Most restaurant operators have a good feel for their menu. You know what sells, what guests like, and what you’d call your “safe bets”.

The problem is that sales alone don’t tell you whether those dishes are actually doing their job and how profitable your menu is.

When you look at menu performance through a TCOGS (True Cost of Goods Sold) report, a different picture starts to emerge, one that shows not just what’s popular, but what’s genuinely profitable, what’s underperforming, and what’s being held back by pricing or placement.

That’s exactly what happened when an Australian virtual restaurant reviewed their TCOGS report in Zeemart.

What it looked like vs what was actually happening

On the surface, the menu felt balanced and logical. Nothing obviously broken. But once gross profit and volume were viewed together, the cracks became clear.

Here’s a simplified version of what the report surfaced:

Once you look at it this way, the story becomes obvious:

• The schnitzel sandwich dominated volume, which made it feel like a hero. But at 45% GP, it was doing a lot of work for a relatively thin return. Not a loss-maker, just not pulling its weight.

• The truffle loaded fries were the opposite. At 76% GP, they were one of the strongest profit contributors per order. Sales were low not because customers didn’t want them, but because the item sat several swipes down the menu and wasn’t featured anywhere.

• The cheese plate had no illusions at all once viewed through the lens of TCOGS. Low sales, low margin, and high waste at steep ingredient prices made it a consistent drag with no upside.

Sales volume hid margin problems. Menu placement hid profit opportunities.

What changed once the data was clear

Because the problem was visible, the fixes were simple and straightforward. They just did 4 things:

• Pricing adjustment: The schnitzel sandwich price was increased by $1. Demand held steady. Gross profit lifted immediately. 

• Visibility change: The fries were surfaced in high-visibility positions across online ordering and the app, featured sections, add-on prompts, prime menu real estate. No discounting, no recipe changes. Sales increased simply because customers could see them.

• Bundling magic: Another strategy they applied was bundling the schnitzel and fries as a combo and offering it at a slightly lower price together than when added individually. This made it tempting (and cost-saving) for the customer, while continuing to retain a good margin for them. 

• Menu simplification: The cheese plate was removed. Waste dropped, ordering became simpler, and menu space was freed for better performers.

Over a short period, these micro-adjustments delivered over A$4,000 in additional gross profit and lifted overall GP% from the mid-50s to almost 65%, without adding labour or complexity.

How to use TCOGS to check the profitability of your own menu

If you have access to the TCOGS report in Zeemart, this is a practical way to use it to run a menu profitability analysis on your menu

Step 1: Look at the columns in combination

Each column tells part of the story, but the insight comes from how they interact:

Gross profit % is the anchor. Everything else needs to be read in relation to it.

Step 2: Group items by volume and margin

When you plot quantity sold against gross profit %, most menu items naturally fall into four groups:

This is often where assumptions get challenged, and where the easiest margin wins appear.

Step 3: Fix margin before chasing growth

Before adding new items or running promotions:

• Lift prices where customers are least sensitive.

• Reduce COGS through supplier negotiations, waste control, or spec changes.

• Use placement and bundling instead of discounting.

Step 4:Pressure-test visibility

In many cases, simply surfacing the right items does more for profit than changing the food itself. If a high-margin item isn’t selling, before you ask “Do customers want this?”, ask yourself “Is this easy to see at the point of decision?”.

The takeaway

Data lies when read without context.

• High volume doesn’t guarantee strong profit.

• High-margin items often fail because they’re buried, not unwanted.

• Low-performing items don’t sit quietly, they dilute everything around them.

The TCOGS report works because it strips away assumptions and shows you what’s really happening while there’s still time to act.

If you want to understand what’s helping your margin, what’s hurting it, and where the fastest wins are, review your TCOGS report in Zeemart or book a chat and we’ll walk through your numbers together