Food cost tracking, payroll, tip reporting, and P&L by location — bookkeeping built for the pace and complexity of the restaurant industry.
The Restaurant Challenge
The restaurant industry operates on some of the thinnest margins in business. A typical restaurant nets between 3–9% of revenue — which means a small bookkeeping error or untracked cost can wipe out a week of profits.
Unlike most businesses, restaurants deal with daily cash handling, tip reporting, perishable inventory, fluctuating food costs, and complex multi-rate payroll — all at the same time, all at high volume.
Generic bookkeeping doesn't cut it. You need a team that understands the nuances of restaurant accounting: prime cost, food cost percentage, labor cost ratio, comps and voids, and the tax implications of tipped employees.
That's exactly what VarStan delivers.
Without accurate COGS tracking, you don't know your true margins — and you can't price your menu correctly.
Mishandled tip income is one of the top IRS audit triggers for restaurants. Proper tip reporting protects you.
Tipped employees, overtime rules, multiple pay rates, and tip credits make restaurant payroll uniquely complex.
If you run more than one location, you need P&L statements by location to know which sites are performing.
What We Do
Full-service bookkeeping services for restaurants — from a single location to a growing chain, we handle the complete financial picture.
We track your cost of goods sold by category so you always know your food cost percentage and where margins are slipping.
We handle all tip income recording and reporting in compliance with IRS requirements — protecting you from one of the most common restaurant audit triggers.
We integrate with Gusto, ADP, and other payroll platforms to handle tipped employee payroll, tip credits, and multi-rate overtime calculations.
We produce separate profit and loss statements for each location, so you can benchmark performance and identify your strongest and weakest units.
Restaurant sales tax rules vary by state and even by menu item. We keep you compliant and ensure you're collecting and remitting the right amounts.
We reconcile your POS system reports with your bank deposits daily, catching discrepancies before they become bigger problems.
We track your prime cost (food cost + labor cost) — the single most important metric for restaurant profitability — and report it monthly.
Behind on your books? We can get a full year of restaurant bookkeeping caught up in 3–4 weeks, ready for your CPA or tax preparer.
We configure your accounting software with a restaurant-specific chart of accounts, POS integration, and reporting structure tailored to your operation.
By the Numbers
Industries served by our bookkeeping team
Countries where our clients operate
To catch up a full year of backlogged books
Cloud-based, fully remote service
Getting Started
We make onboarding painless — even if your current books are a mess.
We assess your current setup and identify exactly what your restaurant needs.
We configure your chart of accounts, POS integration, and reporting structure.
We handle reconciliation, reporting, and payroll sync every month.
Clean, organized financials handed to your CPA when it's time to file.
Common Questions
Yes. We work with data exports from most major POS systems including Toast, Square, Clover, and Lightspeed, reconciling daily sales against your bank deposits.
Absolutely. We produce separate P&L statements per location and consolidate them into a single company-wide view — giving you full visibility across your entire operation.
We record all tip income — charged tips, cash tips, and tip pools — in compliance with IRS requirements, and ensure your payroll system reflects proper tip credit calculations.
We primarily use QuickBooks Online and Xero, configured with a restaurant-specific chart of accounts. If you use different software, we can work with it or help you transition.
Yes — cleanup is one of our most common starting points. We can typically complete a full year of backlogged restaurant bookkeeping in 3–4 weeks.
No. We never lock you in. You can cancel at any time, and we make it easy to take your data with you if you ever decide to move on.
Plans start at $149/month. Your exact price depends on transaction volume, number of locations, and whether you need payroll support. See your monthly price in 60 seconds with no obligation.
Yes. VarStan is based in Needham Heights, Massachusetts, and works with restaurants across Greater Boston and MetroWest. Because we're fully cloud-based, we also serve restaurants nationwide.
Prime cost is your food and beverage cost plus total labor, as a percentage of sales. Many full-service restaurants target roughly 60–65%. We report it every month. Our restaurant bookkeeping guide explains how to track it.
Yes. Massachusetts charges a 6.25% tax on meals, and many towns add a 0.75% local-option meals tax. We make sure your POS settings, books, and filings match the right rate for each location.
Yes. As a CPA-led firm, we track reported tips and payroll taxes so the FICA tip credit (Form 8846) can be claimed correctly, a credit many restaurants miss.
Schedule a free consultation with a VarStan restaurant bookkeeping specialist — no pressure, no jargon, just a clear plan for getting your finances under control.
From the VarStan journal