Cash flow, break-even, KPIs and strategic decisions backed by numbers.
Cooking classes in your own kitchen can be a genuinely profitable extra revenue line — or an expensive way to fill your best evening with the wrong guests. Work it out with the break-even calculator.
Read articleA regular customer asks if she can open your place in her city. Run the 7 numbers before you say yes: entry fee, royalties, setup costs and the legal cooling-off period.
Read article"I'll sell the restaurant" is a bet, not a pension plan. 7 numbers on what self-employed hospitality owners actually save — and what their business realistically pays out.
Read articleWho actually takes over your restaurant? 7 concrete questions on succession, plus a live score that shows how ready you really are — and what's still missing.
Read articleFood truck or a fixed location? 5 numbers behind the decision — the hourly throughput ceiling, fixed versus variable cost, the commissary kitchen most budgets forget, and a comparator that turns your own numbers into a payback time for both.
Read articleA delivery-only second brand out of your own kitchen sounds like free revenue. Run the commission, the food cost and your idle hours through the numbers and you'll know if it actually is.
Read articleYou know your pour cost to the cent. What a regular guest is worth over the years, usually not. Work out the real lifetime value of a loyal guest, with a free calculator.
Read articleHow many guests can your restaurant legally seat? The 4 numbers behind occupant load, exit width and travel distance — plus a calculator for your own floor plan.
Read articleYour hood pulls 4,800 m³ an hour out of the building. Where does that air come from? Work out your air balance: the airflow, what is dragged through your dining room, and the yearly bill.
Read articleFrom 27 September 2026, "climate neutral" or "eco" on your menu needs proof. 4 rules from the new EU law, plus an honest way to actually show a dish's climate impact.
Read articleHow much of your gift card sales never gets redeemed, when you actually owe VAT on it, and the one figure you should be able to state about your own books. Work it out for your venue.
Read articleYour bank balance says €14,000, but a big chunk of it already belongs to someone else — the tax office, your gift cards, your suppliers. Work out what's actually yours.
Read articleA full, happy terrace can already trip the evening limit before a single note of music plays — and the number that governs you isn't measured where you're listening. Seven numbers on decibels, fines and the sound limiter that stops the guessing.
Read articleA card payment that gets reversed weeks later. How long a guest has to dispute it, how long you have to respond, and what one chargeback actually costs you — work it out with your own numbers.
Read article"Can we get separate checks?" costs more than a shrug. Work out what split requests really cost your section in table time and card fees, at your own numbers.
Read articleMillions of guests across the EU already carry a meal-voucher balance they can only spend at an approved till — and only 21% of hospitality employers give the same tax-free benefit to their own team. The real cost of both, unbundled.
Read articleYour card rate isn't one number — it's four layers, and only one of them is negotiable. Work out what card payments and cash really cost you, with a free calculator.
Read articleA deal site promises you free marketing and full quiet hours. Run the deal yourself — discount, commission, food cost, return rate — and see what a deal cover really costs you, and when a promotion actually works.
Read articleFree rounds and discounts never disappear from your books — they were never in them. Work out what your comp leak really costs, with the right formula and a free calculator.
Read articleWhat do you actually do when a guest is hurt at your restaurant? The outcome isn't decided by how serious the injury is — it's decided by what you do in the first ten minutes. With a response timeline, a say-this table and a free tool that scores your own protocol.
Read articleThe allergen chart is already on the wall. The question nobody asks: what does it cost the one time someone doesn't check it? Seven numbers on fines, compensation and what prevention costs next to that.
Read articleA break-in costs more than what gets stolen: the excess, the trading days you lose, and a higher premium afterwards. 7 numbers behind the real cost, plus a calculator for your own venue.
Read articleThe extraction hood gets cleaned
Read articleYour sous chef quits and opens two streets over — with your dishes. 7 hard numbers on what a non-compete clause is actually worth, plus a free calculator.
Read articleA recipe has no copyright protection anywhere in the EU. Four legal layers — copyright, trademark, trade secret and contract — decide what actually does something when a chef leaves or a competitor copies. With a score built on the EU's own
Read articleThe name on your door might not legally be yours. This guide settles trademark protection with 7 hard numbers — filing cost, the opposition window, the rebrand bill — plus a calculator for your own situation.
