IronHorse

Can I get a bloody Amen? Boot the buy-an-award sects! BTW, like the SuperBowl, I just love the ads.

In a retail environment frequently a number like 40% gross cost percent is used across the board. That means the bottle costs 40% of what you list it for. This equals 60% gross margin, but is in fact a 2.5x markup. Restaurants (and Mark is right here about corporate ones) frequently have an across the board markup that makes thing like beer/wine/liquor cost easier to track and explain. In the real world (or my personal surreal world) there are a number of factors that we use, outside the norms that influence pricing. External factors like: we're down the block from a retailer, yet we're also the only restaurant in the area with a serious wine list. Then there are the host of questions that you can ask about a given product: how big is production?, will I be able to reorder this product? Is it a niche bottle that I might have to hand-sell and the buyer will be happy to pay the premium? Does the bottle delivery such exceptional value that I can expect to move pallets of it, so price it to move and actually make inventory dollars work for us. The smart operator will give up a few points of margin to turn inventory and have good cashflow for their business. Few are the houses that can afford the wine list of true trophies anymore - if you're one, God love you and your angel. J. Comfort

Hello Group! Jay Comfort here. I an an ex-pat DC chef now residing in Ashland, VA (the center of the universe). My current dig is an american brasserie cum community focused restaurant in the town of Ashland, VA - IRON HORSE. It's the cornerstone of our small town and a great place to visit! We're one block South of the rail station (accessible by Amtrak) so there's no reason not to make a trip.I've lurked here for a few weeks and am looking forward to participating in the future. Turn ons: game, charcuterie, offal, personal responsibility for foodstuffs, victory gardens, sustainable agriculture, thrill of the hunt, fishing, anything made from fermented grapes and some things made from fermented grain and cacti, compost and foragers selling their goods at the back door. Turn offs: factory food, commerical processing, overly stuffy food, menus that require a thesaurus or read like a F-ING Haiku, deconstruction, high fructose corn syrup, food fads, Guy Fierro, domestic beer (Miller High Life excepted), wine that doesn't move me and pushy salespeople. Cheers! Joseph (Jay) Comfort