--- title: "Restaurant Accountant in Hamilton, Ontario" url: https://www.everstonecpa.com/restaurant-accountant-hamilton description: "CPA for Hamilton restaurants: food cost, tips and payroll, POS and cash reconciliation, and 13% HST on meals, at a fixed monthly fee. Send an enquiry." type: service-in-a-city updated: 2026-10-02 summary: "A Hamilton restaurant’s numbers turn on food cost tracked monthly, tips handled correctly through payroll, the POS reconciled to the bank every week, and 13% HST charged and recovered properly across dine-in, takeout and delivery apps. EverStone keeps the books, runs payroll and prepares the T2 at a fixed fee agreed before work begins." faq_count: 6 publisher: EverStone CPA Inc., a Chartered Professional Accountant firm registered with CPA British Columbia and CPA Alberta service_area: British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario and Manitoba language: en-CA contact: info@everstonecpa.com · https://www.everstonecpa.com/book-online --- [Home](https://www.everstonecpa.com/) [Accountant in Hamilton](https://www.everstonecpa.com/accountant-hamilton) Restaurants and hospitality Restaurants & hospitality · Hamilton # Restaurant accountant in *Hamilton* From James Street North to Dundas, Hamilton dining rooms run on thin margins. EverStone keeps their books, payroll and year-end current as a [Hamilton small business accountant](https://www.everstonecpa.com/accountant-hamilton), online at fixed fees. [Get My Fixed Quote](https://www.everstonecpa.com/book-online)[Ask a Free Question](https://www.everstonecpa.com/quick-question) **Quick answer:** A Hamilton restaurant’s numbers turn on food cost tracked monthly, tips handled correctly through payroll, the POS reconciled to the bank every week, and 13% HST charged and recovered properly across dine-in, takeout and delivery apps. EverStone keeps the books, runs payroll and prepares the T2 at a fixed fee agreed before work begins. Published fees start at $325 a month for bookkeeping and $125 for a personal return. ## Food cost, counted rather than assumed Food and beverage cost decides a restaurant year and is usually guessed. It is opening stock plus purchases less closing stock, and without a count the closing figure is a guess. A month-end count of walk-in, dry storage and bar, even rough, makes it actionable. It shows whether prices keep up with suppliers, whether portions drift, and whether stock walks out the back. We build the count into the monthly close and report food and beverage cost as a percentage of sales. ## Tips, tip-outs and the payroll Tips go wrong quietly, and control decides. Tips the employer collects and allocates, by pool, formula or card payout on the cheque, are controlled: payroll deducts income tax, CPP and EI. Tips handed straight to a server are direct, reported by the employee. Most Hamilton rooms have both, and a POS pooling card tips can turn direct tips into controlled ones. Ontario also limits what employers take from tips. We set the tip flow once, match it to payroll and document it. See [Restaurant tip reporting](https://www.everstonecpa.com/blog/restaurant-tip-reporting-payroll-canada). ## The POS, the cash and the bank Sales arrive in pieces: late card batches, drawer cash, delivery payouts net of commission, gift cards redeemed later. Reconciling POS to bank weekly finds missing batches, short tills and platforms overcharging. Book delivery payouts gross with commission as an expense, or sales and HST are understated. We chase gaps while they are fresh. A December gift card is a liability, not revenue, until the meal, and HST generally follows redemption. Booking holiday card sales as revenue overstates both profit and HST owing. [GST/HST filing](https://www.everstonecpa.com/gst-hst-filing-services) covers the return. ## HST on meals, takeout and delivery Ontario restaurant meals carry 13% HST, in or out, and the POS must charge it right; some low-priced prepared food and drink gets the provincial portion rebated at the till. HST on supplies, equipment, rent and delivery commissions comes back as credits. Annual filers can still face a big balance, so we check the HST account monthly. [Input tax credits](https://www.everstonecpa.com/blog/input-tax-credits-itc-canada-guide) covers recoveries. ## Patio season, renovations and equipment Hamilton patios fill spring to fall and January is quiet, so cash must carry the slow months and staffing swings, with more [records of employment](https://www.everstonecpa.com/blog/roe-record-of-employment-canada). A new hood, walk-in or bar build-out is capital, and leasehold improvements are recovered over the lease through [capital cost allowance](https://www.everstonecpa.com/blog/capital-cost-allowance-cca-classes-canada). We split repairs from improvements as they happen. See [Cash flow for a seasonal business](https://www.everstonecpa.com/blog/managing-cash-flow-seasonal-business-canada). ## What EverStone handles for you One CPA, one fixed fee agreed up front: - T2 corporate return and year-end financial statements - Food and beverage cost tracked from a monthly count - Payroll including tip treatment, remittances and year-end slips - POS reconciled to the bank weekly, delivery apps booked gross - HST set up correctly across dine-in, takeout and delivery - Equipment and leasehold improvement schedules ## Fixed fees, fully online EverStone is a CPA firm working with Hamilton operators entirely online — video, phone and secure upload. Monthly bookkeeping starts at $325 a month with GST/HST filing included, and the fee is fixed and agreed before work starts. See [what it