Restaurant Analytics
Restaurant Analytics Metrics Every Owner Should Track
The metrics that matter to a restaurant owner are the ones that lead to a decision: how many orders you take and when, what an average order is worth, which dishes sell and which only get looked at, how long service takes, and how many guests come back. Track a few of them consistently, compare like with like, and act on one at a time.
Sales metrics
| Metric | How it is worked out | What it tells you |
|---|---|---|
| Orders | The number of orders in a period | How busy you were |
| Revenue | What guests paid, after refunds | The headline number |
| Average order value | Revenue divided by the number of orders | Whether guests order more or less per visit |
| Best sellers | Dishes ranked by revenue or by quantity | What earns the money |
| Category share | Each category's part of the revenue | Whether drinks, mains or desserts carry the menu |
Time and service metrics
- Busy hours: orders by day of the week and hour, so the right shifts get the right staff.
- Preparation time: from order to ready, by hour and by dish.
- Table time: from seating to leaving, at your busiest service.
- Waitlist: how many walk-ins left before they were seated.
Using these numbers to shorten a visit: how to speed up table turnover.
Menu metrics
- Menu opens: how often guests scan the code or open the menu link, by day and by table.
- Dish views: which dishes guests open to read about.
- From view to order: a dish many guests open but few order often needs a better photo, description or price.
- Dishes ordered together: pairs that suggest a combination or a suggestion on the menu.
Turning menu numbers into changes: a practical guide to menu engineering.
Guest metrics
- Returning guests: how many of last month's guests came back.
- New loyalty members, and points redeemed.
- Reviews and feedback, read for the reasons behind the score rather than the score alone.
Where guest numbers come from: first-party guest data.
Reading the numbers
- Compare the same weekday, or the same week a month earlier — not a Saturday with a Tuesday.
- Use a window long enough to be fair; one quiet day says very little.
- Change one thing at a time, so you know what moved the number.
- Remember what the data cannot see: orders taken outside the system do not appear in its reports.
Restaurant analytics in Thmenu
Thmenu counts the scans of each QR code by day, hour and table, and the dishes guests open. When orders go through the menu, the reports add orders, revenue and average order value over time, best sellers and each category's share, a day-by-hour heatmap of when guests order, an ABC analysis of the menu, and which dishes guests open, add to the cart and order, together with the dishes they order together. The panel also produces an end-of-day Z report. Sales figures need orders placed through Thmenu; a view-only menu still gets scan and dish-view numbers.