A study by Fáilte Ireland has found no evidence that excessive profits are being generated in the restaurant sector.
The tourism development body said its research suggested that the cost of a restaurant meal in Ireland appeared to be driven by input costs that were higher than similar input costs in other countries.
However, it stressed that caution should be exercised with the findings as they were based on a survey of just 26 restaurants out of a total 2,500.
The research by Horwath Bastow Charleton consultants found that raw materials accounted for 31 per cent of the cost of a typical meal.
Labour costs accounted for 25 per cent while Vat and excise duties accounted for 17 per cent. Utility and operational costs made up 14 per cent of the cost. The remaining 13 per cent of the cost included property costs, capital expenditure, taxation and profit.
Fáilte Ireland's economist Caeman Wall said these findings would be shared with a number of government agencies, including the Competition Authority and Forfás.
"This report has now given us an objective standard with which we can approach the issue of the cost of dining out," he said. "Furthermore, given that the research underlines that almost half of the cost of a standard meal is fixed, the restaurant sector is therefore vulnerable to fluctuations in demand as these fixed costs need to be spread over as many customers as possible."