costs](https://www.everstonecpa.com/pricing). About this article **EverStone CPA** Prepared and reviewed by a CPA at EverStone CPA, serving businesses in BC, Alberta, Ontario and Manitoba. Updated September 2026 . [About the firm](https://www.everstonecpa.com/about) · [Send an enquiry](https://www.everstonecpa.com/book-online) ## What a Hamilton restaurant has to get right What a Hamilton restaurant has to get right The items that decide a restaurant’s year — for a business operating in Hamilton, Ontario | Item | Why it matters | | Food and beverage cost | Needs a monthly count, or the most important number is a guess | | Tips | Controlled tips run through payroll; direct tips are the employee’s to report | | POS and bank | Weekly reconciliation finds missing batches and short tills early | | Delivery apps | Payouts booked gross, with commissions as an expense | | Sales tax where you operate | 13% HST, a single registration and a single return | Source: [Restaurant and hospitality accounting](https://www.everstonecpa.com/restaurant-hospitality-accounting). General information, not advice. ## Remote restaurant accounting EverStone, a sole practitioner CPA firm, serves Hamilton online. **There is no Hamilton office and no local staff.** Video or phone meetings, secure upload and e-signature replace visits, and sales, tips and food cost come from your existing systems. Common questions ## Hamilton accounting for restaurants and hospitality FAQ **Do tips have to go through payroll?** Controlled tips do — those the employer collects and allocates, including pooled card tips paid out on the cheque. Direct tips, handed from customer to server with no employer involvement, are reported by the employee on their own return. [Ask about your case →](https://www.everstonecpa.com/quick-question) **How often should I count inventory?** Monthly, if you want food cost to be a number you can act on. A rough count of the walk-in, dry storage and bar is enough to show whether costs, prices and portions are moving together. **How should delivery app payouts be recorded?** Gross, with the platform commission recorded as an expense. Booking only the net payout understates sales and HST collected, and loses the input tax credit on the commission. **Is a new walk-in cooler an expense?** No. Equipment and leasehold improvements are capital, recovered through capital cost allowance over time. Repairs that restore something to its old condition are expenses; improvements are not. **What does restaurant bookkeeping cost?** Monthly bookkeeping starts at $325 a month with GST/HST filing included. Payroll and the year-end T2 are quoted together after we review your enquiry and fixed in writing. **Do you work with restaurants across the Hamilton area?** Yes — restaurants, cafes, bars and caterers in Hamilton, Dundas, Ancaster, Stoney Creek and Burlington, and across Ontario. Everything runs online, around service rather than office hours. ## Related services and local guides Nearby cities, the rest of what we do for Hamilton businesses, and the reference pages behind this one. [Payroll services in Hamilton](https://www.everstonecpa.com/payroll-services-hamilton) [Bookkeeping in Hamilton](https://www.everstonecpa.com/bookkeeping-hamilton) [Restaurant and hospitality accounting](https://www.everstonecpa.com/restaurant-hospitality-accounting) [Accounting & CPA services in Hamilton](https://www.everstonecpa.com/accountant-hamilton) [Corporate tax (T2) in Hamilton](https://www.everstonecpa.com/corporate-tax-accountant-hamilton) [Restaurant accounting in Toronto](https://www.everstonecpa.com/restaurant-accountant-toronto) [Restaurant accounting in St. Catharines](https://www.everstonecpa.com/restaurant-accountant-st-catharines) [Restaurant accounting in London](https://www.everstonecpa.com/restaurant-accountant-london-ontario) [Restaurant accounting in Oshawa](https://www.everstonecpa.com/restaurant-accountant-oshawa) [Personal tax (T1) in Hamilton](https://www.everstonecpa.com/personal-tax-accountant-hamilton) [Statutory holiday pay](https://www.everstonecpa.com/blog/statutory-holiday-pay-canada-employers) [Accountants across Ontario](https://www.everstonecpa.com/accountant-ontario) [Ontario tax facts Current rates and thresholds for Ontario](https://www.everstonecpa.com/ontario-tax-facts) ### What clients say Rated 5.0 on Google across 21 client reviews. [Read all reviews](https://www.everstonecpa.com/reviews) ★★★★★ “…have been completing my bookkeeping, taxes and financials for the last 2 years and they have been amazing. Thank you!” R. H. Verified Google review ★★★★★ “…We switched to him last year for both our personal and small-business taxes — responsive, knowledgeable and quick.” Heather Powers Verified Google review ### Starting fees Every fee is fixed in writing before any work begins. - **Monthly bookkeeping, GST/PST filing included** from $325 a month - **Payroll, remittances, T4s and ROEs** included in monthly bookkeeping - **Books, payroll and the year-end T2 together** $500–$700 a month - **Corporate year-end and T2 return** fixed fee, quoted in writing - **Personal tax return (T1)** from $125; self-employed or rental $275–$500 - **Catch-up bookkeeping** from $2,200 per year of records - **Controller or CFO support** controller from $1,650, CFO from $2,750 a month - **One-off advice call with a CPA** $225 plus GST [Get My Fixed Quote](https://www.everstonecpa.com/book-online?service=monthly#enquiry-form) --- Source: https://www.everstonecpa.com/restaurant-accountant-hamilton Prices: https://www.everstonecpa.com/pricing · Contact: info@everstonecpa.com · https://www.everstonecpa.com/book-online