Read articleAn advance against your future card sales, repaid automatically through a daily deduction on card takings. Not a loan on paper, so no APR requirement — but a real cost that often works out to 40–300% a year. Seven numbers to read before you sign.
Read articleA brewery pays for your tap install, glassware and terrace furniture — in exchange for exclusive purchasing. EU law caps that exclusivity at 5 years, but the loan itself often runs 10 to 20 years. Seven numbers to read before you sign.
Read articleA guest who circles the block twice and gives up, or a valet stand that never earns its wage. Weigh doing nothing, validated parking and valet side by side — with your own numbers.
Read articleEvery quote is built on panel count and sun hours. What none of them show: your payback depends on when you serve. Calculate your own self-consumption and payback.
Read articleA charging point in the car park isn't a cost line, it's an investment — if the numbers hold up. Four figures, plus a calculator that works out the payback with your own numbers.
Read articleFrom 2028, fuel suppliers pay for the CO2 in natural gas and heating oil — and that cost lands on your meter. 3 numbers, a timeline and a calculator to plan around it now.
Read articleInduction promises lower use and less fire risk. What the brochure skips: whether your supply can carry it, and whether it actually pays off at your own energy prices. Run your own numbers.
Read articleNew combi oven, walk-in or dishwasher on the way? This guide settles leasing vs. buying with 7 hard numbers — implicit rate, VAT timing, lifespan — plus a calculator that finds your own breakeven year.
Read articleA dozen spoons, a couple of wine glasses, sometimes a menu — gone every week, and nothing ever broke. 7 numbers behind the shrinkage nobody budgets for.
Read articleTheFork charges commission on every guest, even the tenth visit. OpenTable stacks a per-cover fee on top of a subscription. And Quandoo, one of Europe's biggest booking platforms, shut down in 2026. What renting a booking platform really costs, with a free calculator.
Read articleHow often guests actually walk out without paying, why it's almost never what you assume, who's legally allowed to cover the loss — and what prevention costs versus what it saves.
Read article150 litres of water an hour, a HACCP number of 82°C, 2 to 4% of your utility bill and the highest staff turnover in the kitchen — the dish pit in numbers, plus a calculator for your own restaurant.
Read articleSince 1 December 2019, Belgium has legally required cash totals to round to the nearest 5 cents — never up. Seven numbers on a rule almost nobody can explain, with a free calculator.
Read article75% of restaurant shrinkage is attributed to internal theft, and most cash-register patterns aren't caught for well over a year — if they're caught at all. What a small daily variance really costs, with a free calculator.
Read articleA crowdfunding campaign is a pre-sale, not an investment. Know the 4 numbers — momentum, odds of success, the EU ceiling that doesn't apply to you, and what your reward really costs — before you launch.
Read articleEnergy relief, a digitalization voucher, a hiring premium, an investment grant: each one makes sense on its own, and each one is quietly filling the same EU ceiling that nobody ever adds up.
Read articleYou know your energy bill by heart. You don't know your water bill — and the sewage surcharge on top of it even less. Work out what your dishwasher, ice machine and kitchen actually use, and the line item nobody tracks separately.
Read articleHow long does your walk-in survive a power cut? 7 numbers on food safety, insurance and generator costs — plus a calculator for your own kitchen.
Read articlePest control isn't an optional line on the HACCP checklist — it's a mandatory prerequisite under EU law, and yet most venues treat it as a flat quarterly visit instead of something sized to their own risk. Seven numbers to work it out, before an inspector does it for you.
Read articleThe grease trap under the pot-wash sink gets emptied
Read article9 in 10 major construction projects run over. Restaurant renovations average 34% over budget. It isn't carelessness — it's a named cognitive bias. Run your own numbers before you sign.
Read articleA €60 chair looks cheaper than a €190 one — until you divide it by the years it lasts. Run your furniture cost per seat per year and see why your chair choice also steers your table turnover.
Read articleThe kilos in your cold room decide your leak checks; the gas inside decides whether you may still top it up. Convert your own unit to tonnes of CO2 equivalent and see which threshold it crosses.
Read articleWalk-in down mid-service? Plus the free tool that turns it into a print-ready opening and closing round straight away.
