I worked at a BBQ place 20 years ago and this is how the owner broke it down for me as well. A third for food costs, a third for labor, a third for overhead and profit. A lot of people that get into a restaurant business do it because they like making food, not because they want to learn how run a restaurant. You can't base your prices on your competitors, you have no idea what type of meat they're using, are their kids working for free after school, do they cut corners, etc. Price your stuff so that you can still be in business in a year. I've seen a lot of new BBQ places around here start off with a $9-10 plate and then after a month it's $14 because they underpriced it and lost their shirt the first month. But that price shock can drive off customers who think they're getting gouged.
@safeandeffectivelol you cam try to say whatever you want but that's just not true... a Berkshire pig and prime brisket are far more different than you're average meat. And idc what you think you can tell a select from a prime brisket if you have eaten bbq enough...
@@punchabunchofbuttons214 I've been eating BBQ for almost 50 years in Texas. Paying 2-3x the price is not worth the improvement in quality of BBQ. For steaks or grilled pork, it's worth it. The cooking time and method in TX BBQ should be enough to get pretty much any piece of grade of meat to be tender and moist. These people are using it as a crutch
I agree 100% with your math. A restaurant having to charge $28 a pound for something I truly love is exactly why I make my own at home and don’t own a restaurant. 😜
No idea why this was recommended to me by RUclips but I really appreciate this. It's a nice thing to have people giving away trade secrets like this for the betterment of others. Further, I was very surprised by the amount of loss. At 14 pounds initially, I figured you'd end up around 8 so that was interesting.
We always use our trim for our sausage blend which helps with the cost of sausages. Best thing to try to implement with your products is zero waste if and when possible. Another thing we do is use drip pans under our briskets when smoking and use the drippings for gravy and aujus stock.
I ventured into this as an at home meat smoker during 2020. Lost my job temporarily and I knew everyone liked my meat. So I started smoking it for profit... I probably only sold less than 10 things.... but the price point was very astonishing to me. To even recoup my costs, I had to charge way more than I wanted to. The price per pound seemed WAY too high. But do you know how many people complained or tried to negotiate the price?? ZERO! No one cared. They were paying a premium price for a premium product. They had asked me in the past to smoke meat for them, and suddenly I had the time to do it. Luckily, I'm fully employed again, and smoked meat is back to being a hobby!
I'm all for classes like Home Economics, but this isn't HOME economics here. He's teaching restaurant economics. No one needs to know how to price the food they're serving their family at home.
This is incredible content. I'm wayyyyy down a RUclips wormhole at the moment at 1am but that doesn't detract from the fact that this video is certified gold!
Thank you so much for this Video. There are not many videos out there as clear and to the point when determining Catering suggested prices!! This alone deserves shares and subscriptions to all of your platforms. Thanks again!!
Thank you!! These videos help us consumers understand so much more about your business. Yet some people still think your overcharging us and driving away in a Ferrari
Great vid and thank you!!! And imagine, when people complain about costs, how do you even account for the hours it takes to cook it?!?! The same people complaining about costs are the same folks that don’t want to deal with the hassle of cooking. 😓
A local BBQ place on island is charging $40 per lb., and it sucks! I left never to return! My solution was simple... Prime brisket was on sale at Costco last week for $2.99 per lb. I got a 14.3 lb brisket for $43! I smoked it on my Weber and it was beyond amazing, especially with it costing the price of 1 lb. of local ripoff meat @$40! Brisket should NOT require financing! Great video! I should show it to our crappy overpriced BBQ joint guaranteed.
Lol! I think we both are both on the Big Island in the same area above airport and palisades area! Your name is the area! Small world my friend! Wow! 🤙
What happened to the other guy from Hawaii in the comments? Kalaoa flower grower.... Where did you go? I tried to reply but you tube was having problems and it didn't go thru. Now your comment is gone? Hit me up if you see this my friend. Mahalo & Aloha :)
Thanks for posting this video. My brother just bought a BBQ restaurant and has been struggling with the same dilemma. He found your video, and shared it with me. I am very excited for him to increase his effective revenue for his family.
It's always been the rule of thumb to triple your food cost to price out your menu items. It's just as important to figure out the yield; the number of servings per brisket, in this case, which Damon didn't mention. It's also useful to figure overhead per serving. For instance, divide monthly energy cost by the number of servings dished out every month. So, if I sell 3,000 servings a month and my gas bill is $8,000, that's $2.67 per serving that will figure into overhead. You do that for every expense (payroll, maintenance, insurance, etc.) and then you can begin to project profit.
What a great video! Can't thank you enough Brandon. As a guy who's been a hobbyist in the barbecue space for years in a city where there seems to be ZERO local barbecue that's better than decent, I'm starting to research starting my own business and information like this is a huge help.
If you did not have this information before opening a place why the fuck would you go into business. i will be generous and give you 1 year before your shit fails.
Fantastic video, as an aspiring chef, THIS is the type of info i need to learn. Not just ‘cooking/recipe’ videos. I’m gonna sub to you and i hope you keep making more content like this - the business end of things, for us chefs and aspiring chefs. Thanks!
LOL...listen man, stop throwing the word chef around. IF you did not attend a classical french School that teaches ALL of this and more your not a chef. you will always be a cook. simple as that. Go work at a restaurant for about a year....then another ....then another ........then learn what it takes to manage a kitchen, then manage food cost then manage menu design, labor cost ETC then...only then, can you come close to actually being a REAL CHEF after years of doing it. got it? ask me how i know. EDIT: there are a handful of culinary schools that offer degrees but are expensive. I suggest you look them up and attend one to be taken seriously in this field .
@@DigitalCity-sj4es if i may ask, are you a chef? Or what gives you the authority on this subject? Also, i said i am ASPIRING to be a chef. Lastly, i’ve been doing this since about 2015. And i agree, people do throw the word around too losly. One more thing, is that sincere advice? To tell a man in his early 30s to pay all that money and go to culinary school? Thanks for your reply in advance i want to hear what you have to say.
@@Geezuse Yes I am a chef, I have been cooking professionally for 16 years, form a private Chef to restaurants. As for your culinary school question, well,do you want to be a line cook forever? what are your goals? IF your want to take it seriously I suggest school. Most private Chef agencies require a degree. Not all but A lot of clubs want an Executive Chef with a Degree, So i ask again, how serious do you want to be in the industry?
@@DigitalCity-sj4es good point maybe i’m getting the wrong advice from people but i swear everyone else who went to culinary school tells me “ah biggest waste of money now i’m in debt blah blah”. I’d love to have that degree, and mostly have that knowledge. Trust me i can spot someone who went to school and they def have an edge. Its almost not an option for me at this point in my life. I hope i can get somewhere by continuing to learn off my chefs. Its how i support myself. And i do want to be a chef.
