Dishes with the most profitable mark ups in restaurants
If you're a vegetarian who likes to start with soup and always orders dessert, then you're a restaurant's dream customer.
That's according to users of the question-and-answer website Quora, who have been sharing the foods which have the most profitable mark-ups in restaurants.
From omelettes and veggie options to anything from the children's menu, these are the dishes you are paying over the odds for - despite the fact they cost restaurants next to nothing to make.
Industry insiders gave detailed responses to the question of which items on menus are the most profitable for restaurants
One user, who claims to be a chef, said vegetarian food is cheaper to make than meat-based dishes as restaurants don't have to pay for the costly protein.
Another said desserts were nearly always profitable because they could be made ahead of time and in large batches - but not everyone agreed with his assertion.
Soups are often made by using up ingredients from the previous day, said this insider - saving a restaurant money
Michael Young, who says he is a restaurant owner and chef, said vegetarian and pasta dishes were the most profitable
Janera Soloven said that breakfast dishes are very profitable as they have high mark ups - but cost just pennies to make
According to this user one of the most profitable restaurant dishes is a side salad
Dan Leveille said omelettes and grilled cheese sandwiches have high mark-ups when you consider the cheap ingredients and how easy they are to make
Kristin Aduna says that there is a formula for profitable food: it has to sell, have low production costs, and not create a lot of waste
Shawn Ramirez, who says he is a professional chef, says pizza can be lucrative for restaurants
Some of the most profitable meals were no surprised - cheaply made pasta and noodle dishes
There was disagreement over whether sweet toothed diners are hit with big mark ups
If you're ordering a dish based on ground beef, you might be paying over the odds