How can I tell if a burger restaurant for sale is profitable?

Busy does not always mean profitable, so read the statements. The seller’s summary shows one picture, and the statements, supplier invoices and bank deposits show another. Ask for several periods rather than one, and read them side by side. Most of what matters is in a handful of lines, and a few questions about each will tell you whether the summary holds together.

Protein costs over time

Beef is usually the largest food cost and its price moves. Ask for supplier invoices across several months and compare them with the cost of food on the statements. If the menu prices stayed put while beef did not, see how the owner coped: smaller patties, a cheaper supplier, or thinner margins. Each answer tells you something different about what you would inherit.

Combos, add-ons and delivery

Ask for sales reports by item. Combos, drinks and sides often carry more of the result than the burger itself. Then separate delivery-app orders from the rest, and net out the commissions and fees the apps keep. A sale through an app and a sale at the counter are not the same result, even when the receipt looks alike.

Labour and cash

If the owner works the grill, the labour line may leave out a real job. Ask your accountant how to treat the owner’s hours when you read the results. Ask how cash sales are recorded and whether deposits match the register reports. Your accountant can tell you what adjustments are fair to make. This page on reading a shawarma shop’s books shows the same method for a different menu.