What would your ideal fast-food restaurant serve?

should I serve beer and wine at my restaurant?

• I own a small fast paced chinese eatery, wanting to know whether I should serve alcohol to increase check average, but guests will take longer at their tables, resulting in less number of table turns. How does one justify to serve or not to serve? any magical formulas?

• Answer:

  Howdy whiteblackoxford-ga, No real magical formulas, but as you know, this would be a great way to increase the check averages. There are other advantages as well, but you need to watch out for some visible and "hidden" costs. Let's look at the upside first. First, there is increased profitability. According to this Restaurant Report article, "For Profit's Sake - Inventory Your Beverage Cost" by Ron Gorodesky and Ed McCarron, it could be well worth serving wine and beer at your establishment. http://www.restaurantreport.com/features/ft_bevcost.html "Alcohol sales (beverage sales) are an easy way to increase profitability because the costs are lower and the gross margin is far greater for beverage than for food. ... A profitable restaurant typically generates a 22% to 28% beverage cost." Compare this to the cost of food served. Again, from the Restaurant Report web site, "For Profit's Sake, Inventory Your Food Cost!" by Ron Gorodesky and Kate Lange. http://www.restaurantreport.com/features/ft_inventory.html "A profitable restaurant typically generates a 28%-35% food cost." You are looking at increasing your profits by possibly 10% or more by adding beer, and to lesser degree, because the margin is usually not as good, wine to your menu. Yes, turn time does become a downside, but consider the people that eat at some restaurant other than yours because the other place serves beer. This increase in patronage should offset, especially with the right promotion, the table turn. You would also have an ongoing advantage over other places that do not serve beer and/or wine. Now, the downside to all of this. The local or state taxes on alcohol sales might be more than on food. This, unless handled properly, such as passing this cost to the customer, can eat into your bottom line. There are increased training costs as your servers need to know they have to, and need to know how to, check identification for age verification. The staff need to make sure clients are not getting intoxicated. This cost is mediated by being part of their overall training, and a one time (with annual updates) training of the existing staff. There are increased liability and insurance costs. Most likely, any staff that is serving the beer or wine, including the wait staff, will have to be at least 21 years old as well. You will have to watch, just as you do with food, but possible more so, the cost of inventory of your beer and wine, as this cost can be more (excuse me) "fluid" than food costs. Contain your inventory costs as tight as possible. If you make it all part of the eating experience, such as having plum wine and Chinese beers, you not only enhance the experience but you avoid the possible image of being a place to go to drink, but rather yours is a place to eat while having the choice to have a drink. The end formula really comes back to you. Get the costs of obtaining the liquor license, weigh in the possibility of neighborhood opposition and the bad publicity that would bring, and the costs of training and increase in liability/insurance. Compare these mostly one time costs to the ongoing gains in profitability and see if it makes sense. I think the table turn time is a wash compared to increased business, but only if the availability of beer/wine is promoted properly. If you need any clarification, please feel free to ask. Search strategy: Personal experience in the food and beverage industry. Google search on: alcohol OR beverage restaurant profitability ://www.google.com/search?q=alcohol+OR+beverage+restaurant+profitability Looking Forward, denco-ga - Google Answers Researcher