Restaurant chart of accounts template

88 accounts organized the way USAR organizes them, with food cost broken out by purchasing category so theoretical cost can be checked against actual. Read the whole chart below, or take the file.

88Accounts

3Levels deep

2Formats

Follows USAR, the Uniform System of Accounts for Restaurants. Sales in the 4000 series, Cost of Sales in 5000, Labor in 6000, Operating Expenses in 7000, Non-Controllable in 8000.

Download the restaurant chart

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Format

Download the restaurant chart

No email required. Opens in Excel, Google Sheets and Numbers.

What is different

Built so the P&L answers a question

The default restaurant chart in most accounting software has a single Cost of Goods Sold line and a single Beverage line. It produces a statement that balances and tells you nothing about where the money went.

01
Food cost by purchasing category
Meat, seafood, poultry, produce, bakery, dairy, and grocery and dry goods are separate accounts. A single delivery gets split across them, which is what makes a theoretical-versus-actual food cost comparison possible at all.
02
Beverage cost split four ways
Non-alcoholic, liquor, beer and wine each carry their own cost account, and beer splits again into draft and packaged. Bar consumables, the mixers and garnish and ice that go into a drink, are tracked apart from the spirits.
03
Revenue by revenue centre
Food, non-alcoholic, liquor, beer, wine, catering and off-premise are separate income accounts, and delivery is recorded gross of commission with the commission carried as its own marketing expense. Netting the two together hides what third-party delivery actually costs.
04
Discounts and comps as contra-revenue
Promotional discounts, employee meals and manager comps reduce revenue rather than appearing as an expense, so the discount rate is legible and sales are not inflated by money that never arrived.

The longer argument for why this matters, with sources on food cost ratios and invoice processing, is in why your restaurant P&L is lying to you.

The chart

The full restaurant chart of accounts

All 88 accounts, with the note that tells you what belongs in each one. This is the same file the download gives you, rendered here so you can read it without opening a spreadsheet.

