I am currently paying 2.36 / lb - 5.99 seems a little high, you might shop around.TuscaloosaQ wrote:Peter I just paid 2.89 a pound for full packer brisket USDA choice I am in Alabama though
That number is pretty much dead on for retail. I worked the retail food industry for about 7 years and my target was always .3 - .33 food cost of course we had some pretty serious fixed cost that mandated getting as close to .30 as we could get.alleyrat58 wrote:Food cost * 3 is the generally accepted calculation in the food service industry for calculating retail price
That's also assuming you're pricing the whole piece and not selling the cooked weight. Sometimes I can get away with that too - works out better for me that way, but then some of my customers want a very specific amount of something and so they pay a premium for that service.SoloQue wrote:
Just for my 2 cents whenever I am doing butts for folks I charge sticker price * 2.25 for my sale price. If I get an 8 lb butt for 1.39 a lb that's 11.12 up front cost for the meat. Take that *2.25 and I'm charging 25 for the product out the door. For me it all breaks down to how many I get to cook at once to maximize my return on time and charcoal. When I do ribs it even breaks to 2.25 multiplier, basically if I am buying 3 lb slabs for around 8 bucks each I'm going to sell them for 18 out the door.
I hear ya special orders get special pricing and some folks will always pay that extra percentage because they have higher expectations. On the whole piece pricing it is easier on me and as long as I use consistent product the final poundage falls into a workable profit margin for me. But I am just a weekend warrior on the food stuff so it's not super critical, I like to cook but I'm not crazy about cooking for other folks for free.alleyrat58 wrote:some of my customers want a very specific amount of something and so they pay a premium for that service
I hear that!!! "Oh hey you're firing up the smoker this weekend? Can I throw the 8000 lbs of meat in my freezer in there? You don't need to cook it - I will do all the work. (then bitch cuz I don't like it)" LOL - I get that monthly...SoloQue wrote: I like to cook but I'm not crazy about cooking for other folks for free.