@@DigitalCity-sj4es- In a post made to brag about all your fancy schooling and and to put down a colleague you see as inferior, you should at least be able to show a decent grasp of grammar and word choice.
I commend you for your efforts in teaching us about how brisket is sold. I am not a pit master but I have barbecue at home and I understand that cooking bbq is dedication. Best of luck and God Bless.
This is perhaps the best video I've ever seen. As a person who wants to open a sandwich shop this is as helpful as anything I've found The difference being your video is fire. So true know your value. Don't be afraid to charge proper $$$ too keep the doors open. Thanks Doug 😎
Great simple breakdown. The x3, for anyone curious, is pretty standard across all industries (Some are higher, some are lower, but ~30% is target). 1/3rd of the price covers the cost to make and sell the product, one third is taxes, and the final third is company profit that you usually roll back into the business (which could also include your salary). If you only double the price per pound you'll be paying uncle Sam and not paying yourself.
Right, but he did it totally wrong because those trimmings are not trash, they are used to make sausage so the cost of that trimmings is supposed to be applied to the sausage. So really, his sell price should be about $18.50/lb, otherwise you're paying for the trimmings when you buy the brisket and when you buy the sausage. The trimmings are worth 2x the brisket.
@@bobbygetsbanned6049 Maybe. -If- you can sell all your trimmings (which most butchers/BBQ restaurants can't). Realistically, 33% food cost is actually a bit on the high side as the target really should be 28-35% (28% you're doing good, 35%, you're on the edge). Between those two things it ends up working out to around the 3 times multiplier the video says. I don't think I've ever seen anyone that has half decent brisket selling it at $18.50/lb. That should be one indicator that the math is off...
I own a Smokehouse in the northern Philippines, how I wish we could get full US briskets at 3.99/lb.! The information for restauranteurs is spot-on. Brisket takes a lot of work to get right, and you need to make sure you are charging the right amount for it. This is probably not the meat you want to sell cheaper to get folks into your restaurant, use a cheaper and more forgiving cut if you need a leader to get people in. Great viceo, I look forward to seeing more in the future!
as an amateur brisket smoker, it's fascinating to see this side of the bbq business. we get bombarded with all the "sexy" parts of bbq, but this is the reality of running a successful restaurant.
This looks like the start of a great series. I know the same priciples can be applied to most smoked meats but, I think it would be entertaining to see you perform the same activity with Boston Butt, Whole Chickens (and pulled), Chicken Wings, and Ribs (baby back, spare, and St. Louis).
@@JBsBBQ I would recomend to those responding to take some time to research fixed vs variable costs. There are thousands of books (and probably RUclips videos) that will help you understand cost and how to structure margin to ensure those costs are covered and exceeded (VARIABLE: wood, utilities, food costs, labor hours, maintenance, etc.)(FIXED: Insurance, rent, equipment payments, employee benefits, Taxes etc.). A good business plan will also help you understand what those numbers are and how to factor them into price point. A basic understanding of business will go a long way.
God Bless you your family and your business brother. I’ve liked and subscribed and I plan on watchin more of these videos because pricing is one of my biggest struggles! 🙏🏾👨🏾🍳💙
Great video. Now I understand why brisket is so expensive. I would never have guessed you would have lost over half of the weight after trimmed/cooked!!! WOW!!!
Overhead is KEY! I made a tartar sauce at LSU. DHH has a mandatory policy to carry $2M in insurance. My mark up was 35%. You have 7 day week like I did to realize a profit within 5 years. It can be overwhelming without the right staff and fun with the right staff. Great Video from a great Pro!
Very cool, best video about basic cost of brisket i have ever seen, I subscribed immediately. Everyone wants to show you how they make the rub or set up their grill but this is the shit they really need to show…thanks
As an amateur bbq enthusiast, I daydream of doing a truck or trailer. Very cool video. Couple of questions: 1. Best method to keep pre-smoked meats (brisket, ribs, chicken,etc) warm and fresh for serving? Afraid of drying out, etc. 2. Best way to source decent meats wholesale when you are starting out? Thanks!
Thank you for the 5 introductions ("I'm gonna..." "I'm gonna...") and the demonstration on how to TARE your scale. I very much appreciate the detailed treatment of "putting the tray on the scale" - a truly arcane process that you have given everyone insight into!
for those who keep asking about trim cost, the trim is essentially going towards the other costs not factored in here, i.e. wood, salt, pepper, seasonings etc as well as prices fluctuating while you try to keep your prices level week to week. all restaurants find their cushions that are the “gravy”, your trim is the gravy to help keep things moving, if you’re pricing them in as well then you’re going to be far too tight and have no wiggle room for things that go awry because anyone in this business knows that there’s always something to fix and pay for. the trim in this case is basically going to cover those unforeseen costs.
I'm a little ignorant this subject...can u break down how to factor in the trim and other cost such as the wood etc plz and thank u, more videos like this plz
@@peechyman what it essentially is, is yield percentages, he’s breaking down what he paid for vs what he got. if u pay 10$ for 10# it equals 1$ per lb, if u cook it and what is actually servable is 5# when you’re done the yield was 50% (5# lost to trim and fat/liquid during the cook) so the product itself actually cost 10$ and you end up with 5#. 10$ % 5# = 2$ per lb. things like this add up when most people just look at things through a lens of the initial first cost vs the cost actually paid when the product is finished. trim was the leftover that get ground into other products that can be sold. he’s not factoring in the cost/profit of the trim made into other products (which is what most people were asking why not and what i explained above) but factoring in things like how many cords of wood are being used, what’s the cost per cord etc there are so many small moving parts a lot of the time people kind of lump them together in an estimated cost. i don’t know the case here but for instance he could say “i’m not going to go through all of these little random detailed costs so i’ll add on 1$ per dish (or per lb) for what a lot of restaurants would have as a “garnish cost” which is when they add say 2$ to a plate to cover garnishes or small sides. you could take a ribeye and know you’re cost is 20$ on the meat itself so a place would add maybe a 2$ garnish cost for the mashed potatoes and sauce and price accordingly from the dish cost of 22$ and probably sell that dish for around 62-70$ most likely, but costs get tricky and they may see the dish as a loss leader to get people through the door and sell it for 55$ knowing the tables will order beer/wine/cocktails or dishes like pasta that have very low food costs. sorry for long response but it’s a complex subject
@peechyman so I factor my wood in with my expenses (water bill, electric bill) because I buy a cord of wood every 6 weeks. It's consistent for me. My trimmings I use for my sausage and my smash burgers. I know I make it sound like trimmings are "free meat" but it's not. Don't think of your trimmings as free meat. You still paid for it, so if you make something with it, calculate that price you paid for the meat into the item. For instance, I grind my trimmings into hamburger meat for my smash burgers. I paid $3.99 per lb for that meat, and my burgers weigh 1/2 lb, so that hamburger patty cost me, basically $2. I multiply that number by 3 to cover my labor, food cost, and expenses. That gives me a $6 menu price, but I add $1 for my bun, $1 cheese, and $1 for the condiments, which I include my pickles and onions in condiments. That gives me a menu price of $9 for my smash burger. Also, when I calculate my sausage, I calculate it as I paid for the meat to make it because it wasn't free. Basically, just save anywhere you can. I wish I could find other things to use my trimmings for. I have a ton of trimmings. I'm about to start testing some all beef sausage to see if I can get rid of more trimmings than what I currently do with my current sausage recipe.
