Restaurant inventory: from delivery to dish
Stock control is where restaurants lose money quietly: over-ordering, waste, portions that drift and deliveries nobody checks. This guide sets out a simple routine, the reports to look at each week, and what a POS should record.
Start with a short list of items
Every ingredient and packaging item needs a unit (kilogram, litre or piece), a supplier, a pack size and a minimum level, called the par. Start with the items that make up most of your food cost. A short list you count properly is more useful than a long one you never count.
Check every delivery
- Count and weigh the delivery against the supplier invoice, not against the delivery note alone.
- Record price changes and substitutions on the day they arrive.
- Put new stock behind the old, so the oldest stock is used first (first in, first out).
- Reject damaged or short items, and record the reason.
Count on a fixed routine
Count the high-value items every week, such as meat, fish, seafood and imported goods, and the rest every month. Count on the same day each week, by the same person or by a named person who records the result, so the figures compare from one week to the next.
Record waste, staff meals and transfers
- Spoilage and breakage, each with a reason code
- Staff meals and tasting portions
- Transfers between kitchen, bar and branches
- Over-portioning found during checks, so the recipe can be corrected
Compare theory with actual
Theoretical usage is what your recipes say you should have used. Actual usage is opening stock, plus deliveries, minus closing stock. The gap is your loss. Compare the two each week for the top items and each month for everything. The method is the same one used in our food cost per dish guide.
What a POS or stock system should do
- Deduct stock by recipe when a dish is sold, not only by the item sold
- Show theoretical and actual usage for each ingredient
- Let you change a recipe from a set date, without changing the menu
- Export counts, deliveries and waste history
- Keep taking orders when the internet is slow, and sync later
Where AlienPOS fits
AlienPOS includes inventory, so you can see stock next to your sales. Whether it deducts stock by recipe is one of the questions to put to us. Ask it, and we will answer in writing.
For the full list of questions to ask any restaurant POS vendor, read the restaurant POS checklist.
Questions people ask
How often should a restaurant count stock?
Weekly for high-value items, and monthly for the rest. Count on the same day each week, so the figures compare.
What is a par level?
The minimum stock you want on hand before you reorder. It covers the time between ordering and delivery, plus a safety margin. Review the pars when your menu or your sales change.
Do I need inventory software for a small kitchen?
Not always. A simple sheet with pars, counts and a waste log can work for a small menu. Software becomes worth it when stock must deduct by recipe, or when you run more than one outlet.
This guide is general information. Your numbers will differ, so use your own invoices and counts. Talk to us for a written answer to any question here.