If the budget for food and beverage costs drops to 280,000 and total revenue remains at 800,000, what is the new food and beverage cost as a percentage of sales?

• A. 30%
• B. 40%
• C. 37%
• D. 35%

Answer: (D)

Food and beverage cost as a percentage of sales is found by dividing the cost by the sales and converting to a percent. With costs at 280,000 and sales at 800,000, 280,000 ÷ 800,000 = 0.35, which equals 35%. Since 35% matches the given figures, that is the correct percentage. To see why the other options don’t fit: 30% would require 240,000 in costs, 40% would require 320,000, and 37% would require 296,000. The actual cost of 280,000 corresponds to 35%.