Code	Account	Type	What belongs here
4000	Revenue	Income	Sales by revenue centre, following the USAR Sales (4000) series.
4100	Food Sales	Income	Gross food sales before discounts and comps.
4200	Non-Alcoholic Beverage Sales	Income	Soft drinks, coffee, tea, juice and bottled water.
4300	Liquor Sales	Income	Spirits and cocktails.
4400	Beer Sales	Income	Bottled, canned and draft beer.
4500	Wine Sales	Income	Wine by the glass and by the bottle.
4700	Catering and Banquet Revenue	Income	Off-premise catering, private dining and banquet room rental.
4750	Delivery and Off-Premise Revenue	Income	Takeout, curbside and third-party delivery sales, recorded gross of commission.
4800	Other Operating Income	Other income	Ancillary income outside the main revenue centres.
4810	Cover and Service Charges	Other income	Cover charges and mandatory service charges retained by the house.
4820	Vending, Commissions and Rebates	Other income	Vending and amusement income, product rebates and gift card breakage.
4900	Discounts and Comps	Income	Contra-revenue. Promotional discounts, employee meals sold and manager comps.
5000	Cost of Sales	Cost of goods sold	USAR Cost of Sales (5000), split by purchasing category so theoretical cost can be checked against actual.
5100	Food Cost	Cost of goods sold	Food purchases by major purchasing category.
5110	Meat	Cost of goods sold	Beef, pork, lamb, veal and charcuterie.
5120	Seafood	Cost of goods sold	Fish and shellfish, fresh and frozen.
5130	Poultry	Cost of goods sold	Chicken, turkey and duck.
5140	Produce	Cost of goods sold	Fresh fruit, vegetables and herbs.
5150	Bakery	Cost of goods sold	Bread, pastry, desserts and baking ingredients.
5160	Dairy	Cost of goods sold	Milk, cream, butter, cheese and eggs.
5170	Grocery and Dry Goods	Cost of goods sold	Shelf-stable grocery, oils, spices, canned and frozen staples.
5200	Non-Alcoholic Beverage Cost	Cost of goods sold	Soft drinks, syrup, coffee, tea and juice.
5300	Liquor Cost	Cost of goods sold	Spirits and the consumables that go into a cocktail.
5310	Liquor	Cost of goods sold	Spirits purchased for resale.
5320	Bar Consumables	Cost of goods sold	Mixers, garnish, bitters, syrups and ice consumed in drink production.
5400	Beer Cost	Cost of goods sold	Draft and packaged beer, tracked apart because pour cost differs sharply.
5410	Bottled and Canned Beer	Cost of goods sold	Packaged beer purchases.
5420	Draft Beer	Cost of goods sold	Kegs and keg deposits.
5500	Wine Cost	Cost of goods sold	Wine purchases, including by-the-glass programme stock.
5700	Paper and Packaging Cost	Cost of goods sold	Takeout containers, cups, lids, bags and delivery packaging.
6000	Labor	Expense	USAR Labor (6000), held at summary level because payroll rarely arrives as a vendor invoice.
6100	Management Salaries	Expense	Salaried general, front-of-house, back-of-house and administrative managers.
6200	Back of House Wages	Expense	Line cooks, prep cooks, dishwashers and expeditors.
6300	Front of House Wages	Expense	Servers, bartenders, bussers, hosts and cashiers.
6500	Contract and Temporary Labor	Expense	Staffing agencies and leased labor invoiced by a vendor.
6600	Employee Benefits and Payroll Taxes	Expense	Payroll-related costs carried alongside wages.
6610	Payroll Taxes	Expense	FICA, Medicare, FUTA and SUTA.
6620	Employee Benefits and Insurance	Expense	Medical and dental premiums, workers compensation and retirement contributions.
6650	Employee Meals	Expense	Cost of shift meals provided to staff.
7000	Operating Expenses	Expense	USAR Operating Expenses (7000). Most vendor invoices land here.
7100	Direct Operating Expenses	Expense	Consumables and services tied directly to running service.
7105	Uniforms	Expense	Purchase, rental and laundering of staff uniforms.
7110	Linen and Laundry	Expense	Table linen, napkins, kitchen towels and linen rental.
7115	Tableware and Smallwares	Expense	China, flatware, serviceware, kitchen utensils and replacement smallwares.
7120	Glassware	Expense	Glass purchases and breakage replacement.
7130	Bar Utensils and Supplies	Expense	Shakers, jiggers, strainers, picks and bar smallwares.
7135	Cleaning Supplies and Contract Cleaning	Expense	Chemicals, sanitiser, janitorial consumables and outsourced deep cleaning.
7145	Guest Supplies	Expense	Restroom supplies, mints, matches and guest amenities.
7160	Pest Control	Expense	Scheduled and emergency pest management.
7200	Music and Entertainment	Expense	USAR Music and Entertainment (7200).
7210	Entertainment and Performers	Expense	Bands, musicians, DJs and meals served to performers.
7220	Music Licensing Fees	Expense	Public performance licences from the performing rights organisations, such as ASCAP, BMI, SESAC and GMR.
7300	Marketing	Expense	USAR Marketing (7300).
7310	Advertising and Promotions	Expense	Print, radio, outdoor and paid media, plus PR, sponsorships and community events.
7320	Digital and Social Advertising	Expense	Paid search, paid social, website hosting and agency management fees.
7340	Third-Party Delivery Commissions	Expense	Marketplace commissions on delivery and pickup orders.
7350	Reservation and Loyalty Platforms	Expense	Booking platform fees, waitlist tools and loyalty programme costs.
7360	Menus, Printing and Collateral	Expense	Menu design and printing, photography and printed collateral.
7400	Utilities	Expense	USAR Utilities (7400).
7410	Electricity	Expense	Metered electricity supply.
7420	Gas	Expense	Natural gas, propane and heating fuel.
7430	Water and Sewer	Expense	Water supply and sewerage charges.
7440	Trash and Grease Removal	Expense	Waste hauling, recycling, compost and grease trap service.
7500	General and Administrative	Expense	USAR General and Administrative (7500).
7505	Accounting and Payroll Services	Expense	Bookkeeping, payroll processing and tax preparation.
7515	Bank and Card Processing Fees	Expense	Interchange, gateway, merchant service charges and bank fees.
7520	POS and Technology Subscriptions	Expense	Point of sale, inventory, scheduling and back-office software.
7525	Insurance - Liability and Property	Expense	General liability, property and liquor liability cover.
7530	Licenses, Permits and Dues	Expense	Health permits, liquor licence renewals, business registration and trade memberships.
7535	Professional and Legal Fees	Expense	Legal counsel, consultants and advisory services.
7540	Office Supplies and Postage	Expense	Stationery, printing, postage and courier.
7545	Telephone and Internet	Expense	Voice, broadband and mobile service.
7555	Training and Personnel Expenses	Expense	Certification, recruiting, background checks and staff training.
7560	Security Services	Expense	Contract security, alarm monitoring and camera systems.
7565	Franchise and Royalty Fees	Expense	Franchise royalties and brand marketing contributions.
7600	Repairs and Maintenance	Expense	USAR Repairs and Maintenance (7600).
7610	Building and Structure	Expense	Structural, plumbing, electrical and HVAC repair.
7620	Equipment and Furniture	Expense	Kitchen equipment service contracts, refrigeration and furniture repair.
7630	Grounds and Parking Lot	Expense	Landscaping, snow removal, paving and exterior upkeep.
8000	Occupancy and Non-Controllable	Expense	USAR Non-Controllable Expenses (8000).
8110	Rent - Base	Expense	Minimum or fixed rent under the lease.
8120	Rent - Percentage	Expense	Percentage rent tied to sales.
8150	Common Area Maintenance	Expense	CAM charges billed by the landlord.
8190	Real Estate and Property Taxes	Expense	Real estate and personal property taxes.
8300	Depreciation and Amortization	Other expense	Depreciation on equipment and amortisation of leasehold improvements.
9000	Interest and Other	Other expense	USAR Corporate Overhead, Interest and Other (9000).
9200	Interest Expense	Other expense	Interest on notes payable and long-term debt.
9300	Other Income and Expense	Other income	Grease and waste sales, gain or loss on asset disposal.

