Glossary

What is Menu Engineering?

Last updated: July 7, 2026

Menu engineering is the analysis of every menu item by contribution margin and sales volume, classifying items as stars, plow-horses, puzzles, or dogs to decide what to promote, reprice, rework, or remove. It requires accurate plate costs — which requires accurate supplier prices.

Menu Engineering example with real numbers

An item selling 400 units/month at a $9.20 margin contributes $3,680; repricing a high-volume, low-margin item by $1 can outperform removing three low sellers.

How multi-unit restaurant groups manage menu engineering

Because Vento tracks live ingredient prices, plate costs stay current — so menu decisions rest on today's margins, not last quarter's.