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ASSIGNMENT COVER SHEET

Name Luis Felipe Anguita

Adress Denmark

Post code / Zip:

Telephone:

Email: luis@luisanguita.com

Date: February 27th 2015

Course name: Level 4 HNC in Hospitality

Tutors name: Clive Findlay

Assignment name: Food and Beverage Operations Management

BTEC HNC in Hospitality Management Level 4

Assignment Unit 4 - Food and Beverage Operations Management

Luis F. Anguita

February 27th 2015

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Introduction

The Food and Beverage Manager is in charge of planning, controlling and troubleshooting all stages of the food and

beverage production and service, encompassing tasks and responsibilities that range from planning menus to health

and financial considerations. In this paper we will go through some of the main aspects of food and beverage

operations. We will also attempt to identify potential issues and if relevant make recommendations that might lead to

improvements.

Characteristics of food production and food and beverage service systems

Food production and food and beverage service systems are mostly regarded as a single delivery system. In fact they

consist of two separate systems operated at the same time.

Food includes everything from fruits and sandwiches to highly sophisticated gourmet cuisine and it is

produced in different ways.

Beverages are liquids for drinking. They can be served cold or hot on their own or to accompany meals.

Beverages

Cold drinks

Water, soft drinks, fruit

and vegetable

juices, milk, smoothies,

shakes, cold tea, cold

coffee, soy-based drinks,

energy drinks, sports beverages, and more

Wines, spirits (e.g. gin, tequila, whisky,

vodka, sake, cognac)

liqueurs, beers, cider, cocktails, and

more

Hot drinks

Non

alcoholic Alcoholic

Coffee (e.g. normal black,

capuccino, espresso, cafe latte, macchiato,

mocha) teas, milk, hot

chocolate, Irish coffee,

bouillon, wassail. egg nogg, and

more

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Food production

Food production includes a process that covers planning, purchasing materials, processing, storing and cooking.

Cooking methods are divided into several main groups:

•Food is prepared and cooked on site and served immediately. A widely used method found in restaurants and other food outlets of all sizes

Conventional

•Pre-processed foods that can be consumed fast and easily. Found both as ready meals, e.g. canned or frozen that only need warming up or a few minutes in the microwave or as snacks like sandwiches,

wraps and take away foods.

Convenience

•This food processing method applies to foods prepared in one central kitchen from which is distributed to multiple locations. Used by fast food chains and food services catering to schools,

retirement homes, airlines and hospitals. Centralized food processing in large quantities often means significant lower production costs.

Centralized

•Flexible technique that consists in fully preparing meals and immediately chilling them to controlled low temperatures that keep them fresh for as long as 5 days. They usually require re-heating before

serving..

Cook-chill

•A process that consists in freezing foods within 90 minutes of cooking to a temperature of – 20 degrees Celsius allowing the foods to keep for several months, depending on the type of product. It is

important to keep it at constant temperature, including during transport, until the food is re-heated and consumed.

Cook-freeze

•Food is cooked in water bath machines inside vacuum plastic bags in for a long time (many hours) at temperatures around 60-70 degrees Celsius. Foods retain or even develop enhanced flavours,

texture, tenderness and moisture. There is less shrinkage, thus providing higher yield. Preservation of the foods is noticeably longer. They offer also some practical time saving advantages at the time of

garnishing plates and serving. The Sous-Vide cooking method helps to slow down the growth of aerobic bacteria, but careful precautions are needed to avoid the risk from anaerobic bacteria that

causes botulism poisoning.

Sous-vide

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Service systems

A variety of service systems are used whenever food and beverages are served away from home,:

Non-profit establishments:

a. Schools,

b. Public institutions

c. Hospitals,

d. The Military

e. Businesses catering to their own employees

Commercial or profit establishments:

a. Restaurants

b. Bars/Pubs

c. Hotels

d. Delis ,Self service outlets

e. Airlines, Trains

Common service systems used to serve food and drinks are:

Table service – widely used, the waiter brings food and beverages to the guest’s table. Once they finish

their meal and leave, the servers clear and clean the table preparing it for the next guests. Sub-styles

under the table service system:

a. English – Food is brought to the table in bowls and platters. Meat is already carved and side

dishes presented separately. Guests help themselves to food portions according to taste. Casual

way of presenting food, also called family system because it is similar to the way families serve

dinner at home.

b. American – server takes customers’ order and brings it to the kitchen. When the food is ready

he/she brings it on individual plates to the guests’ table.

c. Gueridon or French – Dishes are prepared by the server at the guests’ table on a trolley e.g.

