Cost Control in the Hospitality Industry

This assignment examines cost control practices within the hospitality industry, focusing on a case study of an executive chef at Bentley Restaurant. The chef discusses methods used to manage costs in both front-of-house and back-of-house operations, emphasizing strategies like recipe standardization, waste reduction, and inventory management. Additionally, the interview script sheds light on the chef's approach to achieving profitability while maintaining high food quality.

Running head: FOOD AND BEVERAGE MANAGEMENT
Food and Beverage Management
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author Note:

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Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................2
Analysis of the Interview Findings..................................................................................................2
Type of hospitality managed by the chef.....................................................................................2
Maintaining the cost control of front of house operation............................................................3
Maintaining the cost control in the back of house operation.......................................................4
Financial cost control method used in daily business operation......................................................4
Evaluation of the findings and its effectiveness in managing food service operation.....................5
Reference List..................................................................................................................................6
Appendices......................................................................................................................................8

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Introduction
Bentley Restaurant cum bar was inaugurated by Chef Brent Savage and Sommelier Nick
Hildebrandt in 2006. It is one of the famous restaurants in Sydney where they serve quality food
to the customers in a relaxed atmosphere. The restaurant also introduced international boutiques
of wine for their customers. The executive chef of the restaurant Brent Savage has won “Chef of
the Year” award in 2015 by “Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Award”. The restaurant has
also won the award of the “Australia’s Best Wine List” (the bentley.com.au 2017). The
restaurant offers special dining experience in an industrial area of Sydney. This paper will
analyze the interview of the executive chef of the hotel. The chef manages the front of house
operation as well as the back of house operation. The restaurant is famous for its popular cuisines
which are prepared by the world famous chef at an affordable cost. The chef checks that there is
proper co-ordination between the staffs and assist them accordingly. The cost of operation of the
restaurant and the bar is also managed by the chef. This is essential and it will benefit both the
customers as well as the management of the restaurant (Benavides-Velasco et al. 2014).
Analysis of the Interview Findings
Type of hospitality managed by the chef
The executive chef of Bentley Restaurant tries to build reputation with the customers by
interacting with them and knowing their needs and demands. The chef also provides training to
the kitchen brigades and thus develops and manages them accordingly. It is one of the leading
restaurant and its founders have earned good reputation for excellence in food and wine services.
The restaurant also provides a-la-carta menus and a fun bar menu for a various purposes (Ali and

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Amin 2014.). There are special vegetarian dishes which are prepared by the chef and it has
earned swag of industry awards. The restaurant also has provision of corporate dinner other than
private dining area. The chef of the restaurant implements new ideas and brings innovation in the
restaurant. This has attracted the customers and thus they refer their friends and families to visit
the restaurant. This innovation has increased the profitability of the restaurant (Gin Choi et al.
2013). The executive chef of the restaurant possesses excellent cooking skills and thus is able to
convince the co-workers and the kitchen brigades. The chef also confronts various kinds of
challenges and has been awarded with various awards every year. The executive chef of Bentley
Restaurant who is also the founder of the restaurant has opened various other branches such as
the Monopole, Cirrus and many more. The chef also visits the customers and interacts with them
to know about their needs and demands. The chef also takes initiative to provide a 5 course
tasting menu at an affordable rate to the customers on Saturdays so that they can spend their
weekend happily. An 8 course tasting menu accompanied by wine is also provided to the
customers at an affordable rate. The chef also mentioned that he tries to bring improvement in
the food quality and thus change the taste of the food (Karatepe et al. 2015).
Maintaining the cost control of front of house operation
The front of house operation includes management of the customer service, planning
various types of restaurant promotion, designing the dining area and the bar, managing the
training staff and many more. The front of house operation reflects the concept of the restaurant
and it is only that area which is visible to the public. The chef has mentioned that to attain
profitability and to maintain the restaurant, it is vital that the food cost is generated between 28%
and 35% without hampering the food quality (Jani and Han 2014). The menu of the restaurant is
prepared in such a way so that it can easily be altered if one particular cuisine is not available.

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The cost which is incurred from food affects the bottom line of the business if it is too high. The
chef has laid greater emphasis on providing alternative cuisines so that the customers do not
return disappointed. The chef has also trained the staffs in such a way so that they can handle the
customer complaints in an excellent way. The customer who visits the restaurant appreciates the
warm hospitality which is provided by the staffs of Bentley restaurant. The chef also announces
happy hours in the restaurant with drinks and special dinner menu and thus it plays an important
role in promotion. It can be said that the front of house operation plays a major role in promotion
of Bentley restaurant (Leung et al. 2015).
Maintaining the cost control in the back of house operation
The back of house operation is associated with housekeeping, food and other services in
the restaurant. It is basically that area which is not visible to the customers. The chef has to play
a vital role in the back of house operation and manage the kitchen technology and the other
services of the restaurant. The chef also takes special care in streamlining food preparation and
thus this improves the revenue of the restaurant. The chef manages the weekly inventories and
the monthly inventories and this helps in keeping a track of the restaurant. The losses of the
restaurant are also identified by the chef and this helps the management to improve the
profitability of the restaurant. The chef also takes initiative in preparing special menu for festive
seasons. They also take care of the administrative tasks and thus hire the kitchen staffs according
to their specialization (Molina-Azorín et al. 2015).
Financial cost control method used in daily business operation
There is huge cost which is involved in each stage of operation of the restaurant. This
also helps in mitigation of the problem which is faced in the restaurant. The chef has mentioned