@@damonsrealtexasbbq yep 100% accurate. also the thing that doesn’t get factored in for us owners is actual time. all the extra time we put into things to keep everything going so employees can have things easier or more consistent. people look or hear prices for costs then say “oh well i could go make that for 10$ why is it 35$?”. all i ask right off the bat is “how much do u make per hour? because sourcing ingredients is an hour or hours out of your day are u not factoring in that time? what about driving to go pick up all the ingredients u need? what about having to actually sit and cook this stuff?” so many layers but it’s the only way for people to not think only from a standpoint of “this is cheap at costco i could go make this for less” it gets them to understand that these ingredients don’t randomly show up and trim and cook themselves etc. chef owners are always getting out through the grinder but we do it in private where the employees don’t realize all the admin crap it takes to keep everything else running as smoothly as possible.
Thanks for sharing your experience! Very helpful for those who want to start a business > many mom and pop shop have no knowledge! When it comes to pricing food , labor , expenses like insurance, taxes ect ect > again thank you for taking us behind the scenes.
Great video Brandon. My wife and I had always figured on three times the price but didn't figure on the final weight factor. Thank you for the easy explanation. 😇👍
That is awesome. Congratulations!!! Now I feel like it was all worth it knowing that at least one person who watched my video is carrying on the tradition of smoking meat. Thank you. You just made my day.
Great video, really enjoyed that you walked through the logic of it all, make a lot of sense, and really shows the fairness of it all. Win win for the pit master and the customer.
Thank you brother. If you happen to be passing by Wharton on a Thursday or Sunday, stop by. I would love to buy you dinner and get your opinion on a few things.
Just subscribed after watching this video. My wife and I have a small catering business up here in Wyoming and this video has been helpful. Thank you so much!
One reason you see those prices at some of the big-name places is because they are running a particular line of beef. For instance, Franklin's runs Creekstones, which is a very high grade of briskets that come from cows that are in a program with very high standards. They keep such good track of these bloodlines that they can tell you what cow each brisket came from. It's crazy. I'm not at that level yet. One benefit of cooking those briskets is that there is less waste because they trim them partially before packaging.
Thanks for the information. I have been curious about how to price bqq. Will this be the same method on pulled pork? How about ribs, chicken, and sausages?
So informative and such an articulate presentation. Thank you for sharing. My friends & neighbours always asking how much I’d charge them. Now I’ll send this link. New sub from a 🇨🇦 backyard bbq dad 👍
@@lobotomydiff the point went over ur head mate, lol. I’ll explain but can’t make you understand. If they watch a pro crunch numbers then they can see for themselves why I’d never ask friends & neighbours for $28/lb so ergo I’d never charge them. Lol. 🍺🍺
@@lobotomydiffbecause the video breaks it down. A lot of people scoff at brisket prices when they eat out. They see it at the store for $5.99lb and can’t understand how it jumps to almost $30 at a bbq spot.
I don't run a restaurant but I just portioned my first butcher's cut brisket for home use. I was absolutely amazed at the amount of waste just in terms of the fat. I had almost 5 lbs of fat from a 13 lb brisket (which I did render into tallow but still.) Brisket has to be difficult and misleading to price because the meat is so relatively cheap per pound - BUT the required processing kills the yield.
@@samxherbert2468 Breaking down and portioning that fairly small 13 lb brisket was a real project. You have to separate the point from other muscles, and trim constantly. I'll look for a higher priced trimmed brisket next time.
Would this be the same calcutation formula for pulled pork ? Do you have a calcuation on how much meat you need to buy upfront to feed (example) 75-100 people? Thanks!
Excellent video. I own a food truck and do asian fusion tacos and pretty much went the same route. If you have good quality product people will be willing to pay.
Great video. So informative and gives an insight into what these businesses have to charge to make a profit just to stay in business. But all the brisket trimmings are not wasted either. Most brisket trimmings are used to make sausage. With this insight, I now have a better understanding of why they charge what they charge and I can respect that as a customer. And maybe one day after I learn to perfect my brisket I will open a BBQ Shack myself. BIG MAYBE. LOL...
So excited to watch this, not only to look at if I want to do this nd start selling but also to be a better customer and stop bitching about how expensive brisket is. I am from Texas and live in Tennessee where hey they are getting lot better at cooking it then we first came up in 1999....thank you for this video
Great information here thanks for the video. Just wondering if you still weigh before and after briskets and set prices or did you just go with avg weight and set your price.
Thank you. I use our trimmings to make sausage, which we do have a video of that process, we make smash burgers with it, and we make beef stew in the winter. With the fat, we render that down and use the tallow to make homemade tortillas, we also have a video of that process.
Great video. I’m guessing you make sausage with the trim or something so would the price for those items made from trim be lower than if you would have purchased and smoked those or do you just go with it.
Yes we use our brisket trimmings to make our sausage, but for instance if we paid $4.50 lb for our briskets, then we calculate that price into the sausage because those trimmings were not free. We still had to pay for them.
Brandon, enjoyed your video on pricing brisket. After 23 years owning bbq restaurants, would like to point out a few things you might be overlooking: the price you pay for briskets from food supplier is by the pound INCLUDING the purge in the bag, the bag, and usually the box! So removing the whole brisket from box, and pouring out the purge moisture can add a pound to a pound and a half to each brisket! Your mark up of 3 X would indicate an expected Food Cost of 33.3%. - but is it really 33.3%. -what is the actual, all in food cost of your side items? - you are guessing on the total cost of spices, (seen the price of black pepper lately?) condiments, paper goods, cleaning chemicals (can really bite you since rarely analysed), Labor, Tax on Labor, and overhead costs (rent, heating/cooling, insurance and REPAIRS on building and kitchen equipment!) The last area is where a small food truck, or small caterer can reduce cost over a "brick and mortar" restaurant! Still, the problem with trying to determine the cost of a pound of brisket, with pinpoint accuracy is great, but just GUESSING at 66% of your total cost is a recipe for disaster in this business. Having said that, there is always 3 people trying to rent a bbq restaurant that just went out of business by people who have been told they should open a restaurant, and don't have a clue! Thanks again, and keep the smoke coming!