Crepes Suzette, Caesar salad or meats like Steak Diane.

d. Russian or Silver: food is arranged on platters by kitchen staff and carried by waiters to the table,

presented to the dining customers and served from the left side of each guest by servers onto the

individual plates. Popular service system at banquets.

Buffet system – Various foods arranged onto platters, dishes and hot buffet servers in an eye-appealing

manner on a long table. Customers help themselves to foods of their choice. Buffets are often associated

with the all-you-can-eat concept. Suitable to serve many guests at the same time. Requires few staff.

Cafeteria system – Dining area where customers select their food and drinks and place them on a tray

from a variety of items displayed on a counter. Dishes are ready to eat or there can also be additional

staffed stations where quick hot food can be ordered. No table service, only the minimum required to clear

and clean tables. Time saving service system often chosen by non-commercial establishments.

Self Service outlets. Fast and simple service systems that provide ready to eat foods to customers who

do not have much time at their disposal.

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Beverage service systems

Factors affecting recipes and menus for specific systems

Beverage service systems

Table service

All drinks brought to

table by waiters.

Consumed on their own or

with a meal

Wines brought to

table, opened and

server by special wine

waiter or sommelier

Counter

Service

Bars,Pubs, Cafeterias,

Self service

Pubs, cafes,most restaurants

Exclusive restaurants

Guests help themselves to drinks at counters or order them at the bar. Consumed

with or without

food

Planning and creating recipes and menus is affected by different factors:

Objectives of the organization

Skills of kitchen staff

Quality and nutritional value goals

Size or organization

Availability of raw materials

Seasonal ingredients

Budget

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Cost and staffing implications for different systems

According to the type of business and system, costs and staffing considerations vary dramatically.

The food and beverage manager has to carefully calculate these costs and find an adequate balance between them

and the prices on the menu in order to ensure acceptable profit margins.

Type of food outlet

Self-Service outlets, Delis and Vending machines

Cafeteria , pubs, bars and buffet services

Restaurants (Americam and English table service)

Restaurants (French and Russian table service) Gourmet

restaurants , high level event catering

Costs implications

Food served is mostly made of readily available low cost raw materials . Only minor storage

requirements

Low service costs . Food costs depending on the businesses'

aims

Ranging from low to high quality production, material and storage costs according to quality level of

outlet

High quality raw materials, often seaonal ingredients

Staff implications

Very low costs. Few or no kitchen staff at all. Service can be manned by as little as one

unskilled person

Skilled , semi-skilled and unskilled kitchen and service staff. Fewer employees than table service

restaurants

Combining high-skilled and less skilled assistants will help keep

personnel costs down.

High-skilled kitchen and service staff.

Sommelier

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Suitability of systems for particular food and beverage outlets

Clearly, the individual service systems are suitable for different types of food and beverage establishments:

Table service will work well for business dinners, guests who go dining alone or to share a good time with

friends for a few hours or simply want to dine comfortably with a complete service at their table. Variations

according to the situation:

a. American style is recommended for a wide variety of food and beverage outlets such as

restaurants of all sizes and types, pubs, airlines and private clubs.

b. French style suits a more intimate formal dinner for one, two guests or a small group

c. Russian or Silver style is a practical and simple service to serve many guests in an elegant

manner. This system provides advantages for serving for larger tables or banquets

d. English style is suitable for less formal dining in both small and big groups.

Buffet service can be successfully applied in commercial and non-commercial food outlets. Its advantages

are mainly minimizing the need for serving staff, offering customers the possibility of selecting the foods

they prefer from a wide choice and helping themselves to the amount of food they wish to consume. The

system is fast, informal and normally arranged in an attractive colorful way that adds to customer

experience. It can be used in restaurants, canteens and large events.

