Are new restaurants popping up around town, threatening to kick your family's business out of the game? When you're still using the traditional management techniques your elders put in place, it can be hard to compete with modern eateries. It can often seem like their revenue is nothing short of a miracle compared to yours, but their success comes down to the way they manage their facility. What worked in your grandparents' day may not be the best practice now. Inventory is one area you can take better control of to save money. Here are 3 tips for managing stock to keep your family's restaurant in the game for years to come.

Watch Your Weight

Do you use kitchen scales to weigh ingredients? If not, it's a good idea to start. It may take chefs a few extra seconds to get meals to the table, but you'd be surprised by how easy it is to misjudge portion sizes. If you are using scales already, or you're thinking of starting, make sure you invest in a high-quality digital scale. A good commercial kitchen scale should be able to weigh high volumes of food, as well as weigh multiple ingredients in one container. Ideally, for hygiene purposes, you should also make sure the scale's platform is removable and dishwasher safe. Controlling portion sizes accurately should reduce unnecessary stock spend.

Record Accidents

Everyone makes mistakes. When a waitress spills a drink or a chef drops an egg, it's easy to let bygones be bygones and ignore the incident. However, these simple accidents can accumulate faster than you realise and account for a significant amount of lost stock. Every time any spillage, spoilage, or general wastage occurs, make sure the incident is logged. Monitor your weekly levels to find out how much this wastage is costing and figure out how to deal with the problem. For example, if your bartender's slippery fingers are causing him to drop expensive liquor bottles on a regular basis, you can identify this and send him for some more training to keep costs down.

Buy a Point of Sale System

If you're not already using tech-forward point of sale equipment at your restaurant, you should be. One of the biggest benefits of using a POS system is that it helps you stay on top of inventory. Without this equipment, you could be losing 10 to 30% of your purchase. A POS stock control module will log the ingredients used in every recipe and update your stock levels according to each sale or restock. With a high-quality system, you'll be able to view these levels, along with wastage and loss, in detailed reports. This is the easiest way to control inventory as it involves minimal input from you.

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