CCC Kitchen Financial Management 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A restaurant has monthly fixed costs of $30,000 and a contribution margin of 60% of sales. What is the monthly break-even point in sales?
- $18,000
- $75,000
- $50,000 (Correct answer)
- $48,000
Correct answer: $50,000
Break-even sales = fixed costs ÷ contribution margin ratio, so $30,000 ÷ 0.60 = $50,000.
Question 2: In menu engineering, an item with high popularity but low contribution margin is classified as a:
- Plowhorse (Correct answer)
- Puzzle
- Star
- Dog
Correct answer: Plowhorse
Plowhorses sell well but contribute little profit per sale, so they are candidates for price or cost adjustments.
Question 3: A case of 24 heads of lettuce costs $36, and each head yields enough for 6 salads. What is the lettuce cost per salad?
- $0.15
- $0.60
- $0.25 (Correct answer)
- $1.50
Correct answer: $0.25
Each head costs $1.50 ($36 ÷ 24) and yields 6 salads, so $1.50 ÷ 6 = $0.25 per salad.
Question 4: Which practice most directly helps a chef control labor cost without cutting service quality?
- Reducing menu prices to boost volume
- Eliminating all overtime regardless of need
- Ordering food in larger bulk quantities
- Scheduling staff to match forecasted business volume (Correct answer)
Correct answer: Scheduling staff to match forecasted business volume
Forecast-based scheduling aligns staffing levels with expected covers, avoiding both overstaffing and service failures.
Question 5: Weekly sales are $42,000 and total labor cost including benefits is $13,440. What is the labor cost percentage?
- 24%
- 36%
- 28%
- 32% (Correct answer)
Correct answer: 32%
Labor cost percentage = labor cost ÷ sales, so $13,440 ÷ $42,000 = 32%.
Question 6: What is the primary purpose of a par stock level for a kitchen ingredient?
- To calculate the item's plate cost
- To record the price paid on the last invoice
- To set the quantity needed on hand between deliveries to meet demand (Correct answer)
- To determine the item's shelf life
Correct answer: To set the quantity needed on hand between deliveries to meet demand
Par levels define how much of an item should be kept on hand to cover usage until the next delivery, guiding ordering.
Question 7: A P&L statement shows food sales of $100,000, food cost of $31,000, labor of $33,000, and other operating expenses of $26,000. What is the operating profit?
- $69,000
- $5,000
- $36,000
- $10,000 (Correct answer)
Correct answer: $10,000
Operating profit = $100,000 - $31,000 - $33,000 - $26,000 = $10,000.
CCC Kitchen Financial Management 3
A restaurant has monthly fixed costs of $30,000 and a contribution margin of 60% of sales.
What is the monthly break-even point in sales?