Topic
Restaurant Money Recovery
Where restaurants lose money they can get back: Toast and card processing fees, the FICA tip credit (Section 45B), DoorDash, Uber Eats and Grubhub error charges, supplier invoice errors and held deposits. Deadlines, math and evidence for each.
18 articles · browse the full archive
Restaurant ProfitCO2 Tank Rental Price Increase: Rent or Buy?
One bar's bulk CO2 tank rent went from $47.88 to $188.02 a month. A used tank paid back in about 16 months. Here is the break-even math and the catches.
14 min
Restaurant ProfitHow Much to Mark Up DoorDash Prices: The Real Math
Owners run 20 to 30%, but break-even is 33% on DoorDash Plus and 67% if your all-in take hits 40%. Mark up delivery only: pickup must match in-store for 6%.
16 min
Restaurant ProfitHow to Get Customers to Order Direct, Not Uber Eats
Uber Eats keeps $8.75 of a $35 order on Plus. A direct order costs about $1.32. Here is what actually moves customers, and which coupon pays back.
14 min
Restaurant ProfitDoorDash Error Charges: How to Dispute Them
DoorDash error charges take 25% to 100% of an item off your payout, and you get 14 days to dispute. The exact portal steps, evidence and weekly routine.
15 min
Restaurant ProfitFICA Tip Credit Calculation: 7 Worked Examples
How to calculate the FICA tip credit: the $5.15 formula, seven worked examples with exact math, a Form 8846 roll-up, and the mistakes ranking guides make.
12 min
Restaurant ProfitFICA Tip Credit: Section 45B Guide for 2026
The FICA tip credit returns 7.65% of most tips you pay payroll tax on. Who qualifies in 2026, what it is worth per location, and the IRS page that errs.
16 min
Restaurant ProfitGrubhub Error Charges: How to Dispute Adjustments
Grubhub order adjustments charge customer refunds to your store. You get 30 days to dispute by portal, email or phone. The rules, denial traps and evidence.
13 min
Restaurant ProfitHow to Audit a Toast Processing Statement
Read a Toast processing statement line by line, calculate your true effective rate, and catch keyed misrates and increases inside Toast's 30-day window.
12 min
Restaurant ProfitHow to Claim the FICA Tip Credit for Prior Years
Missed the FICA tip credit? Which years are still open in late 2026, how to amend with Form 8846 by entity type, and why the 90-day refund claim is a myth.
13 min
Restaurant ProfitHow to Claim a Restaurant Sales Tax Refund
Overpaid sales tax on delivery-app orders? Refund deadlines run 3 to 4 years by state. The forms, the evidence states ask for, and a step-by-step claim.
13 min
Restaurant ProfitHow to Negotiate Toast Processing Rates
Negotiate lower Toast processing rates using your contract's leverage points: rate notices, renewal and new locations. Plus flat vs interchange-plus math.
11 min
Restaurant ProfitMarketplace Facilitator Sales Tax by State, 2026
Does DoorDash, Uber Eats or Grubhub remit sales tax for restaurants in your state, and since when? A state-by-state table from each platform's own list.
14 min
Restaurant ProfitMerchant Processor Holding Funds? What to Do
Why processors like Toast freeze deposits or set reserves, what the contract lets them do, how MATCH works, and how to escape a POS or card-machine lease.
13 min
Restaurant ProfitRestaurant Invoice Audit: Stop Vendor Overcharges
Audits of 11,000+ restaurant invoices found overcharges on 35%, about 1% of spend. Receiving checks, catch weight, cost-plus terms and the credit clock.
14 min
Restaurant ProfitRestaurant Profit Leaks: The Full Recovery Audit
Every place a restaurant loses recoverable money, ranked by size, filing deadline and who can file: tip credits, card fees, supplier invoices, delivery apps.
13 min
Restaurant ProfitDoorDash Sales Tax: Are Restaurants Paying Twice?
In most states DoorDash, Uber Eats and Grubhub remit sales tax on your delivery orders. If those sales also hit your return, you paid twice. How to check.
16 min
Restaurant ProfitToast Processing Fees: 2026 Rates and Increases
Toast processing fees in 2026: typical in-person and keyed rates, the verified 2024 and March 2026 increases, Toast Pay's keyed rate, and your exit rights.
14 min
Restaurant ProfitUber Eats Error Charges: How to Dispute Them
Uber Eats order error adjustments come off your payout and you get 30 days to dispute. The charges Uber says it won't pass on, and the evidence that wins.
13 min
Frequently asked questions
- What do Pavado's Restaurant Money Recovery guides cover?
- Where restaurants lose money they can get back: Toast and card processing fees, the FICA tip credit (Section 45B), DoorDash, Uber Eats and Grubhub error charges, supplier invoice errors and held deposits. Deadlines, math and evidence for each.
- What is the best starting point in the Restaurant Money Recovery collection?
- Choose the guide that matches your business, platform and question. This collection includes CO2 Tank Rental Price Increase: Rent or Buy?; How Much to Mark Up DoorDash Prices: The Real Math; How to Get Customers to Order Direct, Not Uber Eats. Check each article's examples and sources before applying it to your situation.