Halal carts look simple. Chicken, rice, salad, and sauce. The reality is that profits disappear in portion drift and packaging creep.
This guide breaks down halal cart costing in the U.S. You will see the math for chicken over rice, gyro platters, and sauce portions. You will also get portion standards, pricing ladders, and weekly checks.
Quick Summary
- Weigh chicken by cooked ounces, not by scoop size.
- Rice yield and sauce ounces quietly decide your margin.
- Gyro protein costs more than chicken, so price it as a different tier.
- Packaging is a real line item for carts.
- Build a clear add-on ladder for extra meat and double rice.
Why Halal Cart Margins Leak
- Protein portions drift.
- Rice yield is never measured.
- Sauce is treated as free.
- Salad mix is overfilled.
- Takeout packaging grows over time.
If you only track chicken and rice, your food cost looks good on paper. In real service, it does not.
Core Costing Formula
Unit cost = Ingredient price / Usable amount
Plate cost = Sum of (unit cost x portion)
Food cost % = Plate cost / Menu priceStandardize portions by ounces. Then build pricing around a target food cost %.
U.S. Price Benchmarks (Retail, City Average)
Use these BLS/FRED benchmarks as direction. Replace them with your invoices.
| Item | Latest U.S. city average | Unit cost | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken, fresh, whole | $2.020/lb (Dec 2025) | $0.13/oz | Base protein trend |
| Ground beef, 100% | $6.821/lb (Dec 2025) | $0.43/oz | Red meat proxy for gyro |
| Tomatoes, field grown | $1.840/lb (Dec 2025) | $0.12/oz | Salad + sauce input |
| Bread, white, pan | $1.833/lb (Dec 2025) | $0.11/oz | Pita and wrap baseline |
| Cheese, processed | $4.925/lb (Sep 2025) | $0.31/oz | Optional topping signal |
Rice Yield Math (Simple Version)
Rice cost is low, but wasted rice adds up. Treat it as a batch with a yield.
Example (replace with your yield):
- Dry rice input: 10 lb
- Cooked rice output: 28 lb
- Yield factor: 2.8x
Cooked rice cost per lb = Dry rice cost / Yield factorIf yield drops, every plate cost rises.
Example 1: Chicken Over Rice (Core Plate)
Example numbers only. Replace with your invoice costs.
| Item | Portion | Unit Cost | Line Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken (cooked) | 6 oz | $0.18/oz | $1.08 |
| Rice (cooked) | 8 oz | $0.05/oz | $0.40 |
| Salad mix | 3 oz | $0.10/oz | $0.30 |
| White sauce | 1.5 oz | $0.08/oz | $0.12 |
| Hot sauce | 0.5 oz | $0.06/oz | $0.03 |
| Pita | 1 pc | $0.40 | $0.40 |
| Packaging | 1 set | $0.32 | $0.32 |
| Total plate cost | $2.65 |
Price Targets
| Target Food Cost % | Menu Price |
|---|---|
| 28% | $9.50 |
| 30% | $8.85 |
| 32% | $8.30 |
If your market is price sensitive, adjust ounces before discounting the menu price.
Example 2: Gyro Platter (Premium Tier)
Gyro uses a higher-cost protein. Price it as a premium tier, not as a small add-on.
| Item | Portion | Unit Cost | Line Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gyro meat | 5 oz | $0.42/oz | $2.10 |
| Rice (cooked) | 7 oz | $0.05/oz | $0.35 |
| Salad mix | 3 oz | $0.10/oz | $0.30 |
| White sauce | 1.5 oz | $0.08/oz | $0.12 |
| Pita | 1 pc | $0.40 | $0.40 |
| Packaging | 1 set | $0.32 | $0.32 |
| Total plate cost | $3.59 |
If chicken plates are $9.50, a gyro plate at $11.50-$12.50 is usually justified.
Sauce Costing (The Hidden Lever)
Most carts lose margin in sauce. Because the portion looks small, teams stop measuring it.
Use a squeeze bottle with an ounce line. Then price sauce as a real ingredient.
Quick method:
Sauce cost per oz = Batch cost / Total oz producedIf white sauce costs $0.08 per oz, 1.5 oz is already $0.12. Across 300 plates, that is $36 per day.
Packaging: The Cart Tax
Carts rely on takeout. That means packaging is not optional.
Track these as line items:
- Clamshell or bowl
- Lid + sauce cups
- Pita wrap or foil
- Fork, napkin, bag
If packaging is $0.32 per plate, that is $96 on 300 orders.
Add-On Pricing Ladder
Do not use one flat add-on price. Your costs are not flat.
Suggested ladder:
- Extra chicken: price = chicken cost x 3.0
- Extra gyro: price = gyro cost x 3.0
- Double rice: price = rice cost x 4.0
- Extra sauce: price = sauce cost x 4.0
This keeps low-cost add-ons profitable, while covering high-cost protein.
Portion Control Checklist (Daily)
- Weigh the first 5 plates of the shift
- Log cooked chicken yield by batch
- Measure rice scoop to a fixed ounce
- Use a squeeze bottle for sauce
- Count packaging shrink weekly
Consistency beats discounts.
Q&A
Q. Should I price chicken and gyro the same? A. No. Gyro is a premium protein and should be a higher tier.
Q. Is rice ever worth discounting? A. Only if it drives volume without increasing waste.
Q. Do I need to cost sauce separately? A. Yes. Sauce portions drift, and they add real cost over a week.
Related Guides
- Recipe Costing Guide
- Food Cost Ratio Guide
- Prime Cost Guide
- Loss Rate Guide
- Menu Engineering Guide
- US Delivery App Pricing Guide
- Fried Chicken Restaurant Cost Guide
- Pizza Cost Calculator
Want This Done Automatically?
KitchenCost recalculates recipe costs, food cost %, and menu prices as ingredient costs change.
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Sources
- USDA ERS Food Price Outlook: Summary Findings (Jan 2026)
- FRED - Chicken, fresh, whole, per lb. (APU0000706111)
- FRED - Ground beef, 100% beef, per lb. (APU0000FC1101)
- FRED - Tomatoes, field grown, per lb. (APU0000712311)
- FRED - Bread, white, pan, per lb. (APU0000702111)
- FRED - Cheese, processed, American, per lb. (APU0000710211)