Read articleRestaurant VAT rate, VAT on alcohol, the registration threshold: 7 numbers that decide how much of every sale you actually keep. Includes a calculator for your own revenue.
Read articleAt 15:00, a laptop guest costs you nothing — the table was empty anyway. At 12:30 on Saturday, the same guest costs you two lunch turns. 4 fixes, ranked by what they recover and what they risk.
Read articleBefore you sign a restaurant lease, climb a 4-rung ladder — guest night, market stall, residency, test kitchen — and see which one your own budget actually affords.
Read articleOpening your own restaurant? Follow the complete step-by-step plan: from concept and business plan to permits, staffing and opening day — with budgets and timing.
Read articleThe dish you invented, the website you built, the renovation you did yourself: you rate them higher — not because they're better, but because you made them. The IKEA effect, explained, and what it's costing you.
Read articleYour supplier, your insurance, your POS system, your opening hours: all decided on day one and never reopened since. Status quo bias explains why — and what it quietly costs you.
Read articleLoss aversion explains why you never raise menu prices, never charge the no-show fee, and over-order 'just in case': a loss weighs psychologically heavier than an equal gain. 7 decisions, plus a calculator.
Read articleWhy a menu item nobody orders, a location that loses money, or an employee who isn't working out stays in place — and a calculator that shows what holding on to sunk money is actually costing you.
Read articleWhoever names the first number in a negotiation shapes everything that follows. Seven negotiations every independent restaurant runs, and a calculator that shows what that costs you.
Read articleYour restaurant feels worth more than it is — and that's costing you a sale. Seven biases that inflate your asking price, plus a calculator that checks your own numbers against reality.
Read articleSelling or buying a restaurant isn't one rule of thumb. Run the three methods a real valuation actually uses — with your own numbers, in your own browser.
Read articleBuying an existing restaurant? In 7 steps, learn how to review the numbers, set a fair price and avoid hidden risks. Includes a quick valuation estimator.
Read articleReady for a second restaurant? Build your skills matrix free: who can do what, and what falls over when they call in sick.
Read articleWhat cyber insurance actually covers, what GDPR's 72-hour clock requires, and what a data breach really costs an independent restaurant — with a calculator for your own exposure.
Read articleFrom tipsy to too far: 4 recognisable stages, exactly what your team says and does at each one, and how to get someone home safely — without an unnecessary confrontation.
Read articleFrom legally required to situational: a practical, three-tier way to build a restaurant insurance package that protects you without overpaying.
Read articleCounter service, full table service, or hybrid: compare all three on labour cost, FOH headcount, average check and table turn — then calculate what each model costs your own restaurant per labour hour.
Read articleRestaurant business plan in 9 building blocks: financial plan, break-even and startup capital from €150,000, plus the mistakes that sink new owners.
Read articleBuild an annual budget you actually use daily: from revenue forecast and food cost to labour ratio and a buffer for setbacks. With concrete hospitality percentages.
Read articleHow to calculate restaurant ROI and payback in 4 steps: a worked example, the hidden costs owners forget and how to prioritise investments.
Read articleShould your restaurant sell memberships? Four real models — prepaid credit, a product club, perks, a recurring seat — their break-even math, and a live calculator.
Read articleMaster your restaurant cash flow with proven strategies. From the January slump to supplier terms — the complete hospitality finance guide.
Read articleFrom 30 December 2026, every roaster and chocolatier in the EU must prove their coffee and cocoa didn't come from deforested land. You'll likely sign nothing yourself — but your supplier will, and that hits your price. 7 numbers, plus a calculator.
Read articleCocoa +310%, coffee more than doubled, olive oil +52% in a single year. Your menu hasn't kept pace. 7 numbers, plus a calculator that works out how much YOUR dish actually loses — and when it's time to reprice.
Read articleSwitching time, spend share and the Kraljic matrix: the 3 numbers behind supplier dependency, with a drag-to-see risk map and a calculator that plots your own suppliers.
Read articleLearn when and how to negotiate with suppliers in hospitality. Plus the free tool: enter who delivers when and print your week.
Read articleMost partners split 50/50 because negotiating with a friend feels awkward. Work out what capital, sweat equity and risk are actually worth — and see in points and money where that split runs off track.
