Management & Ownership Salaried — not counted in hourly labor
Management
2 salaried positions
$124,000
| Position | Type | Wage / Salary | Weekly Hours | Annual (wages) | + Burden (13%) | Total Cost |
|
Owner / Operator
You — managing front of house, counter ops, marketing, financials
|
Salary | $90,000/yr | 60+ hrs | $90,000 | $11,700 | $101,700 |
|
Executive Chef
Working chef — runs kitchen ops, manages BOH team, develops menu
|
Salary | $72,000/yr | 55+ hrs | $72,000 | $9,360 | $81,360 |
|
FOH Manager
Runs the floor, manages server team, handles reservations and guest experience
|
Salary | $52,000/yr | 48 hrs | $52,000 | $6,760 | $58,760 |
| Management Subtotal (Owner + EC + FOH Mgr) | $214,000 | $27,820 | $241,820 | |||
Back of House — Kitchen Team Non-tipped · Full MI minimum wage applies
Back of House
7 positions (5.5 FTE)
$278,826
| Position | Type | Hourly Wage | Weekly Hours | Annual (wages) | + Burden (13%) | Total Cost |
|
Sous Chef / Lead Line Cook
Second in kitchen — executes service, trains staff, covers EC days off
|
FT | $23.00/hr | 44 hrs | $52,624 | $6,841 | $59,465 |
|
Line Cook 1
Primary service line — katsu station, skewer finish, plating
|
FT | $19.50/hr | 40 hrs | $40,560 | $5,273 | $45,833 |
|
Line Cook 2
Secondary line — cold side, chip program, brioche production, smoker oversight
|
FT | $19.50/hr | 40 hrs | $40,560 | $5,273 | $45,833 |
|
Line Cook 3 / Swing
Covers weekend rushes and days off — cross-trained on multiple stations
|
PT | $18.00/hr | 24 hrs | $22,464 | $2,920 | $25,384 |
|
Prep Cook
Morning prep — tallow rendering, brisket prep, veg butchery, brioche dough, stocks
|
FT | $15.50/hr | 40 hrs | $32,240 | $4,191 | $36,431 |
|
Dishwasher / Utility 1
Full-time dish — also handles sanitation, deliveries, and kitchen support
|
FT | $13.73/hr | 40 hrs | $28,558 | $3,713 | $32,271 |
|
Dishwasher / Utility 2
Part-time — covers Friday/Saturday dinner rushes and busy lunch days
|
PT | $13.73/hr | 22 hrs | $15,707 | $2,042 | $17,749 |
| BOH Subtotal (kitchen team excl. Exec Chef) | $232,713 | $30,253 | $262,966 | |||
Front of House — Service & Bar Tipped staff — employer pays min $5.49/hr direct wage
Front of House
8 positions (4.5 FTE)
$88,891
| Position | Type | Employer Direct Wage | Weekly Hours | Annual (employer) | + Burden (13%) | Total Employer Cost |
|
Bartender 1
Head bar — cocktail program, sake, whisky, trains Bar 2. Est. tips: $35–50k/yr
|
Tipped FT | $6.50/hr | 38 hrs | $12,844 | $1,670 | $14,514 |
|
Bartender 2
Support bar — weekend dinners, busy lunch. Est. tips: $22–35k/yr
|
Tipped PT | $6.50/hr | 28 hrs | $9,464 | $1,230 | $10,694 |
|
Server 1
Lead server — dine-in dinner, trains new FOH. Est. tips: $40–55k/yr
|
Tipped FT | $5.49/hr | 35 hrs | $9,989 | $1,299 | $11,288 |
|
Server 2
Dine-in lunch + dinner. Est. tips: $35–48k/yr
|
Tipped FT | $5.49/hr | 35 hrs | $9,989 | $1,299 | $11,288 |
|
Server 3
Weekend + dinner coverage. Est. tips: $22–32k/yr
|
Tipped PT | $5.49/hr | 25 hrs | $7,135 | $928 | $8,063 |
|
Server 4
Weekend rush, event coverage, on-call. Est. tips: $16–24k/yr
|
Tipped PT | $5.49/hr | 20 hrs | $5,710 | $742 | $6,452 |
|
Food Runner
Runs food from kitchen, supports servers, participates in tip pool
|
Tipped PT | $5.49/hr | 20 hrs | $5,710 | $742 | $6,452 |
|
Host
Non-tipped — manages reservations, walk-ins, first impression of the brand
|
PT Non-tip | $14.00/hr | 25 hrs | $18,200 | $2,366 | $20,566 |
| FOH Subtotal (excl. FOH Manager — see Mgmt) | $79,041 | $10,276 | $89,317 | |||
Takeout Counter Non-tipped · Full MI minimum wage applies
Counter / Takeout
3 positions (2.5 FTE)
$92,826
| Position | Type | Hourly Wage | Weekly Hours | Annual (wages) | + Burden (13%) | Total Cost |
|
Counter Lead
Runs counter ops — sando builds, chip bags, online orders, opening & closing
|
FT | $17.00/hr | 40 hrs | $35,360 | $4,597 | $39,957 |
|
Counter Staff 1
Lunch + dinner coverage — order taking, packaging, customer-facing
|
FT | $15.00/hr | 35 hrs | $27,300 | $3,549 | $30,849 |
|
Counter Staff 2
Lunch peak and weekend coverage — focuses on counter rush hours
|
PT | $15.00/hr | 25 hrs | $19,500 | $2,535 | $22,035 |
| Counter Subtotal | $82,160 | $10,681 | $92,841 | |||
Labor Summary by Department
Management (salaried)
$241,820
Owner + EC + FOH Mgr
Incl. 13% payroll burden
Incl. 13% payroll burden
Back of House (kitchen)
$262,966
7 positions · 5.5 FTE
Excl. Exec Chef (in Mgmt)
Excl. Exec Chef (in Mgmt)
Front of House (service)
$89,317
8 positions · 4.5 FTE
Employer direct wage only
Employer direct wage only
Counter / Takeout
$92,841
3 positions · 2.5 FTE
Non-tipped full min wage
Non-tipped full min wage
Total Gross Wages
$607,914
All positions before burden
Payroll Burden (13%)
$79,029
FICA + SUTA + Workers Comp
Total Employer Labor
$686,943
Full all-in cost to business
Labor % of Revenue
31.1%
Target: keep under 35%
Understanding Tipped Labor — Why Your Bar Program Is the Labor Efficiency Engine
- Your 6 tipped servers cost you a combined $44,543/year in direct employer wages. That same number of non-tipped staff at minimum wage would cost $170,000+. The tip credit is enormously valuable — this is one of the strongest arguments for a bar-forward, full-service model.
