Catering KPIs.

Catering is a food and beverage property type in ILORA's commercial real estate taxonomy. Off-premise event catering. Booking-driven revenue, minimal real-estate footprint. Performance under food and beverage sector conventions is measured against canonical KPIs including Prime Cost (COGS + Labor), COGS, Average Check, Table Turnover, Sales PSF, Beverage Cost %. Public REIT comparables for benchmarking include MCD (McDonald's), SBUX (Starbucks), CMG (Chipotle), DRI (Darden), EAT (Brinker). Regulatory frameworks specific to this property type include FDA Food Code, local health permits, TIPS responsible alcohol service, ABC liquor licensing, three-tier system, ADA Title III. Industry organizations driving standards + research include NRA (National Restaurant Association), IFA (International Franchise Association), Brewers Association, Wine Institute. Operating tools commonly used: Toast (POS), Square for Restaurants, Restaurant365, MarketMan. Ilora.ai ingests rent rolls, P&Ls, lease abstracts, and operating reports specific to this asset class, then benchmarks every property against SEC EDGAR REIT filings and sector-specific industry data, surfacing where the asset under-performs comparable institutional positions and which operating-side levers offer the largest improvement opportunity.

14 definitions · Sector: FOOD AND BEVERAGE · Used by Ilora.ai specialist AI agents

NOI

Net Operating Income

Total revenue minus operating expenses (excludes financing and capital costs). The primary measure of property-level profitability.

NOI = Revenue − Operating Expenses

  • profitability
  • core
Cap Rate

Capitalization Rate

Net Operating Income divided by current property value. Expresses unleveraged annual yield as a percentage.

Cap Rate = NOI ÷ Property Value

  • valuation
  • core
DSCR

Debt Service Coverage Ratio

Net Operating Income divided by total annual debt service. Lender-required cushion measure; below 1.0 means NOI cannot cover debt.

DSCR = NOI ÷ Annual Debt Service

  • lending
  • risk
LTV

Loan-to-Value

Loan amount divided by property value. Lower LTV = lower lender risk.

LTV = Loan Amount ÷ Property Value

  • lending
  • risk
OER

Operating Expense Ratio

Operating expenses divided by gross revenue. Lower is better, but varies by property type (hotels run higher than triple-net retail).

OER = Operating Expenses ÷ Gross Revenue

  • efficiency
GRM

Gross Rent Multiplier

Property value divided by gross annual rental income. Quick valuation shortcut; less precise than cap rate.

GRM = Property Value ÷ Gross Annual Rent

  • valuation
  • shortcut
IRR

Internal Rate of Return

Annualized return on investment accounting for time value of money across the full hold period.
  • return
  • underwriting
CoC

Cash-on-Cash Return

Pre-tax annual cash flow divided by total cash invested. Measures the cash yield, not total return.

CoC = Annual Cash Flow ÷ Total Cash Invested

  • return
DCF

Discounted Cash Flow

Valuation method that projects future cash flows and discounts them to present value at a chosen rate.
  • valuation
  • underwriting
TTM

Trailing Twelve Months

A rolling sum of the most recent 12 months. Smooths seasonality for KPI comparisons.
  • period
  • core
COGS

Cost of Goods Sold

Cost of food and beverage products sold. Typically 28–35% for full-service restaurants.
  • cost
  • core
Prime Cost

Prime Cost

COGS plus labor cost. Industry benchmark target is below 60–65% of revenue.

Prime Cost = COGS + Labor

  • cost
  • core
Avg Check

Average Check

Total revenue divided by number of checks (transactions). Measures pricing + sales mix.
  • revenue
Turnover

Table Turnover

Number of times a table is occupied during a shift. Capacity utilization measure.
  • capacity

Industry reference

How the catering sector operates.

Comparable public REITs / operators

  • MCD (McDonald's)
  • SBUX (Starbucks)
  • CMG (Chipotle)
  • DRI (Darden)
  • EAT (Brinker)
  • TXRH (Texas Roadhouse)
  • CAKE (Cheesecake Factory)
  • QSR (Restaurant Brands International)
  • YUM (Yum Brands)
  • BROS (Dutch Bros)

Frequently asked

Common questions about catering.

What is Catering real estate and how is it analyzed?
Catering is a food and beverage property type. Off-premise event catering. Booking-driven revenue, minimal real-estate footprint. Performance is measured under sector conventions including Prime Cost (COGS + Labor), COGS, Average Check, Table Turnover, Sales PSF, Beverage Cost %. Public REIT comparables: MCD (McDonald's), SBUX (Starbucks), CMG (Chipotle), DRI (Darden), EAT (Brinker). Ilora.ai ingests sector-standard documents (rent rolls, lease abstracts, P&Ls, operating reports) and benchmarks against SEC EDGAR REIT filings, surfacing under-performance vs comparable institutional assets.