Dhaba fleet
Rush prep, thali margin, staple reorder against the mandi and cash variance — watched.
Dhaba fleet
Rush prep for the peak trucker/family window, thin-thali repricing, staple reorder against the mandi, nightly cash-variance and buy-ahead calls — each shows its facts.
Toor dal is below par — reorder ~8 kg before the mandi climbs further (+14% this week)
22 kg on hand vs par 30 kg (73% of par). Its mandi price is already up sharply this week, so a short buy now costs twice — an empty station at the rush and a higher unit price.
Batch-cook ahead for 11 AM–2 PM — 85 covers, your busiest window
11 AM–2 PM runs family-led (30 truckers, 55 families). Truckers peak at 8–11 PM; families at 11 AM–2 PM. Pre-cook dal, keep the tandoor hot and rotis stacked before it lands so the queue never waits.
2026-07-30 close is short by ₹500 — counted ₹28,600 vs expected ₹29,100
216 plates should have rung ₹29,100; the till counted ₹28,600 (₹18,900 cash + ₹9,700 UPI). A shortfall is either a mis-punched order or till leakage — reconcile tonight while the day is fresh, not at month-end.
Toor dal is up +14% on the mandi this week — buy ahead
Wholesale Toor dal is climbing. A dhaba buys it by the sack, so locking a fortnight's supply now — while you have room above par — shaves the rising unit cost off every thali it goes into.
Dal-Roti Combo margin is 24% — reprice or re-portion
Costs ₹68 to plate at ₹90, only ₹22 a plate. At high volume a ₹10 reprice or a tighter dal/roti portion is the difference between a busy day paying and just breaking even.