Only pointing out that trying to measure exactly (or nearly so) the cost of the Brisket and basically guessing at the other, hopefully, 66.6 percent of the cost of operations the operation is a dangerous way to run the restaurant!
I stopped by my favorite bbq joint yesterday to see the price of a 1 meat plate w/2 sides was $19.99! It ain't cheap and that's why it's now a treat for me to get some bbq rather than a weekly stop.
Did by chance you trim more off, because the pile next to the briscuit didn’t look like 5 lbs of trimmings. Just curious. And would all briscuits need to be trimmed by 35%?
thank you for making this video. Do you have a video that talks about how you came up with the 3x cost when pricing your products? If not, how did you come up with using 3 times the cost? Much appreciated.
"This is the same or approximate price that retailers charge to consumers. The retail price is normally around 2 to 3 x the trade or wholesale price, depending on the mark up of the retailer. It's best practice to charge around 2.5 and this has been the case for many decades." Guessing it's product + labour + convenience. Because making BBQ for one person IS costly. Coals take time to hear etc etc
I don't own a bbq restaurant (though I've had several suggest I open one after retirement, waaaaay to much work) I have done a little catering and I keep abreast of local BBQ prices, and I understand the math here and the rule of 3x your cost. Brisket locally is about $17.99 a pound at local BBQ joints, in an area (central KY) where raw brisket by the pound prices are probably about average. Some areas of the country are higher, some lower. What I can say is, if a bbq joint in these parts was selling brisket for $28 a pound, they probably wouldn't be in business long because most people just wouldn't pay it. I understand market pricing and costs are going to fluctuate depending on the part of the country one is in, but $28 a pound is just high. Maybe it's reasonable in your neck in the woods, but (guessing here), by the time someone got a brisket plate with 2 sides, bread and a drink, I'm guessing that meal is going to set them back $40 or more, which is shocking. BBQ joints use to be places you could go get a good meal, at a reasonable price, if not actually pretty cheap. Those days are gone I guess in a lot of places.
A "meal" will have less than a lb, and probably closer to a half a pound. At 28 pp, a nice brisket meal, is going to be in the 20 dollar range with 2 sides and possibly a drink. If you can get brisket at 18 pp, I would speculate its not high quality and the cheapest grades available.
Location does have a degree of play on pricing but im willing to bet that those BBQ places you are talking about and possibly you are not making much money on the item, sure you can cut a deal and instead of making 5 dollars profit (example only) your shorting yourself and taking 3..well how long will you be able to sustain that as food cost DO fluctuate ...probably not long. Sure, you offer a great price but in time that great price will put you out of business. Im sure people have suggested you open a BBQ place and looking at your comment im going to add my 2 cents and say DONT DO IT.
@@DigitalCity-sj4es Don't worry, I'm not about too, especially in this financial environment. But, even if it was great times, a restaurant is not what I need as an after retirement job, waaaaay too much work and worry, especially a start up.
When it costs 15$ to get a hamburger meal at Whataburger, $25 for a brisket sandwich, side, and cold beer is not crazy. $40+ for a platter is comperable. Thisngs are just expensive right now. Go vote...
Great video, thank you for explaining the labor and cost. But 3,99/ lbs :-) wow in the EU i wish we would get prices like that. How is it now a days (8 months later)?
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I worked at a BBQ place 20 years ago and this is how the owner broke it down for me as well. A third for food costs, a third for labor, a third for overhead and profit. A lot of people that get into a restaurant business do it because they like making food, not because they want to learn how run a restaurant. You can't base your prices on your competitors, you have no idea what type of meat they're using, are their kids working for free after school, do they cut corners, etc. Price your stuff so that you can still be in business in a year. I've seen a lot of new BBQ places around here start off with a $9-10 plate and then after a month it's $14 because they underpriced it and lost their shirt the first month. But that price shock can drive off customers who think they're getting gouged.
True. Raising prices after getting clients will make them angry.
good info
If you know how to BBQ right, you don't need to buy expensive meat
@safeandeffectivelol you cam try to say whatever you want but that's just not true... a Berkshire pig and prime brisket are far more different than you're average meat. And idc what you think you can tell a select from a prime brisket if you have eaten bbq enough...
@@punchabunchofbuttons214 I've been eating BBQ for almost 50 years in Texas. Paying 2-3x the price is not worth the improvement in quality of BBQ. For steaks or grilled pork, it's worth it. The cooking time and method in TX BBQ should be enough to get pretty much any piece of grade of meat to be tender and moist. These people are using it as a crutch
I agree 100% with your math. A restaurant having to charge $28 a pound for something I truly love is exactly why I make my own at home and don’t own a restaurant. 😜
No idea why this was recommended to me by RUclips but I really appreciate this. It's a nice thing to have people giving away trade secrets like this for the betterment of others. Further, I was very surprised by the amount of loss. At 14 pounds initially, I figured you'd end up around 8 so that was interesting.
This is not "trade secrets". This is "restaurant accounting 101" and to show people why brisket is so expensive.
We always use our trim for our sausage blend which helps with the cost of sausages. Best thing to try to implement with your products is zero waste if and when possible. Another thing we do is use drip pans under our briskets when smoking and use the drippings for gravy and aujus stock.
Based AND basted 😂
put those drippings in your smoked beans. You won't be able to keep the beans in stock.
I ventured into this as an at home meat smoker during 2020. Lost my job temporarily and I knew everyone liked my meat. So I started smoking it for profit... I probably only sold less than 10 things.... but the price point was very astonishing to me. To even recoup my costs, I had to charge way more than I wanted to. The price per pound seemed WAY too high. But do you know how many people complained or tried to negotiate the price?? ZERO! No one cared. They were paying a premium price for a premium product. They had asked me in the past to smoke meat for them, and suddenly I had the time to do it. Luckily, I'm fully employed again, and smoked meat is back to being a hobby!
your were buying at retail dude...wtf did you expect.
One rule every home business needs to follow is "always pay yourself", if that means you end up charging more than you think you need then so be it.
This is one of those videos that ought to be shown in cooking classes (HomeEc) in high schools. Great video!
Home ec? What timeline are you from that that is still a thing? Do they still have sock hops and dress like a Grease cosplay too?
Careful Ratlips, the Uber libs will call you a misogynistic cave dweller who yearns for a TradWife.
