Restaurant Owner's 10-Point Efficiency Audit

Reservation & Table Management

☐Is your reservation system integrated with your POS, or are hosts juggling two screens?

☐Do you track average table turn time — and does your staff know the target?

☐Can guests book online without calling, and does it actually work on mobile?

No-Show & Cancellation Rate

☐Do you know your no-show percentage this month? (Industry average is 15–20%.)

☐Are confirmation reminders going out automatically — text, not just email?

☐Is there a waitlist system that fills cancelled slots before they become empty tables?

Staff Scheduling & Labor Cost

☐Is your labor cost tracked weekly as a percentage of revenue — not just on the P&L?

☐Are schedules published at least 7 days in advance, or is it still a scramble?

☐Do you have a documented process for shift swaps that does not require your personal involvement?

Vendor & Inventory Management

☐Have you compared vendor pricing in the last 90 days, or are you on autopilot?

☐Is food waste tracked by category — and does someone own the number?

☐Are invoices checked against delivery receipts before payment is issued?

Online Reviews & Reputation

☐Is every Google and Yelp review responded to within 24 hours — positive and negative?

☐Do you have a system to ask happy guests for reviews, or does it only happen organically?

☐Are negative review themes tracked and fed back to the kitchen or floor manager?

Menu Profitability

☐Do you know the food cost percentage of every dish — not just the menu overall?

☐Are your top sellers also your most profitable items, or are you busy losing margin?

☐When was the last time you cut a low-margin, low-volume item from the menu?

Phone & Inquiry Handling

☐Are phone calls answered within 3 rings during operating hours, or do callers get a busy signal?

☐Is there a system for after-hours inquiries — voicemail, text-back, or online booking?

☐Do you know how many calls go unanswered each week? (Most restaurants do not.)

Guest Follow-Up & Retention

☐Do first-time guests receive any follow-up — a thank you, an offer, anything?

☐Is there a loyalty or repeat-visit program that actually drives return visits?

☐Can you identify your top 50 customers by spend — and when they last visited?

Compliance & Safety

☐Are health inspection prep checklists completed daily — not just before inspections?

☐Is food safety certification current for every required team member?

☐Are temperature logs, cleaning schedules, and incident reports digitized and searchable?

Reporting & Visibility

☐Can you see yesterday's revenue, labor cost, and food cost without asking someone?

☐Do you review a weekly dashboard — or just look at the bank account?

☐Is your accountant getting clean data monthly, or is tax season a forensic exercise?

0–10 checked — Critical gaps. You are running on instinct, and it is costing you.

11–20 checked — Room to grow. You have pieces in place, but the gaps are slowing you down.

21–30 checked — You are ahead of most. Time to refine and automate what is working.