By Greg Garner

One of the deciding factors in how much profit you are going to make from your restaurant business depends on your portion size. It has been found that the average portion size served in American restaurants has increased in recent years; which is alarming since there is a rising level of obese people in the USA. Though fast food restaurants are often blamed for super sizing their food, other restaurants are equally guilty of serving too much. Most of it goes to waste or people overstuff themselves.

As a restaurant owner, you will of course want to serve what the people want. Serving size portions are in most cases set by the main chef of the restaurant, though in many cases it is the owner who makes the decision. No matter what you do in your restaurant, here are the things you should know about the portion sizes being served in your restaurant.

In a survey among chefs done by researchers in Clemson University, as reported in a New York Times article, most chefs did not adhere to the serving standard set by United States Department of Agriculture (U.S.D.A). Most of them believed that the portion they served was regular or normal in size. So the first thing you should do when discussing portion size with your chef is to get his viewpoint. Tell him about the standard size as set by the U.S.D.A., and discuss how the two of you can try to come close to that standard. As an owner, it is not possible or practical to fully implement these standards because when people come to your restaurant, they expect a good value for their meal and that means large portions! If you suddenly lower your portions, they may go to the competition. So you can lower your rates (which could attract more people) or give your patrons options and let them choose between normal size portions and standard size portions.

There is another reason to control your portions. Apart from helping you save, a standard portion size is also the finishing touch on your dishes. After you have perfected your recipe, you must be sure it looks and taste the same all the time no matter who cooks the dish. (Chefs could change from time to time) One way of doing that is to buy ingredients in a size not much bigger than the portion size. For example, if you are serving a steak of around 11.5 ounces, choose steaks that are between 11 to 12 ounces in size.

Since portion size consistency is very important, you have to be sure you are sending each dish out with the same amount. For this, a good weighing scale in the kitchen is a must. Yes, it is true that a digital scaling machine is a bit costly, but the money you can save by correctly weighing ingredients will recoup its price! This is especially important for fine dining restaurants that have high-end ingredients like truffle, foie gras, caviar, etc. You will also need a bigger floor-standing weighing machine as well.

Remember, todays customers are more concerned about their health in general than before. So they may ask voluntarily for a smaller portion or a doggy bag, both of which you should provide. This shows that you genuinely want them to enjoy your food.

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