Fish finger bap: how much it costs to make, per serve
Four oven-baked MSC fish fingers in a buttered 5-inch floured bap with tartare sauce and salad leaves. One serve, costed from JJ Foodservice prices dated 10 October 2026.
The menu price is the one ChefSums uses for this dish on its sample café menu, a realistic UK menu price. The lowest price is the one that just reaches 68% GP, the UK food GP benchmark (UKHospitality × Christie & Co, 2022: 65.9–69% food GP across every segment). It covers the ingredients at a normal margin, not staff, rent or energy, and most cafés, pubs and takeaways charge more for simple dishes. Check what places near you charge. GP is worked out on the ex-VAT price.
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Ingredients and cost, one serve
| Ingredient | Pack price | Pack size | Used | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fish fingers, MSC (25 g) | £9.99 | 60 each | 4 each | £0.67 |
| Floured bap, 5-inch | £15.99 | 48 each | 1 each | £0.33 |
| Unsalted butter | £30.49 | 5000 g | 8 g | £0.05 |
| Tartare sauce | £16.49 | 4540 ml | 20 ml | £0.07 |
| Salad leaves | £7.49 | 1000 g | 15 g | £0.11 |
| Total | £1.23 | |||
Cost per line is pack price × (amount used ÷ pack size), the same sum the tool runs. Change one pack price and every line that uses it moves.
What it really costs: waste and staff time
| Ingredients | £1.23 |
| Waste allowance, 5% (trim, ends, the odd one binned) | £0.06 |
| Staff time: 5 min hands-on per serve at £12.71/hr + 25% on-cost | £1.32 |
| Food, waste and staff per serve | £2.61 |
At the sample café menu price (£6.25 ex VAT) that is 42% of the price, before rent, energy and everything else. Many UK sites aim to keep food plus staff (prime cost) at or under 60–65% of sales. The staff line counts hands-on prep only, not unattended cooking, and uses the April 2026 National Living Wage; put your own rate, minutes and waste in the calculator's real cost section or the prime cost calculator. Every dish side by side: the UK dish cost index.
Method
- Bake the fish fingers from frozen at 220 °C for 15-18 minutes, turning once.
- Split and butter the bap.
- Fill with the leaves, fish fingers and tartare sauce.
Costing notes
Four fish fingers are £0.67, the bap £0.33; the whole serve is £1.23. Hot food sold to take away is standard-rated, so the 20% VAT applies whether it is eaten in or taken out.
Where the prices came from
JJ Foodservice collection prices as shown on its public search pages on 10 October 2026 (delivery runs about £1-2 a case higher; one line JJ listed on delivery only is marked). JJ does not label VAT on most lines: raw food is zero-rated in the UK, while soft drinks, alcohol, confectionery and some ingredients carry standard-rate VAT. Your supplier's price is the one that matters: open the recipe and type it in.
- Fish fingers, MSC (25 g): JJ MSC Whitefish Fillet Breaded Fish Fingers 1x60x25g, 60 fingers, £9.99 collection — JJ Foodservice, accessed 2026-10-10
- Floured bap, 5-inch: Kara 5" Sandwich Floured Baps 1x48, 48 baps, £15.99 collection — JJ Foodservice, accessed 2026-10-10
- Unsalted butter: Lakeland Unsalted Butter 20x250g (DAI186), 5 kg, £30.49 collection — JJ Foodservice, accessed 2026-10-10
- Tartare sauce: Lion Tartare Sauce 2x2.27L (SAU228), 2 x 2.27 L, £16.49 collection — JJ Foodservice, accessed 2026-10-10
- Salad leaves: Fresh Sandwich Mixed Leaves 2x500g, 1 kg, £7.49 collection — JJ Foodservice, accessed 2026-10-10
More costed dishes: café and breakfast
- Porridge with honey — £0.40 a serve
- Chicken Caesar wrap — £1.39 a serve
- Bacon roll — £0.68 a serve
- Flat white — £0.41 a serve