Cafeteria service is ideal for catering to guests looking for a quick meal, maybe in their lunch break or

whenever they do not have much time to eat.

Self Service – Take away – Vending machines helpful to customers that need a quick light meal, e.g.

sandwiches, wraps or fish and chips. These services normally do no provide sitting facilities and offer only

very basic service.

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Financial Statements in Food and Beverage Operations

In order to have a clear picture of the financial state of food and beverage operations, managers use a series of tools

called financial statements, among them:

• Balance sheet – Shows the organization’s:

a. Assets

b. Liabilities (Debts)

c. Capital (Net Worth)

• Income statement – informs in detail about the daily running of the business. Example:

Formula: Sales – Cost of product sold – Labor costs = Profit

Example: $1025 - $210 - $320 = $595

• Cash flow statement – monthly based report that shows cash income, use of it and cash balance

• Ratio – help analyze and identify problem areas – Shows %

Formula: Food Cost /Food sales x 100 = %

Example: 210/1025 x 100 = 20, 48 %

Formula: Labor Cost /Food sales x 100 = %

Example: 320/1025 x 100 = 31, 21 %

The example shows that labor costs are nearly 11% higher than food costs.

Use of cost and pricing processes

Food and beverages need to be priced correctly to ensure profit for the business and provide value customers.

The F&B manager needs to consider several factors when calculating the final price of the items on the menu.

Costs

The first basic step is to determine the purchasing and production costs of each portion, known as Standard Unit Cost.

This can be done by using some common methods:

Cost per Unit Method – as purchased

Yield Test – before cooking but after discarding wastage

Cooking Loss Test – after cooking

Standard Portion Cost – cost of portion of each ingredient

Standard Recipe – cost of the sum of all ingredients

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Pricing Once the beverage or food costs and other expenses have been established a Sale Price must be calculated to be included in the menu. Markup, a widely used method consist in multiplying costs by 300% is expected cover all costs, both food and other expenses. Example:

However, there are a multiple approaches to price menu items:

Subjective – based on many factors, for example 1. Intuition 2. Organization’s objectives 3. Psychology 4. Competitors prices 5. Lack of sufficient pricing knowledge

Objective – based on a variety of formulas. A few examples: 1. Food Cost Percent method 2. Price Divisor method 3. Gross Profit method 4. Prime Cost Factor

Example of calculating the Sale Price of Pork Chop + side dishes with the widely used Simple Prime Costs method:

Food costs Pork chop Roast potatoes

Green beans

Baked tomato

Condi-ments

Standard plate cost

Unit price $1.50 $0,50 $0,70 $0,50 $0,20 $3,40

Standard Plate cost

$3,40

300

Sale price

$10,20

Labor costs Yearly Sales

$186000

Number of guests per year

$84540

Labor costs per guest =

$2,20

Other costs e.g.

laundry, rent, electricity, ambience

Yearly Sales

$104000

Number of guests per year

$84540

Labor costs per guest

$1,23

Standard Plate Cost

$3,40

Labor costs

$2.20

Other costs

$1,23

Prime costs

$6,83

Desired Prime cost

factor

3.2

Sale price

$21,85

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Purchasing process

Once the menu has been planned, the next step is purchasing the necessary products and raw materials for

production. Chefs in charge of purchasing in smaller businesses or F&B Management or Purchasing Departments in

larger companies need to consider:

Desired quality of materials according to

1. Menu style

2. Service style

3. Organization’s standards and aims

Quantity required

1. Have enough in stock in order not to run out of ingredients

2. Careful attention to freshness and “best before” dates

Supplier

1. Wholesaler

2. Local farmers

3. Food brokers

4. Purveyors with wide range of products on offer

5. Location and facilities

Delivery options

1. Speed

2. Service

3. Short notice availability

Price

1. Lowest possible

2. Best service, value

Payment options

1. Credit

2. Checks,

3. Bank transfers

4. cash

Storage availability

1. Pantries

2. Refrigerators

3. Freezers

4. Walk in coolers, freezers

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Typical purchasing process example:

