Food Cost Is Killing Your Kitchen | Why Most Restaurants Lose Money

Most cooks think food cost is just math. It’s not.In this episode of The IncrEDIBLE Discourse, Chef Mark Grigsby breaks down what food cost actually means in a professional kitchen, how menu pricing works, and why restaurants quietly lose money through waste, inconsistency, over-portioning, poor systems, and lack of discipline.This episode covers food cost percentage formulas, plate costing, menu pricing strategy, inventory awareness, and the connection between kitchen leadership and profitability. From line cooks to sous chefs and kitchen managers, this is a real conversation about how execution—not theory—determines whether a restaurant survives.If your kitchen doesn’t understand food cost, you’re losing money. Period.Hosted by Chef Mark GrigsbyTimestamps00:00 – Cold Open: Why Kitchens Quietly Lose Money 00:32 – What Food Cost Actually Is 04:12 – Food Cost Formula & Menu Pricing Breakdown 07:25 – Food, Labor, Overhead & Profit Explained 08:27 – Quick Fix of the Week + Leadership Through SystemsConnect With The Show🌐 Website: TheIncrEDIBLEDiscourse.com 🎧 Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music & iHeartRadio 📲 Follow and subscribe for more professional kitchen conversations, chef insights, leadership lessons, and operational breakdowns from inside the industry.If this episode helped you think differently about food cost, send it to someone in your kitchen that needs to hear it.