About Spencer Houlihan
I spent years as a CFO for a multi-unit restaurant brand — sitting in the numbers every single day, watching what made restaurants thrive and what quietly killed them. Not the food. Not the concept. The financials.
Most restaurant operators are exceptional at hospitality. They know food, they know people, they know service. What they often don’t have is a CFO in their corner — someone who can translate the P&L into plain language and tell them exactly where the money is going and how to keep more of it.
That’s what this site is for.
What You’ll Find Here
Restaurant Bottom Line is a practical financial resource for independent operators, franchisees, and multi-unit managers who want to run more profitable restaurants without needing an accounting degree.
The content here comes directly from the trenches — real frameworks, real metrics, and real decisions I’ve seen play out across dozens of restaurants over the years. No fluff, no theory. Just the numbers that matter and what to do about them.
Topics include:
- Sales strategy — core customers, guest frequency, menu mix, pricing
- Cost management — food cost, labor, occupancy, and every line on your P&L
- Operations metrics — SPLH, ideal vs. actual food cost, waste tracking
- Business model thinking — how the best operators think about their financial model
Get in Touch
Have a topic you want covered? A P&L question you can’t figure out? Reach out at admin@restaurantbottomline.com.
— Spencer Houlihan, Restaurant CFO
PROTECTING THE BOTTOM LINE 