English definitions of the metrics and kitchen shorthand that actually run a restaurant — the way an operator uses them, not a textbook.

Cost & profit metrics
Prime cost
Prime cost is the sum of cost of goods sold (food and beverage) plus total labor cost (wages, salaries, payroll taxes, and benefits), expressed as a percentage of total sales.
Food cost percentage
Food cost percentage is the cost of food (and non-alcohol beverages) sold during a period, expressed as a percentage of total food sales for that period.
Labor cost percentage
Labor cost percentage is the sum of gross wages, salaries, payroll taxes, and benefits for a period, expressed as a percentage of total sales for that period.
Occupancy cost percentage
Occupancy cost percentage is the sum of rent, property taxes, building insurance, and the building-tied share of utilities , expressed as a percentage of total sales.
Cost of goods sold
Cost of goods sold (COGS) is the dollar value of food and beverage used during a period — not the dollar value purchased.
Pour cost
Pour cost represents the cost of alcoholic beverage poured (or sold) during a period, expressed as a percentage of total beverage sales for that period.
Comp percentage
Comp percentage is the dollar value of complimentary food and beverage given away during a period, expressed as a percentage of total sales for that period.
Recipe & menu metrics
Yield factor
Yield factor (also called edible portion yield or EP yield ) is the percentage of an as-purchased (AP) ingredient that becomes edible portion (EP) after trim, cooking loss, and was
Plate cost
Plate cost is the total ingredient cost of a single menu item as served, with adjustments applied for yield loss (trim, cooking shrinkage, waste).
Contribution margin
Contribution margin is menu price minus plate cost, expressed in dollars or as a percentage of menu price.
Average check
Average check is total sales divided by total number of paying guests (covers) for a period.
Capital & productivity
Break-even point
Break-even point is the sales level where total revenue equals total costs (variable + fixed). Below it, the restaurant loses money; above it, every dollar adds profit at the contr
Sales per labor hour
Sales per labor hour (SPLH) is total sales divided by total labor hours worked during the same period.
Cover
A cover is a single paying guest. A reservation for four equals four covers, not one ticket. Industry usage: "We did 220 covers Saturday" = 220 paying guests served. "Average check
Turn time
Turn time is the average time a table is occupied by a single party, measured from seating to clear. Capacity formula: Maximum covers per service = (Seats × Service window minutes
Kitchen vocabulary
Mise en place
Mise en place (French: "everything in its place") is the prep work and station organization done before service in a restaurant kitchen. Concrete: chopped vegetables in pans, sauce
Par level
Par level is the minimum quantity of an inventory item that should be on hand to operate without running out before the next replenishment.
Fire / All day
Fire: the command from expo (or the chef) to begin cooking a dish. "Fire table 12 mains" = start cooking the entrees for table 12 now. All day: the running total of a specific item
86
To 86 something is to remove it from availability. The kitchen has run out of an ingredient ("86 the salmon"), an item has been discontinued ("we 86'd the duck two weeks ago"), or
In the weeds
"In the weeds" means overwhelmed during service. A server who can't keep up with their tables; a line cook who can't fire orders fast enough; an expo whose ticket rail is six deep
FOH / BOH
FOH (Front of House): the public-facing operation. Servers, hosts, bartenders, food runners, bussers — the dining room, bar, and waiting area. BOH (Back of House): everything behin
People & compliance
Tip credit
Tip credit is a federal/state wage provision allowing employers of tipped employees to pay a base hourly rate below standard minimum wage, provided tips raise total compensation to
Turnover rate
Turnover rate is the percentage of employees who left during a period (voluntary + terminated), divided by the average employee count for that period.