@KingKong-bn5fh let's just hope no one spikes the punch bowl
@@magnumxlpi that statement alone makes me wanna watch porkys for the 600th time 🤣🤣
I'm all for classes like Home Economics, but this isn't HOME economics here. He's teaching restaurant economics. No one needs to know how to price the food they're serving their family at home.
Thank you for making this calculation simple to understand.
This is incredible content. I'm wayyyyy down a RUclips wormhole at the moment at 1am but that doesn't detract from the fact that this video is certified gold!
Thank you so much for this Video. There are not many videos out there as clear and to the point when determining Catering suggested prices!! This alone deserves shares and subscriptions to all of your platforms. Thanks again!!
Thank you!! These videos help us consumers understand so much more about your business. Yet some people still think your overcharging us and driving away in a Ferrari
Great vid and thank you!!! And imagine, when people complain about costs, how do you even account for the hours it takes to cook it?!?!
The same people complaining about costs are the same folks that don’t want to deal with the hassle of cooking. 😓
A local BBQ place on island is charging $40 per lb., and it sucks! I left never to return! My solution was simple... Prime brisket was on sale at Costco last week for $2.99 per lb. I got a 14.3 lb brisket for $43! I smoked it on my Weber and it was beyond amazing, especially with it costing the price of 1 lb. of local ripoff meat @$40!
Brisket should NOT require financing!
Great video! I should show it to our crappy overpriced BBQ joint guaranteed.
How much charcoal or wood did you use? How many hours did you put into the effort?
Lol! I think we both are both on the Big Island in the same area above airport and palisades area! Your name is the area! Small world my friend! Wow! 🤙
What happened to the other guy from Hawaii in the comments? Kalaoa flower grower.... Where did you go? I tried to reply but you tube was having problems and it didn't go thru. Now your comment is gone? Hit me up if you see this my friend. Mahalo & Aloha :)
Thanks for posting this video. My brother just bought a BBQ restaurant and has been struggling with the same dilemma. He found your video, and shared it with me. I am very excited for him to increase his effective revenue for his family.
It's always been the rule of thumb to triple your food cost to price out your menu items. It's just as important to figure out the yield; the number of servings per brisket, in this case, which Damon didn't mention. It's also useful to figure overhead per serving. For instance, divide monthly energy cost by the number of servings dished out every month. So, if I sell 3,000 servings a month and my gas bill is $8,000, that's $2.67 per serving that will figure into overhead. You do that for every expense (payroll, maintenance, insurance, etc.) and then you can begin to project profit.
That's the way I would have priced it too that way you won't overlook any hidden cost
Ah yes...the "making money" side of the hospitality industry. Quite paddock the most important part of it all. Good stuff, man.
Fanstastic video. Thank you for your transparency. I am trying to get into the catering business and BBQ is my thing. This has helped me immensely.
Good explanation! Would love to see more restaurant insider videos like this!
What a great video! Can't thank you enough Brandon. As a guy who's been a hobbyist in the barbecue space for years in a city where there seems to be ZERO local barbecue that's better than decent, I'm starting to research starting my own business and information like this is a huge help.
This is what i was looking for a breakdown of how much to charge for Cook brisket 🙏
If you did not have this information before opening a place why the fuck would you go into business. i will be generous and give you 1 year before your shit fails.
Hey Brandon, great video, finally someone has kept it simple and practical, Love your videos man, greetings from southern Australia
Thank you so much!!!
Fantastic video, as an aspiring chef, THIS is the type of info i need to learn. Not just ‘cooking/recipe’ videos.
I’m gonna sub to you and i hope you keep making more content like this - the business end of things, for us chefs and aspiring chefs. Thanks!
LOL...listen man, stop throwing the word chef around. IF you did not attend a classical french School that teaches ALL of this and more your not a chef. you will always be a cook. simple as that. Go work at a restaurant for about a year....then another ....then another ........then learn what it takes to manage a kitchen, then manage food cost then manage menu design, labor cost ETC then...only then, can you come close to actually being a REAL CHEF after years of doing it. got it? ask me how i know.
EDIT: there are a handful of culinary schools that offer degrees but are expensive. I suggest you look them up and attend one to be taken seriously in this field .
@@DigitalCity-sj4es if i may ask, are you a chef? Or what gives you the authority on this subject? Also, i said i am ASPIRING to be a chef. Lastly, i’ve been doing this since about 2015. And i agree, people do throw the word around too losly. One more thing, is that sincere advice? To tell a man in his early 30s to pay all that money and go to culinary school?
Thanks for your reply in advance i want to hear what you have to say.
@@Geezuse Yes I am a chef, I have been cooking professionally for 16 years, form a private Chef to restaurants. As for your culinary school question, well,do you want to be a line cook forever? what are your goals? IF your want to take it seriously I suggest school. Most private Chef agencies require a degree. Not all but A lot of clubs want an Executive Chef with a Degree, So i ask again, how serious do you want to be in the industry?
@@DigitalCity-sj4es good point maybe i’m getting the wrong advice from people but i swear everyone else who went to culinary school tells me “ah biggest waste of money now i’m in debt blah blah”. I’d love to have that degree, and mostly have that knowledge. Trust me i can spot someone who went to school and they def have an edge. Its almost not an option for me at this point in my life. I hope i can get somewhere by continuing to learn off my chefs. Its how i support myself. And i do want to be a chef.
@@DigitalCity-sj4es- In a post made to brag about all your fancy schooling and and to put down a colleague you see as inferior, you should at least be able to show a decent grasp of grammar and word choice.
First time I’ve ever seen a video breaking this down. Thanks for helping out the BBQ community!
I commend you for your efforts in teaching us about how brisket is sold. I am not a pit master but I have barbecue at home and I understand that cooking bbq is dedication. Best of luck and God Bless.
This is perhaps the best video I've ever seen.
As a person who wants to open a sandwich shop this is as helpful as anything I've found
The difference being your video is fire.
So true know your value.
Don't be afraid to charge proper $$$ too keep the doors open.
Thanks
Doug 😎
Thank you sir. You are doing a real service to eveyone putting out content and knowledge like this.
Great simple breakdown. The x3, for anyone curious, is pretty standard across all industries (Some are higher, some are lower, but ~30% is target). 1/3rd of the price covers the cost to make and sell the product, one third is taxes, and the final third is company profit that you usually roll back into the business (which could also include your salary). If you only double the price per pound you'll be paying uncle Sam and not paying yourself.
