Persian Restaurant Break-Even Analysis: About $39K Monthly Sales

Fixed costs $31.6K/mo Base overhead

Contribution margin 80.5% After variable costs

Break-even revenue $39.2K/mo Monthly target

Break-even timing Month 3 Launch ramp

Break-even calculator

Test whether monthly revenue can cover variable expenses and fixed monthly costs for a Persian restaurant.

Lean Base Full

Monthly revenue Revenue is the cash base that must first cover direct costs, then overhead. $ Low sales Strong sales Variable expenses Use food, beverage, delivery, and card fees that move with sales. $ Light costs Heavier costs

Money available to cover fixed costs $89,519 $108,250 revenue - $18,731 variable expenses

Margin ratio

83%

Covers fixed costs

Yes

Fixed monthly costs Use rent, payroll, utilities, marketing, and other monthly overhead. $ Tight overhead Higher overhead

Break-even chart Revenue Total costs

Which Persian restaurant expenses are fixed, and which move with sales?

Cost classification

Break-even is only useful if rent, payroll, ingredients, and fees sit in the right buckets. Misclassifying payroll or utilities as fully variable can make Month 3 break-even look safer than it is.

Expense	Cost	Break-Even Treatment	Common Mistake
Retail Space Rent	Fixed	Model at $6,500 per month across the relevant planning range.	Spreading rent by cover and assuming it falls in a slow week.
Utilities and Internet	Semi-variable	Start with the $1,200 monthly base, then watch usage as covers rise.	Treating the whole bill as sales-driven.
Marketing and Social Media	Semi-fixed	Use the $1,500 monthly plan until management changes the campaign level.	Assuming spend moves perfectly with revenue.
Food Ingredients and Consumables	Variable	Apply the first-year rate of 10.0% of revenue to each sales forecast.	Using a flat dollar amount despite changing covers.
Beverage Supplies	Variable	Apply the first-year rate of 4.0% of revenue.	Grouping beverages into fixed kitchen supplies.
Delivery Platform Commissions	Variable	Apply 3.0% of revenue while delivery remains in the sales mix.	Forgetting commissions when off-premise orders grow.
Payment Processing Fees	Variable	Apply the first-year rate of 2.5% of revenue.	Leaving card fees out of contribution margin.
General Manager Payroll	Semi-fixed	Model at $5,000 per month for 1.0 FTE.	Treating salaried payroll as if it drops with weekly sales.

How does break-even change from a lean opening to a full-capacity Persian restaurant?

Scenario table

Lean sales leave little room for error because rent and payroll stay high. The base plan reaches break-even by Month 3, while the full case adds cushion but needs tighter labor control.

Scenario figures are planning assumptions, not guaranteed results.

Scenario	Monthly Revenue	Variable Costs	Fixed Costs	CM Ratio	Operating Profit	Break-Even Signal
Lean lease-test case	$32.7k	$6.4k	$26.3k	80.5%	$0.0k	Barely clears fixed spend, so any dip in covers can flip it negative.
Base opening plan	$68.5k	$13.4k	$26.3k	80.5%	$20.3k	The launch plan reaches break-even by Month 3 and leaves room for ramp-up.
Full-capacity case	$138.3k	$20.9k	$37.8k	84.9%	$61.7k	Best cushion, but labor growth must stay matched to traffic.

What breaks the break-even plan for a Persian restaurant?

Stress test

Year 1 still clears break-even, but the cushion is not wide enough to ignore traffic or fee pressure. Watch weekly covers versus the 835-cover Year 1 assumption, and keep an eye on weekend average order value at $24.

Stress Case	Changed Assumption	Break-Even Revenue	Revenue Gap	Risk Signal
Current plan	No change.	$392,000	$293,000 cushion	The plan clears break-even with room left.
Revenue shortfall	Year 1 revenue runs 10% below plan.	$392,000	$224,500 cushion	Still safe, but the cushion drops fast.
Fixed-cost pressure	Retail space rent rises by $1,000 per month.	$393,242	$291,758 cushion	Occupancy pressure trims room, but not enough to break the model alone.
Variable-expense pressure	Delivery commissions rise by 1 percentage point.	$396,943	$288,057 cushion	A small margin squeeze cuts cushion faster than fixed costs do.
Combined pressure	Revenue runs 10% below plan, rent rises $1,000, and delivery commissions rise 1 point.	$398,189	$218,311 cushion	Traffic and cost pressure together can erase room much faster than one issue alone.

What should a Persian restaurant founder verify before signing the lease and locking in the first hires?

Founder checklist

Treat this as one break-even test, not a vibe check. If the lease, payroll, ticket size, and cover count do not still work with Month 3 break-even and $798K minimum cash in Month 2, hold off on signing.

1Lease Load$10.3K/mo

Check the lease against the full fixed-cost stack, because $6,500 rent plus utilities, marketing, insurance, repairs, and POS software total about $10.3K a month before payroll.

2Payroll Load$21.3K/mo

Verify the Year 1 staffing plan stays near $21.3K a month, because the GM, head crepier, junior crepiers, FOH staff, and kitchen assistant drive most of the opening wage burden.

3Ticket Size$18 / $24

Confirm weekday checks stay at $18 and weekend checks at $24, since the revenue plan depends on that split to support the cover forecast.

4Weekly Covers835/wk

Test whether 835 covers a week fits your seats, hours, and table turns, because the room has to handle that pace before Month 3 break-even.

5Gross Margin80.5% CM

Secure supplier quotes and fee terms that keep Year 1 contribution margin near 80.5%, because higher food, beverage, or delivery costs push break-even sales up fast.

6Opening Cash$798K min

Keep at least $798K of cash ready by Month 2, since $154K of capex and early payroll land before the model turns positive.