The short version
Three restaurants—one casual, one fine-dining, one food truck—used free RPS calculators to diagnose leaks, then upgraded to the Live Menu Engine for live control. Food cost dropped 4–7 points, labor stayed under 30%, and net profit jumped 8–12%.
Case #1: Urban Bistro – Food Cost Leak Fixed in 30 Days
Profile: 65-seat casual spot, $1.8M annual sales, 34% food cost, owner-managed.
The problem
- Prime cost hovering at 68%—no room for error.
- Monthly invoices matched budget, but plate costs were 15% over spec.
- Staff “eyeballing” portions on high-volume items like pasta and fries.
The fix (30-day sprint)
- Week 1: Ran Yield Test Calculator on proteins and produce—found 22% cook loss vs. 15% assumed.
- Week 2: Built Recipe Cost Cards for top 10 sellers—locked portions with labeled scoops.
- Week 3: Spot-weighed plates during service; retrained line on “level scoop only.”
- Week 4: Switched to Live Menu Engine ($299 + $10/mo) to auto-update costs weekly.
The numbers
Before: Food cost 34% → After: 27.2% (saved $11,400/month on $140k food spend)
Owner quote: “I thought vendors were the issue. Turns out it was the 2 oz of cheese we were giving away nightly.”
Case #2: Downtown Steakhouse – Labor % Tamed Without Cutting Staff
Profile: 90 seats, fine-dining, $2.4M sales, labor at 36% on busy weekends.
The problem
- Weekend rushes meant over-staffing to avoid complaints.
- No visibility into actual vs. scheduled hours.
- Prime cost north of 70%—owner taking home less than the GM.
The fix (45-day rollout)
- Used Labor Planner to model sales per labor hour ($85 target).
- Built Prime Cost Calculator dashboard—tracked daily.
- Cut cross-training gaps; moved two cooks to flexible prep/server roles.
- Integrated with Toast POS for live sales → scheduled hours auto-alerts.
The numbers
Before: Labor 36% → After: 29% (saved $9,200/month on $320k labor)
Bonus: Guest satisfaction up 8% (fewer rushed tables).
Case #3: Taco Truck Fleet – Delivery Margins Rescued
Profile: 3 trucks, $900k combined sales, 40% of revenue via DoorDash/Uber Eats.
The problem
- Commission fees eating 30% of delivery checks.
- Menu prices identical online vs. in-truck—zero margin buffer.
- Owner guessing on “profitable” items for third-party menus.
The fix (21-day pivot)
- Ran Delivery Margin Calculator on every item—found only 3 of 12 tacos profitable.
- Created delivery-only menu with +15% pricing and bundled sides.
- Used Menu Engineering Matrix to kill Dogs, push Stars on apps.
- One-time Live Menu Engine setup ($999) to sync prices across platforms.
The numbers
Before: Delivery contribution 6% → After: 19% (added $4,800/month net)
Owner quote: “We were subsidizing Uber Eats. Now they pay us.”
Common threads across all three
- Started with free calculators to diagnose (no cost, no risk).
- Fixed the line before touching vendors or prices.
- Upgraded to Live Menu Engine once manual tracking got old.
- Measured weekly—gains held because the system enforced them.
Where the RPS tools plug in
Every case used the same stack you have access to:
- Recipe Cost Card + Yield Test: Lock portion reality.
- Prime Cost + Labor Planner: Keep total costs under 60%.
- Delivery Margin + Menu Engineering: Make third-party pay.
- Live Menu Engine: Stop babysitting spreadsheets—let costs update live.
Simple next step for your restaurant
Pick the leak that hurts most—food cost, labor, or delivery.
- Grab the matching calculator from The Vault.
- Run it on your top 3 sellers this week.
- Fix one portion, one schedule, or one delivery price.
Track the change for 14 days. If it sticks, scale it. If you want it automated, the Live Menu Engine is waiting.