PRACTICAL KITCHEN RECORDS

Restaurant inventory count sheet: partial cases and open packs

By InsightChef Pro · October 22, 2026

Two sealed cases and a half-full container are not one usable inventory number yet. Convert both into the same count unit, subtract the container's weight where needed, and use a cost expressed in that unit.

This guide goes deeper into partial-pack counting. For the broader workflow and an interactive on-hand-value example, start with the restaurant inventory spreadsheet guide.

1. Fix the count boundary before walking the shelves

Write down the location, count date, cutoff time and person counting. Use a consistent shelf order. If receiving or production continues during the count, record movements against the cutoff so stock is not missed or counted twice. The opening count for a period should agree with the prior period's finalized closing count, with any corrections documented.

Count each item where it is stored, then combine its location subtotals once. A bag moved from dry storage to the kitchen should not become a second bag on the final sheet.

2. Put pack size and count unit next to the ingredient

Use a stable ingredient identifier, name, storage area, supplier and Vendor Item Number where available. A supplier's number helps distinguish similar products, but it does not replace checking the description, pack size and unit. Different vendors can use the same number for unrelated products.

Record the pack as it was actually purchased: for example, 6 bags × 5 lb = 30 lb per case. Choose a count unit such as lb, oz by weight, fl oz by volume or each. Weight ounces and fluid ounces are not interchangeable; do not use a universal weight-to-volume conversion.

“Loose quantity” here includes all stock outside the sealed cases, including intact bags from an opened case. Do not include those bags again in the sealed-case count.

3. Work through a count-sheet example

Illustrative training figures only—not current supplier prices or a physical count. These examples use a recorded cost per case as a simple operational valuation basis. Use your business's agreed valuation method consistently; financial reporting may require a different cost basis.

Keep enough precision in unit costs. Rounding the yogurt cost to $0.06 before multiplication would give $26.88, understating this line by $1.12. Round the final monetary line value using your business's normal policy.

4. Measure open stock; identify estimates

• Tare containers: if a container plus rice weighs 4.2 lb and the empty container weighs 1.2 lb, the net rice quantity is 3 lb.
• Count discrete units: count bottles or individual portions as each when their recorded unit cost is per each.
• Flag estimates: an estimated half-bottle is an estimate, not a measured quantity. Use the same documented method and recheck material differences.
• Separate condition from quantity: flag damaged or unusable stock for review through the established waste or adjustment process. This article does not determine whether food is safe.

5. Keep prepared food separate from raw ingredients

Cooked sauce or a batch of prepared filling is not another count of its original raw ingredients. If prepared stock is included in inventory, use a documented recipe/yield and a compatible prepared-unit cost. Count what actually remains in each form; do not also include raw ingredients already consumed to make that batch. Do not apply a raw-to-cooked yield percentage to every count indiscriminately.

Before finalizing the sheet

• Every storage area and relevant item has been covered once.
• Blank means “not counted yet,” not zero. Enter a confirmed zero explicitly.
• Pack changes, duplicate items, missing costs and large differences have been reviewed.
• Each quantity and its unit cost use compatible units.
• Transfers, receipts and production around the cutoff have been reconciled.
• The count, reviewer and corrections are recorded before final totals are used.

Use the right tool for the next question

Use the inventory guide for on-hand value and the count workflow. Use the free food cost calculator for ingredient and recipe costing—not as a substitute for a physical inventory. The recipe-costing guide explains purchase cost, usable yield and portions.