Free tool
Restaurant inventory count sheet
A count is only worth taking if it is comparable to the last one. This sheet is built around that: items in walk order, one consistent unit per item, pars next to counts so the order writes itself, and a priced total at the bottom.
What you get
- The printable count sheet: storage area, item, count unit, par, count and notes columns, ready for the clipboard.
- The CSV version: the same sheet with unit cost and value columns, so typing the counts in prices the whole shelf. Opens in Excel, Numbers, or Google Sheets.
Works for restaurants, cafes, bars, and food trucks. No software needed.
Get the templates
Free to use, no signup needed.
Four rules that make a count worth taking
List items in walk order, not alphabetical order
The sheet should follow your feet through the walk-in, the dry storage and the freezer. An alphabetical list has the counter jumping between shelves, and items get skipped in the jumping.
Count in the same unit every time
A case one week and single bottles the next makes two counts incomparable, and the trend is the whole point of counting.
Count at the same moment in the cycle
After service and before a delivery. A count taken the morning a truck arrives and one taken the night before describe different restaurants.
Count blind when you can
Cover the expected quantity while counting. A tired person at the end of a shift will agree with a number already printed on the sheet, and that bias is the strongest one in inventory.
Related reading: how a local cafe counts without the clipboard and the operations glossary for par level, usage, and blind count.
Or retire the clipboard
The Smooth Ops Inventory module keeps the list, the pars and the costs, prices the count as you enter it on a phone, and shows what moved since last time.