Right, but he did it totally wrong because those trimmings are not trash, they are used to make sausage so the cost of that trimmings is supposed to be applied to the sausage. So really, his sell price should be about $18.50/lb, otherwise you're paying for the trimmings when you buy the brisket and when you buy the sausage. The trimmings are worth 2x the brisket.
you are totally wrong. If you like to go out and eat, let the establishment make a couple of bucks...@@bobbygetsbanned6049
@@bobbygetsbanned6049he bought it on the side of a dirt road from some sketchy dudes😎🚬
@@bobbygetsbanned6049 Maybe. -If- you can sell all your trimmings (which most butchers/BBQ restaurants can't). Realistically, 33% food cost is actually a bit on the high side as the target really should be 28-35% (28% you're doing good, 35%, you're on the edge). Between those two things it ends up working out to around the 3 times multiplier the video says.
I don't think I've ever seen anyone that has half decent brisket selling it at $18.50/lb. That should be one indicator that the math is off...
I own a Smokehouse in the northern Philippines, how I wish we could get full US briskets at 3.99/lb.! The information for restauranteurs is spot-on. Brisket takes a lot of work to get right, and you need to make sure you are charging the right amount for it. This is probably not the meat you want to sell cheaper to get folks into your restaurant, use a cheaper and more forgiving cut if you need a leader to get people in. Great viceo, I look forward to seeing more in the future!
as an amateur brisket smoker, it's fascinating to see this side of the bbq business. we get bombarded with all the "sexy" parts of bbq, but this is the reality of running a successful restaurant.
This looks like the start of a great series. I know the same priciples can be applied to most smoked meats but, I think it would be entertaining to see you perform the same activity with Boston Butt, Whole Chickens (and pulled), Chicken Wings, and Ribs (baby back, spare, and St. Louis).
@@scottquinlan4203 👍🏽 agreed!
@@JBsBBQ I would recomend to those responding to take some time to research fixed vs variable costs. There are thousands of books (and probably RUclips videos) that will help you understand cost and how to structure margin to ensure those costs are covered and exceeded (VARIABLE: wood, utilities, food costs, labor hours, maintenance, etc.)(FIXED: Insurance, rent, equipment payments, employee benefits, Taxes etc.). A good business plan will also help you understand what those numbers are and how to factor them into price point. A basic understanding of business will go a long way.
God Bless you your family and your business brother. I’ve liked and subscribed and I plan on watchin more of these videos because pricing is one of my biggest struggles! 🙏🏾👨🏾🍳💙
Great video. Now I understand why brisket is so expensive. I would never have guessed you would have lost over half of the weight after trimmed/cooked!!! WOW!!!
Overhead is KEY! I made a tartar sauce at LSU. DHH has a mandatory policy to carry $2M in insurance. My mark up was 35%. You have 7 day week like I did to realize a profit within 5 years. It can be overwhelming without the right staff and fun with the right staff. Great Video from a great Pro!
Bro!!!!!! i could never figure this out!! thanks for breaking it all down!
Very cool, best video about basic cost of brisket i have ever seen, I subscribed immediately. Everyone wants to show you how they make the rub or set up their grill but this is the shit they really need to show…thanks
As an amateur bbq enthusiast, I daydream of doing a truck or trailer. Very cool video. Couple of questions:
1. Best method to keep pre-smoked meats (brisket, ribs, chicken,etc) warm and fresh for serving? Afraid of drying out, etc.
2. Best way to source decent meats wholesale when you are starting out?
Thanks!
Thank you for the 5 introductions ("I'm gonna..." "I'm gonna...") and the demonstration on how to TARE your scale. I very much appreciate the detailed treatment of "putting the tray on the scale" - a truly arcane process that you have given everyone insight into!
for those who keep asking about trim cost, the trim is essentially going towards the other costs not factored in here, i.e. wood, salt, pepper, seasonings etc as well as prices fluctuating while you try to keep your prices level week to week. all restaurants find their cushions that are the “gravy”, your trim is the gravy to help keep things moving, if you’re pricing them in as well then you’re going to be far too tight and have no wiggle room for things that go awry because anyone in this business knows that there’s always something to fix and pay for. the trim in this case is basically going to cover those unforeseen costs.
Perfectly said.
I'm a little ignorant this subject...can u break down how to factor in the trim and other cost such as the wood etc plz and thank u, more videos like this plz
@@peechyman what it essentially is, is yield percentages, he’s breaking down what he paid for vs what he got. if u pay 10$ for 10# it equals 1$ per lb, if u cook it and what is actually servable is 5# when you’re done the yield was 50% (5# lost to trim and fat/liquid during the cook) so the product itself actually cost 10$ and you end up with 5#. 10$ % 5# = 2$ per lb. things like this add up when most people just look at things through a lens of the initial first cost vs the cost actually paid when the product is finished. trim was the leftover that get ground into other products that can be sold. he’s not factoring in the cost/profit of the trim made into other products (which is what most people were asking why not and what i explained above) but factoring in things like how many cords of wood are being used, what’s the cost per cord etc there are so many small moving parts a lot of the time people kind of lump them together in an estimated cost. i don’t know the case here but for instance he could say “i’m not going to go through all of these little random detailed costs so i’ll add on 1$ per dish (or per lb) for what a lot of restaurants would have as a “garnish cost” which is when they add say 2$ to a plate to cover garnishes or small sides. you could take a ribeye and know you’re cost is 20$ on the meat itself so a place would add maybe a 2$ garnish cost for the mashed potatoes and sauce and price accordingly from the dish cost of 22$ and probably sell that dish for around 62-70$ most likely, but costs get tricky and they may see the dish as a loss leader to get people through the door and sell it for 55$ knowing the tables will order beer/wine/cocktails or dishes like pasta that have very low food costs. sorry for long response but it’s a complex subject
@peechyman so I factor my wood in with my expenses (water bill, electric bill) because I buy a cord of wood every 6 weeks. It's consistent for me. My trimmings I use for my sausage and my smash burgers. I know I make it sound like trimmings are "free meat" but it's not. Don't think of your trimmings as free meat. You still paid for it, so if you make something with it, calculate that price you paid for the meat into the item. For instance, I grind my trimmings into hamburger meat for my smash burgers. I paid $3.99 per lb for that meat, and my burgers weigh 1/2 lb, so that hamburger patty cost me, basically $2. I multiply that number by 3 to cover my labor, food cost, and expenses. That gives me a $6 menu price, but I add $1 for my bun, $1 cheese, and $1 for the condiments, which I include my pickles and onions in condiments. That gives me a menu price of $9 for my smash burger. Also, when I calculate my sausage, I calculate it as I paid for the meat to make it because it wasn't free. Basically, just save anywhere you can. I wish I could find other things to use my trimmings for. I have a ton of trimmings. I'm about to start testing some all beef sausage to see if I can get rid of more trimmings than what I currently do with my current sausage recipe.
