Which metric would best indicate payroll costs as a portion of F&B income?

Which metric would best indicate payroll costs as a portion of F&B income?

• A. F&B income per guest
• B. Total revenue
• C. Payroll costs divided by F&B total income
• D. Number of employees

Answer: (C)

The idea being tested is how to measure payroll efficiency relative to the revenue that the food and beverage operation actually generates. The best way to do that is to take payroll costs and divide them by the F&B total income, giving a payroll cost percentage of F&B income. This ratio directly shows what portion of F&B revenue goes to payroll, making it easy to compare across days, outlets, or seasons and to track changes over time. It normalizes the data so you can assess efficiency regardless of volume. F&B income per guest, while useful for understanding revenue per diner, doesn’t reveal how much of that revenue is consumed by payroll. Total revenue mixes in non-F&B income and still doesn’t isolate F&B payroll as a share of F&B income. The number of employees tells you headcount, not how much payroll cost relates to the revenue generated.

The idea being tested is how to measure payroll efficiency relative to the revenue that the food and beverage operation actually generates. The best way to do that is to take payroll costs and divide them by the F&B total income, giving a payroll cost percentage of F&B income. This ratio directly shows what portion of F&B revenue goes to payroll, making it easy to compare across days, outlets, or seasons and to track changes over time. It normalizes the data so you can assess efficiency regardless of volume.

F&B income per guest, while useful for understanding revenue per diner, doesn’t reveal how much of that revenue is consumed by payroll. Total revenue mixes in non-F&B income and still doesn’t isolate F&B payroll as a share of F&B income. The number of employees tells you headcount, not how much payroll cost relates to the revenue generated.