CPFS Cost Control 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A foodservice manager notices that actual food cost is 5% higher than the standard food cost. What is the most likely cause?
- Menu prices are too high
- Excessive portioning or waste by kitchen staff (Correct answer)
- Vendor invoices were paid early
- Customer count increased unexpectedly
Correct answer: Excessive portioning or waste by kitchen staff
Variance between actual and standard food cost typically points to over-portioning, waste, or theft in the kitchen.
Question 2: Which document is used to track the daily dollar value of food items transferred between departments in a foodservice operation?
- Purchase order
- Receiving log
- Interdepartmental transfer record (Correct answer)
- Perpetual inventory sheet
Correct answer: Interdepartmental transfer record
An interdepartmental transfer record documents food moved between cost centers so each department's costs are accurately reflected.
Question 3: If a restaurant's food cost percentage is 32% and total food sales are $45,000, what is the cost of food sold?
- $12,600
- $14,400 (Correct answer)
- $16,200
- $13,500
Correct answer: $14,400
Food cost = 32% × $45,000 = $14,400.
Question 4: What is the primary purpose of a standardized recipe in cost control?
- To ensure health code compliance
- To train new employees faster
- To produce consistent yield and predictable food costs (Correct answer)
- To satisfy customer customization requests
Correct answer: To produce consistent yield and predictable food costs
Standardized recipes ensure each dish uses a fixed quantity of ingredients, making food costs predictable and controllable.
Question 5: A foodservice operation's prime cost is calculated by adding food cost to which other expense?
- Occupancy costs
- Labor cost (Correct answer)
- Utility costs
- Marketing expenses
Correct answer: Labor cost
Prime cost = food cost + labor cost, and it is the most significant controllable expense in foodservice.
Question 6: Which inventory valuation method assigns the most recent purchase price to items still in inventory?
- FIFO
- LIFO (Correct answer)
- Weighted average
- Actual cost method
Correct answer: LIFO
LIFO (Last In, First Out) assumes the most recently purchased items are used first, leaving older-priced stock in inventory.
Question 7: A manager wants to reduce labor cost without cutting staff hours. Which strategy best achieves this?
- Increasing menu prices
- Cross-training employees for multiple roles (Correct answer)
- Reducing the number of menu items sold
- Lowering portion sizes
Correct answer: Cross-training employees for multiple roles
Cross-training allows flexible scheduling and prevents overstaffing in any single role, reducing total labor cost without reducing headcount.
CPFS Cost Control 2
A foodservice manager notices that actual food cost is 5% higher than the standard food cost.
What is the most likely cause?