Food and beverage menus for hospitality events:

To compile the right menu for hospitality events some important aspects should be taken into account:

Type of event, e.g.

a. Conference

b. Wedding

c. Wedding anniversary

d. Birthday

e. Company anniversary

f. Student end of term dinner

g. Religious celebrations

h. Christmas party

i. Exhibitions

j. Fundraisers

Guest profile

a. Age

b. Ethnic background

c. Religious background

d. Sophistication, cultural level

e. Place of residence

f. Food preferences

g. Service preferences

h. Budget

Determining products needed

Choosing right supplier

Receiving goods

Storing goods

Receiving Invoice

Making payment

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Menu choices include

•Ice cream

•Cakes

•Fruit salad

•Cheeses

Event menu choices

•Fish/seafood (smoked salmon, shrimps, seafood salad)

•Meat (prosciutto, carpaccio, tartar, terrines)

•Salad Salad

Three or four-course menu

Suggestions

Starters

•Soups

•Pasta

•Samosas

Seconds

•Meats (veal, lamb, chicken, turkey, pork, game)

•Fish

•Vegetarian alternatives (lasagna, canneloni, pies)

Traditional international buffet:

a wide selection of cold and hot dishes including examples from the 4-course menu and further

additions

Main courses

Desserts

Indian

Italian

Chinese

Mexican

Other menu options Theme menu: 4 course or buffet

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Food and beverage service for a hospitality event within an agreed budget Scenario: Adriana, a Canadian diplomat stationed in Brussels, hired us to organize her birthday party with 80 guests including several diplomats and government officials. She asked us to serve a not too rich typical Italian 5- course-meal. Security requirements are also high on her list. Her budget is $9000: It is autumn, so we take advantage of Porcini mushroom season. Freshest available ingredients have been chosen. Low fat cream (15%) used for soup and dessert.

•Braciole di vitello con funghi Porcini é puré parmiggiano + green salad (veal meat rolls with Porcini mushrooms

and mashed potatoes Parmesan)

Adriana's birthday party

•Bruschetta with artichoke crème

Five-course Italian menu - American style table

service

Starter

• Zuppa di aragosta (Creamy lobster soup)

Main course Penne Arrabiata (pasta with spicy tomato

sauce)

Second

Main course 2

4 Children among guests will be served pasta with meatballs and a mild tomato sauce

Desserts Cannoli Siciliani (Sicilian cream rolls)

Selection of Italian cheeses

Soft drinks, beer, cider, mineral water, juice fruits,

coffee and tea

Wines:

Prosecco and lime (welcome drink)

Orvieto Classico 2014

Barbaresco Fontanafredda 2011 (main meal)

Marsala, Amaretto (dessert)

Beverages included (served between 6 pm and 2 am)

Spirits and other liqueurs at the bar after dinner: Strega,

Amaro Verna, Fernet Branca, Vodka, Whisky, Bourbon, Gin, Tequila, Cointreau and many

more

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Price for event:

Menu: ($82 per adult) $6560

Menu children ($8 per child)$ $36

Beverages: ($18 per person) $1440

Security: (3 guards) $ 900 Total: $8936 (within budget)

Adriana was extremely satisfied. The 4 waiter table service was efficient. The price covered all costs and the desired profit aims were achieved. However, food portions were a bit too generous considering the 5-course meal. They should be 20% smaller in the future. Conclusion The many different aspects of Food and Beverage Operations make the job of a F&B manager both complex and fascinating at the same time. Being in charge of so many tasks requires skillful people who have a flair for organization and can respond quickly and efficiently to problems. Recommendations F&B Management can present a huge variety of challenges depending on the organization’s size and objectives. Common to all of them is the need to pay close attention to purchasing, costs, pricing and handling of the products. Special consideration should be given to hygiene. Recruiting reliable qualified staff is vital to deliver a good product and to be able to delegate tasks when needed, particularly in medium to large operations.

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