- Bartender 1 earns $35–50k in tips on top of your $14,514 employer cost. You're getting a skilled, experienced person for a fraction of what you'd pay them in a non-tipped role. Protect this relationship — pay above tipped minimum and treat bar staff exceptionally well.
- Michigan's tipped minimum wage is rising: 42% by 2027, 44% by 2028, up to 50% by 2031. Your FOH labor cost will increase ~$3–5k/year just from this trajectory. Factor this into Year 3+ projections.
- BOH is where wage pressure hits hardest. Michigan's $13.73 minimum means your dishwashers are already at minimum. Your line cooks need to be paid meaningfully above minimum to retain them — this is non-negotiable in the current Detroit-area labor market.
- Payroll burden (13%) includes: FICA employer share (7.65%), Federal/State unemployment (FUTA/SUTA ~2.5%), and restaurant workers comp insurance (~2.5%). This is a real cost that many first-time operators forget to budget for.
Revised P&L Impact How this labor figure affects Rochester base case
| Rochester Year 2 — Revised P&L with Actual Labor | |
| Total Revenue | $2,210,200 |
| Total COGS (28%) | ($618,240) |
| Gross Profit | $1,591,960 |
| Labor (full burden incl.) | |
| Management (Owner + EC + FOH Mgr) | ($241,820) |
| BOH — Kitchen Team | ($262,966) |
| FOH — Service & Bar | ($89,317) |
| Counter Staff | ($92,841) |
| Total Labor | ($686,944) — 31.1% |
| Fixed Overhead | |
| Rent + NNN | ($72,000) |
| Utilities | ($52,000) |
| Insurance & Licensing | ($24,000) |
| Marketing & Social | ($36,000) |
| Repairs, Supplies, Misc | ($32,000) |
| SBA Debt Service | ($69,000) |
| Net Profit (after all costs) | $519,016 |
| Owner's share — already inside labor above | Owner salary included in Management labor line ($90k + $11,700 burden = $101,700) |
| Owner Cash Compensation | $90,000 salary + $519k net profit distribution potential |
Michigan Wage Trajectory Plan ahead — costs rise every year
| Year | MI Min Wage | Tipped Min | Tipped % | Est. BOH Labor Impact | Action Required |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 (Open) | $13.73 | $5.49 | 40% | Baseline | Budget $687k total labor |
| 2027 | ~$15.00 | ~$6.30 | 42% | +$18–22k BOH | Raise menu prices ~3-4% |
| 2028 | ~$15.00+CPI | ~$6.60 | 44% | +$8–12k cumulative | Review staffing efficiency |
| 2029 | ~$15.50 | ~$7.13 | 46% | +$6–10k FOH creep | Evaluate counter automation |
| 2031+ | CPI-adjusted | 50% of min | 50% | Stabilizes at 50% | Cap reached — predictable costs |
Key Takeaways for Your P&L Planning
- The original P&L labor estimate of ~$496k was understated — with full payroll burden and current Michigan wage law, realistic Year 2 all-in labor is $687k. The net income is still strong, but this is the honest number to plan around.
- Your biggest lever is keeping prime cost (COGS + labor) under 60% of revenue. At $618k COGS + $687k labor = $1.305M on $2.21M revenue, prime cost is 59% — right at the healthy threshold. Tight, but manageable.
- The tipped structure saves you roughly $125–150k/year vs. paying all FOH staff full minimum wage. This is the financial argument for maintaining a premium sit-down, full-service model rather than going counter-service only.
- BOH retention is the #1 operational risk. Your line cooks at $19.50/hr are earning meaningfully above minimum — that's intentional. A cook who leaves costs $3,000–5,000 to replace in recruiting and training time. Pay slightly above market and keep your team.
- As you scale to Location 2, management labor becomes more efficient — you'll already have the EC and FOH manager systems built. The second location adds revenue faster than it adds overhead.