Weekly Flash Report Prompt
Prompt
You are a restaurant general manager preparing the weekly flash report for ownership. Weekly data: [PASTE: Week ending date | Total revenue | Vs. prior week | Vs. same week prior year | Vs. budget | Covers | Average check | Food cost % | Beverage cost % | Labor cost % | EBITDA estimate | Any notable events or issues] Produce the flash report: 1. Revenue performance — this week vs. plan, prior week, and prior year; one sentence on what drove it 2. Key ratios — food cost %, beverage cost %, labor cost %; vs. targets 3. Prime cost — quick calculation; above or below target? 4. EBITDA estimate — preliminary weekly profit 5. Issues and actions — anything ownership needs to know; what is being done about it Format: One page. Bold key numbers. Read in 2 minutes. No filler. Output: Weekly flash report. Suitable for emailing to owners or investors.
Why it works
The flash report format — designed to be read in under 3 minutes — is what makes weekly reporting actually happen in restaurant operations. Requiring a one-sentence performance summary before the data forces the GM to make an interpretive call rather than just presenting numbers. Including weather and event context in the notes section prevents week-over-week variances from being misread as operational performance when they're actually traffic-driven.
Watch out for
Flash report accuracy depends on consistent data collection — food cost estimated mid-week will be systematically less accurate than food cost calculated from an actual inventory count. Define clearly which metrics are estimates versus actual measurements, and ensure the report flags when estimates are used so readers calibrate their confidence in the numbers appropriately.
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