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that it is necessary to maintain the quality and standard of food. Steps must also be taken to
improve the hygiene condition in the restaurant. Proper training must also be provided to the
staffs so that they can understand their duties and roles properly. There are also certain standard
procedures which are followed by the chef for the preparation of food items (Nieves and
Segarra-Cipres 2015).
Evaluation of the findings and its effectiveness in managing food service operation
It has been found that the chef has to overcome the challenges and provide quality food to
the customers. The main role of the chef is to implement new ideas and plans and thus improve
the business of the restaurant. The chef also has to monitor the activities of the restaurant and
thus provides them necessary training so as to improve customer service. It has also been
analyzed and found that the chef prepares the menu in such a way so that it can be easily altered
if any particular cuisine is not available (Saleem and Raja 2014). It is also important to track and
manage the inventory cost so as to reduce the wastage of food in the restaurant. It is also
important to change the menu of the restaurant and thus include the traditional cuisines so as to
attract the customers. The chef must take proper care that the customers are served food in
appropriate time and they do not get disappointed by the service. Greater emphasis must also be
provided to cost control methods which is taken by the management as well as the chef. Further,
interaction with the customers has also helped the chef in knowing the demands of the
customers. Thus, it is vital that the chef carries out the duties in a responsible manner ( Sachs et
al. 2014.

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Reference List
Ali, F. and Amin, M., 2014. The influence of physical environment on emotions, customer
satisfaction and behavioural intentions in Chinese resort hotel industry. Journal for Global
Business Advancement, 7(3), pp.249-266.
Benavides-Velasco, C.A., Quintana-García, C. and Marchante-Lara, M., 2014. Total quality
management, corporate social responsibility and performance in the hotel industry. International
Journal of Hospitality Management, 41, pp.77-87.
Gin Choi, Y., Kwon, J. and Kim, W., 2013. Effects of attitudes vs experience of workplace fun
on employee behaviors: Focused on Generation Y in the hospitality industry. International
Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 25(3), pp.410-427.
Jani, D. and Han, H., 2014. Personality, satisfaction, image, ambience, and loyalty: Testing their
relationships in the hotel industry. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 37, pp.11-
20.
Karatepe, O.M., Beirami, E., Bouzari, M. and Safavi, H.P., 2014. Does work engagement
mediate the effects of challenge stressors on job outcomes? Evidence from the hotel
industry. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 36, pp.14-22.
Leung, X.Y., Bai, B. and Stahura, K.A., 2015. The marketing effectiveness of social media in the
hotel industry: A comparison of Facebook and Twitter. Journal of Hospitality & Tourism
Research, 39(2), pp.147-169.

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Molina-Azorín, J.F., Tarí, J.J., Pereira-Moliner, J., López-Gamero, M.D. and Pertusa-Ortega,
E.M., 2015. The effects of quality and environmental management on competitive advantage: A
mixed methods study in the hotel industry. Tourism Management, 50, pp.41-54.
Nieves, J. and Segarra-Ciprés, M., 2015. Management innovation in the hotel industry. Tourism
Management, 46, pp.51-58.
Sachs, C., Allen, P., Terman, A.R., Hayden, J. and Hatcher, C., 2014. Front and back of the
house: Socio-spatial inequalities in food work. Agriculture and Human Values, 31(1), pp.3-17.
Saleem, H. and Raja, N.S., 2014. The impact of service quality on customer satisfaction,
customer loyalty and brand image: Evidence from hotel industry of Pakistan. Middle-East
Journal of Scientific Research, 19(5), pp.706-711.
the bentley.com.au 2017. Bentley Restaurant and bar. [online] Available at:
http://www.thebentley.com.au/menus/a_la_carte//menus/a_la_carte/ [Accessed 6 Oct. 2017].

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Appendices
Interview Script of an executive chef of Bentley Restaurant
Interviewer: Which type of hospitality enterprise do you manage?
Executive chef: We build the reputation for the hotel by maintaining by managing, developing
and training the team members of the kitchen. We also manage the kitchen brigades and provide
them necessary training. We also confront various challenges and work co-operatively in the
group. We try to fulfill the demands of the customers and provide them the right cuisines of their
choice
Interviewer: How do you maintain cost control of front house of operation?
Executive Chef: We try to maintain and attain profitability. It is important that the we generate
the food costs between 28% to 35% without hampering the quality. We give preference to this
because the food cost can affect the bottom line of the business if it is too high.
Interviewer: How do you maintain cost control of back house of operation?
Executive chef: We try to streamline the waste reduction. Moreover, we always use written
recipes so that the proportion or the amount of spices or seasonings is proper. We prefer weekly
inventories so as to keep a track of the food that is wasted and adjust the inventory accordingly
Interviewer: Which financial control methods do you use in daily business operation?
Executive Chef: As the food and beverage establishments involve huge processes which are
associated with receiving, storing, purchasing the raw materials, it is our duty to implement
certain cost control measures which will help in mitigating the problems. We must give more

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importance on the role of standards which is vital and necessary to make comparisons or
judgments.