@@damonsrealtexasbbq yep 100% accurate. also the thing that doesn’t get factored in for us owners is actual time. all the extra time we put into things to keep everything going so employees can have things easier or more consistent. people look or hear prices for costs then say “oh well i could go make that for 10$ why is it 35$?”. all i ask right off the bat is “how much do u make per hour? because sourcing ingredients is an hour or hours out of your day are u not factoring in that time? what about driving to go pick up all the ingredients u need? what about having to actually sit and cook this stuff?”
so many layers but it’s the only way for people to not think only from a standpoint of “this is cheap at costco i could go make this for less” it gets them to understand that these ingredients don’t randomly show up and trim and cook themselves etc. chef owners are always getting out through the grinder but we do it in private where the employees don’t realize all the admin crap it takes to keep everything else running as smoothly as possible.
Thanks for sharing your experience! Very helpful for those who want to start a business > many mom and pop shop have no knowledge! When it comes to pricing food , labor , expenses like insurance, taxes ect ect > again thank you for taking us behind the scenes.
That was a great breakdown of the price
While I am not opening a business, thank you for the explanation that will be valuable to those looking towards that path.
I subscribed because of this video. I almost skipped past it. So glad it came across my feed and I didn’t.
Tare is pronounced like "Tear" like you'd tear a sheet of paper in half.
Appreciate the vid, good info!
THANKS A BUNCH FOR THE IMPORTANT PRICING LESSON!!!!
Great video Brandon. My wife and I had always figured on three times the price but didn't figure on the final weight factor. Thank you for the easy explanation. 😇👍
You're welcome. I hope it helps.
Exactly the same here.
Great video. Thanks.
please tell me that your not a business owner in the food industry.
@@DigitalCity-sj4es nope
Thanks for taking the time - your video on making sausage finally got me to start making it!
That is awesome. Congratulations!!! Now I feel like it was all worth it knowing that at least one person who watched my video is carrying on the tradition of smoking meat. Thank you. You just made my day.
Straight forward and simple to understand. Thanks for the advice and info.
Thank you for making a video on the topic of catering and pricing! Very informative
Top tier barbecue content. Subscribed. 💯
Great video, really enjoyed that you walked through the logic of it all, make a lot of sense, and really shows the fairness of it all. Win win for the pit master and the customer.
Great content...just found you excited to learn more.
Great job Brandon, keep it up brother
Thank you brother. If you happen to be passing by Wharton on a Thursday or Sunday, stop by. I would love to buy you dinner and get your opinion on a few things.
Thanks for all the helpful tips, God bless your business! May your meat prices be cheap and your customers hungry! :)
Great video. Thanks for breaking all the math down.
Thanks for the great video. Could you do a video on how to charge for catering events?
Just subscribed after watching this video. My wife and I have a small catering business up here in Wyoming and this video has been helpful. Thank you so much!
how did you not now this before, your going to be the part of the 85% failure statistic.
Very helpful and informative video. Thank you.
About 5 years ago, many BBQ joints in the Texas Monthly Top 50 were in the $30-37 range per pound. 3 meat plates with 2 sides were $35
One reason you see those prices at some of the big-name places is because they are running a particular line of beef. For instance, Franklin's runs Creekstones, which is a very high grade of briskets that come from cows that are in a program with very high standards. They keep such good track of these bloodlines that they can tell you what cow each brisket came from. It's crazy. I'm not at that level yet. One benefit of cooking those briskets is that there is less waste because they trim them partially before packaging.
@@damonsrealtexasbbq Most of them will only accept prime graded meats
I love costing, GREAT JOB!!!
Great video! Thanks for helping everyone price properly!!!
Thanks for the information. I have been curious about how to price bqq. Will this be the same method on pulled pork? How about ribs, chicken, and sausages?
if you need answers to those questions I say this, what the fuck are you doing in the business?
Fantastic video! Thanks for the great info!
This was eye opening great info.
So informative and such an articulate presentation. Thank you for sharing. My friends & neighbours always asking how much I’d charge them. Now I’ll send this link. New sub from a 🇨🇦 backyard bbq dad 👍
why would you send this vid lol, do the calculations urself
@@lobotomydiff the point went over ur head mate, lol. I’ll explain but can’t make you understand. If they watch a pro crunch numbers then they can see for themselves why I’d never ask friends & neighbours for $28/lb so ergo I’d never charge them. Lol. 🍺🍺
@@lobotomydiffbecause the video breaks it down. A lot of people scoff at brisket prices when they eat out. They see it at the store for $5.99lb and can’t understand how it jumps to almost $30 at a bbq spot.
@@Bigheadedwon you tell them it costs money for the fuel and hours to cook… no one is watching this lmfao
Thank you Brandon for that information and keeping us informed. 9:43
Enjoying your videos, would love seeing how you do "ribbon fries" and your egg rolls. 👍
I don't run a restaurant but I just portioned my first butcher's cut brisket for home use. I was absolutely amazed at the amount of waste just in terms of the fat. I had almost 5 lbs of fat from a 13 lb brisket (which I did render into tallow but still.) Brisket has to be difficult and misleading to price because the meat is so relatively cheap per pound - BUT the required processing kills the yield.
seeing things like this kinda make me feel that brisket reeeeeally isn't worth it by the time the work goes into it
@@samxherbert2468 Breaking down and portioning that fairly small 13 lb brisket was a real project. You have to separate the point from other muscles, and trim constantly. I'll look for a higher priced trimmed brisket next time.
3.99 for a coke.... helps a lot
Brisket used to be cheap. Because of the popularity, it’s definitely not the cheapest cut of meat anymore.
@@WarrenPuffet Nope. Even beef cheeks are insane now.
Would this be the same calcutation formula for pulled pork ?
Do you have a calcuation on how much meat you need to buy upfront to feed (example) 75-100 people? Thanks!
Great video that everyone in BBQ should master.
Thank you for doing this, it is sooooo needed!!!
I appreciate you explaining everything thank you
full sending never lifting mobbin deep! knowledge is power!
Excellent video. I own a food truck and do asian fusion tacos and pretty much went the same route. If you have good quality product people will be willing to pay.
Great video. So informative and gives an insight into what these businesses have to charge to make a profit just to stay in business. But all the brisket trimmings are not wasted either. Most brisket trimmings are used to make sausage. With this insight, I now have a better understanding of why they charge what they charge and I can respect that as a customer. And maybe one day after I learn to perfect my brisket I will open a BBQ Shack myself. BIG MAYBE. LOL...
read my comment. your welcome.
