If you are operating a franchise, most likely you will have a professional operations manual that will contain everything you need to run and operate your business.
But if you are starting your own restaurant, you will need to do all of this yourself. Hiring a consultant will save you time and mistakes. A good consultant will design your facility and coordinate your menu.
A food manual is a record of all of your recipes for the menu items you are serving in your restaurant. If your restaurant does not have a certified chef on staff, hire one to put your food manual together. Your food manual should contain:
The specifications for the raw ingredients, cook times and temperature for each item and the size of each portion.
Preparation procedures
Holding times and temperatures.
Procedures for handling left-overs
Food storage procedures
Food safety procedures
Food cost for each portion and suggested price
You need to be able to give a nutritional analysis of each menu item or dish. This can be done with a good software program. (culinary software links)
Having this written down for all of your menu items will help you keep consistency in your menu and it will be a great help if you have a change of cooks or chefs.
