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Who we help · Hospitality

Accountants for hospitality — tighter margins, cleaner books, and tax that won’t catch you out

Hospitality runs on thin margins and constant cash movement — covers, stock, tips, wages. We keep your books clean, your VAT and payroll right, and your numbers clear enough to stay profitable.

  • Fixed monthly fee
  • A named accountant
  • UK-wide, fully online

Everything you need

One team, one fixed fee

  • Bookkeeping Services. Daily takings, stock and supplier costs kept current.
  • VAT returns. Food, drink and dine-in vs takeaway VAT handled correctly.
  • Payroll & CIS. Staff payroll, pensions and tips/tronc managed.
  • Management accounts & Virtual FD. Gross profit, wage % and cash flow you can act on.
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Sound familiar?

The bits no one warns you about

In hospitality, small leaks sink the ship. Wage percentages creeping up, stock wastage, VAT errors and unclear daily numbers quietly eat already-thin margins.

Most operators are run off their feet on the floor, with no time to watch the finances closely — exactly when tight control matters most.

  • Thin margins with no room for error
  • High, fluctuating staff costs and rotas
  • Tips and tronc to handle correctly
  • VAT on food, drink and dine-in vs takeaway
  • Stock, wastage and supplier costs to control
  • No clear, timely view of profit and cash
How we help

Everything handled, under one roof

Restaurants, pubs and cafés are some of the hardest businesses to run profitably: high staff costs, perishable stock, daily takings, tips to handle and VAT to manage — all on margins that leave little room for error.

We’re specialist hospitality accountants. We keep your bookkeeping current, handle VAT and payroll (including tips and tronc), and give you the numbers — gross profit, wage percentage, cash position — you need to actually make money.

Is this you?

Who we work with

If any of these sound like you, you’re exactly who we set this up for. Not sure where you fit? A quick, free call will tell you.

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  • Restaurants, cafés and takeaways
  • Pubs and bars
  • Hotels, B&Bs and guesthouses
  • Coffee shops and food trucks
  • Multi-site hospitality operators
  • New hospitality businesses getting set up
Why it pays

More money kept, less stress carried

Protect your margins

Clear gross profit and wage-percentage reporting so you spot leaks early and keep the business profitable.

Tips and tronc done right

We handle the tax and payroll treatment of tips and tronc, keeping you compliant and your team happy.

VAT without the headaches

The tricky VAT rules on food, drink and takeaway applied correctly, so returns are right and penalties avoided.

Numbers while they matter

Timely figures on profit and cash, so you make decisions on data, not the day’s vibe.

Bookkeeping

Hospitality bookkeeping for pubs & restaurants

Hospitality bookkeeping has to cope with daily takings, tips, stock and a wall of supplier invoices. We reconcile the till to the bank in Xero or QuickBooks and keep your VAT and margins under control.

  • Daily takings reconciled to card and cash banked
  • Tips and tronc recorded and treated correctly for HMRC
  • Supplier invoices and stock tracked for gross margin
  • VAT returns and wage costs kept on top of
Transparent pricing

Know the price before we start

A fixed monthly fee based on your size, payroll and number of sites — agreed up front, with no hourly billing.

  • A fixed quote, agreed before any work
  • No hourly billing, no year-end surprises
  • Cancel any time — no long tie-ins

A fixed monthly fee,
tailored to you

Confirmed after a free, no-obligation quote.

Get my fixed quote
Why Provense

A team that does the work — and picks up the phone

Hospitality specialists

Margins, wage %, tips and hospitality VAT are core to what we do.

Profit-focused

Reporting built to protect and grow your margins, not just file accounts.

A named accountant

One person who knows your venue — not a call centre.

Still deciding?

The honest answers to what you’re thinking

How much does a hospitality accountant cost?

We agree a fixed monthly fee based on your size and whether you have payroll and multiple sites. For most operators, the margin control and tax saved outweigh it.

Can you handle tips and tronc?

Yes — we manage the payroll and tax treatment of tips and tronc correctly, which is an area that catches many operators out.

Our VAT is complicated — can you help?

Definitely. Hospitality VAT (hot vs cold food, dine-in vs takeaway, drinks) is genuinely tricky, and getting it right is exactly what we do.

We’re too busy to deal with the books — is that ok?

That’s the point. You run the floor; we keep the books current and the numbers clear, with as little of your time as possible.

How it works

Getting started is easy

  1. 01

    Tell us about your venue

    Your setup, staff and how you take payments — a quick, free chat.

  2. 02

    We keep it tight

    Books, VAT, payroll and tips handled, with margin reporting set up.

  3. 03

    You run a profitable floor

    Clear numbers, compliant tax, and more of every cover kept.

FAQ

Restaurants & hospitality: your questions answered

What does a hospitality accountant do?
We handle the finance side of running a hospitality business: bookkeeping of daily takings and stock, VAT, payroll including tips and tronc, year-end accounts and tax, plus reporting on gross profit and wage percentage so you stay profitable.
How is VAT handled in a restaurant?
Hospitality VAT depends on what’s sold and how — hot vs cold food, dine-in vs takeaway, and drinks are all treated differently. We apply the rules correctly so your returns are accurate.
How do you handle tips and tronc?
We manage the correct payroll and tax treatment of tips and any tronc arrangement, keeping you compliant and your staff fairly paid.
How much does an accountant cost for a restaurant or pub?
It depends on your size, payroll and number of sites. We quote a fixed monthly fee up front so you know exactly what you’re paying.
Do you work with hospitality businesses across the UK?
Yes — we’re fully online and work with restaurants, pubs, cafés and hotels throughout the UK.
Related specialisms

You might also be looking for

Many businesses fit more than one of these. If another is closer to you — or you sell across more than one channel — explore the specialist that fits.

Let’s take the tax off your plate

Book a free, no-obligation consultation and we’ll show you exactly how we can help — and what it would cost.