So excited to watch this, not only to look at if I want to do this nd start selling but also to be a better customer and stop bitching about how expensive brisket is. I am from Texas and live in Tennessee where hey they are getting lot better at cooking it then we first came up in 1999....thank you for this video
Great information here thanks for the video. Just wondering if you still weigh before and after briskets and set prices or did you just go with avg weight and set your price.
Great video what do you do with the trimmings?
Thank you. I use our trimmings to make sausage, which we do have a video of that process, we make smash burgers with it, and we make beef stew in the winter. With the fat, we render that down and use the tallow to make homemade tortillas, we also have a video of that process.
Great video. I’m guessing you make sausage with the trim or something so would the price for those items made from trim be lower than if you would have purchased and smoked those or do you just go with it.
Yes we use our brisket trimmings to make our sausage, but for instance if we paid $4.50 lb for our briskets, then we calculate that price into the sausage because those trimmings were not free. We still had to pay for them.
Thanks for the video and time Damon!
His quote comes from experience
Good honest advice
Great video! Are you buying prime briskets?
Great video explains the pricing.
Absolute required watching for anyone in the game
that was awesome man and super helpful, very scientific !! 🔥
Priced out the spices and everything else?
Wow great video very eye opening
Brandon, enjoyed your video on pricing brisket.
After 23 years owning bbq restaurants, would like to point out a few things you might be overlooking: the price you pay for briskets from food supplier is by the pound INCLUDING the purge in the bag, the bag, and usually the box!
So removing the whole brisket from box, and pouring out the purge moisture can add a pound to a pound and a half to each brisket!
Your mark up of 3 X would indicate an expected Food Cost of 33.3%.
- but is it really 33.3%.
-what is the actual, all in food cost of your side items?
- you are guessing on the total cost of spices, (seen the price of black pepper lately?) condiments, paper goods, cleaning chemicals (can really bite you since rarely analysed), Labor, Tax on Labor, and overhead costs (rent, heating/cooling, insurance and REPAIRS on building and kitchen equipment!)
The last area is where a small food truck, or small caterer can reduce cost over a "brick and mortar" restaurant!
Still, the problem with trying to determine the cost of a pound of brisket, with pinpoint accuracy is great, but just GUESSING at 66% of your total cost is a recipe for disaster in this business.
Having said that, there is always 3 people trying to rent a bbq restaurant that just went out of business by people who have been told they should open a restaurant, and don't have a clue!
Thanks again, and keep the smoke coming!
So what are you saying exactly?
Only pointing out that trying to measure exactly (or nearly so) the cost of the Brisket and basically guessing at the other, hopefully, 66.6 percent of the cost of operations the operation is a dangerous way to run the restaurant!
I stopped by my favorite bbq joint yesterday to see the price of a 1 meat plate w/2 sides was $19.99! It ain't cheap and that's why it's now a treat for me to get some bbq rather than a weekly stop.
Did by chance you trim more off, because the pile next to the briscuit didn’t look like 5 lbs of trimmings. Just curious. And would all briscuits need to be trimmed by 35%?
So if you're cooking that brisket for the next day, how do you hold it? In a warmer? At what temp? Ect. Thanks for the video
@@daltonwillshire9664 I place the briskets in a proofer overnight that is set to 145°.
@@damonsrealtexasbbq thanks mate. Thank you for the response!
thank you for making this video. Do you have a video that talks about how you came up with the 3x cost when pricing your products? If not, how did you come up with using 3 times the cost? Much appreciated.
"This is the same or approximate price that retailers charge to consumers. The retail price is normally around 2 to 3 x the trade or wholesale price, depending on the mark up of the retailer. It's best practice to charge around 2.5 and this has been the case for many decades."
Guessing it's product + labour + convenience.
Because making BBQ for one person IS costly.
Coals take time to hear etc etc
I was thinking the same thing.Why not 2x the amount?I was told,if you double the amount you paid for a product,you were in pretty good shape.
@@yechezqelyehudi5164 2X if you dont want to make any money and you're running a charity.
what kind of portioning scale do you use there? looks sturdy i need a new one
Nice video ..... watching from Oak Cliff, TX
question, is this the same formula for ribs? spares/baby back?
@JBsBBQ yes sir. Pretty much the same.
I don't own a bbq restaurant (though I've had several suggest I open one after retirement, waaaaay to much work) I have done a little catering and I keep abreast of local BBQ prices, and I understand the math here and the rule of 3x your cost. Brisket locally is about $17.99 a pound at local BBQ joints, in an area (central KY) where raw brisket by the pound prices are probably about average. Some areas of the country are higher, some lower. What I can say is, if a bbq joint in these parts was selling brisket for $28 a pound, they probably wouldn't be in business long because most people just wouldn't pay it. I understand market pricing and costs are going to fluctuate depending on the part of the country one is in, but $28 a pound is just high. Maybe it's reasonable in your neck in the woods, but (guessing here), by the time someone got a brisket plate with 2 sides, bread and a drink, I'm guessing that meal is going to set them back $40 or more, which is shocking. BBQ joints use to be places you could go get a good meal, at a reasonable price, if not actually pretty cheap. Those days are gone I guess in a lot of places.
A "meal" will have less than a lb, and probably closer to a half a pound. At 28 pp, a nice brisket meal, is going to be in the 20 dollar range with 2 sides and possibly a drink. If you can get brisket at 18 pp, I would speculate its not high quality and the cheapest grades available.
Location does have a degree of play on pricing but im willing to bet that those BBQ places you are talking about and possibly you are not making much money on the item, sure you can cut a deal and instead of making 5 dollars profit (example only) your shorting yourself and taking 3..well how long will you be able to sustain that as food cost DO fluctuate ...probably not long. Sure, you offer a great price but in time that great price will put you out of business. Im sure people have suggested you open a BBQ place and looking at your comment im going to add my 2 cents and say DONT DO IT.
@@DigitalCity-sj4es Don't worry, I'm not about too, especially in this financial environment. But, even if it was great times, a restaurant is not what I need as an after retirement job, waaaaay too much work and worry, especially a start up.
Plenty of places charging $28+ a pound on east coast and NE. You just dont know anything about good BBQ.
When it costs 15$ to get a hamburger meal at Whataburger, $25 for a brisket sandwich, side, and cold beer is not crazy. $40+ for a platter is comperable. Thisngs are just expensive right now. Go vote...
What was done with the trim?
ps Awesome logic, thanks for an honest share.
Great advice!!
of topic, but what happens with the trimmings and the dripping???
You need to ad to your "About"!
Great video, thank you for explaining the labor and cost. But 3,99/ lbs :-) wow in the EU i wish we would get prices like that. How is it now a days (8 months later)?
Today's order was $4.46 per lb. It got as high as $5.25 per lb a few months back.