If you ask any frontline manager, GM, or owner, they can confidently tell you their hotel's ADR and the reasons behind it—whether it’s high or low. Having spent 15 years in F&B at various levels and 10 years as a GM, I can provide deep insights into a hotel's or city's ADR. However, the same level of understanding doesn’t always extend to APC.
During the budgeting process, APC is considered, but the primary focus often remains on overall F&B revenue, year-on-year growth, and various food promotions.
It’s often said (though I haven’t come across it in any formal study) that a restaurant’s APC should never be lower than the combined price of its most popular starter and main course. I’ve relied on this concept to assess the APC of my outlets.
I’ve been trying to analyze why APC is not discussed as aggressively or frequently as ADR. Here are a few reasons:
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F&B is more about creating experiences than just numbers.
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Hotel restaurants compete more with standalone restaurants & QSR chains than with in-house outlets of competing hotels.
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Every outlet has a different APC, making direct comparisons unfair. For example, banquet APC cannot be compared to a coffee shop or bar APC.
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Guests' dietary habits vary significantly.
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Meal plans and their pricing impact APC in hotels.
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Dinner APC is generally higher than lunch APC.
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ADR is largely market-driven, whereas APC is still menu pricing-driven.
While analyzing F&B numbers, I’ve always prioritized the capture ratio for each meal session and the number of non-resident guests dining at the hotel, rather than focusing solely on APC.
What’s your take on APC? How do you evaluate whether your menu pricing and APC are on the right track?
Written by
Rachit Goel
Hospitality Leader / Brand Search Specialist / Hotel Operations Expert
Founder of The Hotel Adviser and a hospitality leader with 25+ years of hands-on experience across Marriott, Radisson, Ramada and Taj — spanning pre-opening, operations, revenue management and food & beverage.