Read articleClose for the off-season, or stay open with fewer covers than you'd like? Seven numbers behind what an off-season week really earns, what closing costs once, and which choice wins this year.
Read articleWhat's a kilo of good, unsold food actually worth: binned, donated to a food bank, or sold through an app like Too Good To Go? 7 numbers, one calculator.
Read articleThinking about selling your house sauce as a jar? 7 numbers on margin, EU 1169/2011 labeling and the breakeven point — plus a calculator for your own product.
Read articleSince October 2025, the EU has a binding food waste target: cut it 30% by 2030, measured against 2021–2023, for retail, restaurants and households combined. Most owners have heard the wrong number, or none. 7 numbers, plus a calculator for your own kitchen.
Read articleSince 1 January 2024, every restaurant in the EU must keep food waste separate from general waste — no threshold, no exemption. France fines up to €75,000 and 2 years in prison, Germany simply leaves your bin uncollected at 3% contamination, and 74% of it still isn't sorted. 7 numbers, plus a calculator for your own kitchen.
Read articleGermany runs three ages at once — 14, 16 and 18. Belgium, Luxembourg and Austria split 16 and 18. The Netherlands holds one hard line at 18, Malta sits on 17, and Finland is the only country where any age climbs ABOVE 18 — spirits require 20 there. 7 numbers, plus a calculator that tells you on the spot whether you can pour.
Read articleGreece caps cash at €500, Spain and France at €1,000, Belgium at €3,000, Italy and Bulgaria near €5,000 — and Germany and Austria have no ceiling at all. From 10 July 2027 an EU-wide €10,000 cap applies everywhere. 7 numbers, plus a calculator.
Read article"Just put it on our account" sounds like trust. It's an interest-free loan with no contract and no due date. 4 numbers and a calculator put that credit on the table.
Read articleYour supplier makes you wait, you make a catering client wait — and both quietly accrue statutory interest plus €40. 7 numbers behind the law.
Read articleSince 1 January 2026, B2B e-invoicing has been mandatory in Belgium — with fines up to €5,000. 7 numbers on what it actually means for your restaurant, from suppliers to your first corporate dinner, incl. a check tool.
Read articleYour home Sky Sports or DAZN subscription doesn't cover your venue once guests are watching. The 3 factors behind a commercial TV license, plus a calculator for whether showing live sport pays off.
Read articlePlaying music in your restaurant feels like one licence. It's two separate fees, in every EU country — and most owners have only ever heard of one. Seven numbers that make the difference.
Read articleBottle-deposit laws in most countries never touch the glass you pour and serve at the table — but they leave almost every crate of beer you already buy from your wholesaler untouched by them too. 7 numbers on both systems, plus a calculator for what they actually cost you.
Read articleFrom 2027 you must let guests fill their own container; from 2030 single-use is banned on-site. 7 numbers behind the EU's new packaging law, plus the free calculator.
Read articleA contractor prices the build. Almost nobody prices the other half: the contingency, the revenue lost while you're closed, and the reopening ramp afterwards. Plus the free calculator.
Read articleA rent figure feels okay or it doesn't, but a feeling isn't an answer. Seven numbers — from occupancy cost to indexation — that decide whether the rent you sign today is still affordable in nine years.
Read articleEvery restaurant sends linen to a laundry service or washes it in-house — almost none has ever run the comparison. 7 numbers, a real break-even calculator, and the stain tax nobody budgets for.
Read articleEvery restaurant breaks plates, glasses and forks — almost none prices it. 7 numbers behind tableware breakage, the two hidden multipliers, and a free calculator.
Read articleYour food cost is 31%. Good or bad? Without a band you cannot tell. Compare 9 restaurant benchmarks against the range for your segment and your country — and see what every gap costs you per year.
Read article“90% of restaurants fail in year one” has no source — the real number is closer to 17–26%. Here's what the research actually found kills restaurants, and a self-check against the 5 real warning signs.
Read articleUse break-even analysis as a daily operational tool — not a one-time financial exercise. With UK figures and practical formulas.
Read articleRevPASH (revenue per available seat hour): the formula, benchmarks by restaurant type and 5 levers to lift it, with worked examples. 2026 guide.
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