Questions

Restaurant chart of accounts questions

What is USAR?

USAR is the Uniform System of Accounts for Restaurants, the industry's standard framework for how a restaurant's books should be organized. It sets the major groupings this template follows: Sales in the 4000 series, Cost of Sales in 5000, Labor in 6000, Operating Expenses in 7000, and Non-Controllable Expenses in 8000. Following it means your numbers can be compared against industry benchmarks, because the benchmarks are reported the same way.

How detailed should restaurant food cost be?

Detailed enough to find a price increase before the quarter ends. This template splits food cost into meat, seafood, poultry, produce, bakery, dairy, and grocery and dry goods. That is the level at which a supplier's price move on proteins is visible instead of averaged away, and it is the level most operators can realistically code invoices to. Some kitchens go further and separate premium cuts or high-end spirits for tighter control.

Why is beer split into draft and packaged?

Because the pour cost is not the same. A keg and a case of the same beer have different costs per ounce and different loss profiles, since draft has foam, line cleaning and shrinkage that packaged does not. Kept in one account, the two average together and the draft system's waste stays invisible.

What are contra-revenue accounts and why does the template have one?

Discounts and comps sit in the 4900 account as contra-revenue, meaning they reduce revenue rather than appearing as an expense. This matters because a comped meal is not a marketing cost, it is revenue you chose not to collect. Recording it as an expense inflates both sales and costs, and it makes your discount rate impossible to read off the P&L.

Can I import this into QuickBooks Online?

The CSV carries account code, name, parent account, type and a description. QuickBooks Online's account import expects its own headers and its own Detail Type values, so you will map columns during import rather than uploading the file as-is. Cleo can also apply the chart for you and keep whatever accounts you already have.

Does this work for a cafe or a bar?

It works for a cafe as-is; you will simply leave the alcohol accounts empty or delete them. For a bar, use the bar template instead. It carries the same structure but splits beverage cost the way a bar needs it, with liquor, beer and wine separated and bar consumables tracked apart from the spirits themselves.

See your own invoices coded to this chart

Send us a week of real vendor invoices. We will run them through Cleo, split each delivery across the right food cost accounts, and show you the result posted in QuickBooks.

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