ChangeLog
This page is for USERS to stay up to date on feature requests, reports, and fixes for the FoodCostChef Calculator. Please be advised that any OWNER of the software v1.x can upgrade to a newer edition to take advantage of added features or improvements up to v1.9. Those users will be able to use the IMPORT/EXPORT feature, which migrates all of your content (Ingredients, recipes, plates, notes) from one version to the next.
v1.3.7 — Improvement Update (August 20th, 2026)
Discovered that “/” and backslash symbols in ingredient names prevented price changes in the ingredient add/edit form. The backslash in the naming convention had been disabled in a working copy after some ingredients that included the backslash had been entered. So, you may have an ingredient name with a backslash that may in the future prevent you from changing that ingredient price. This fixes that and was a simple code snippet added to the form.
v1.3.6 — Improvement Update (June 20th, 2026)
Core engine performance improved for files with heavy usage/Recipe cards; creation delays were momentary and made it seem like Excel had stopped working, but it was only spinning. The spinning has been eliminated with a code reduction and bottleneck solution implemented.
v1.3.4 — Improvement Update (April 16th, 2026)
Improved data entry speed for recipe cards, enabling real-time keystrokes.
v1.3.3 — Improvement Update (March 21st, 2026)
Removed limitation for import/export feature set. Added sorting features for summary tables allowing for improved search of recipes, ingredients and plates.
v1.3.2 — Bug Fix Update (February 22nd, 2026)
- Fixed critical issue where failed plate creation left orphan tabs behind, blocking new plates with the same name
- Fixed false “Use Add New Plate Button” warning appearing after legitimate plate deletions
- Fixed ingredient category colours not displaying for custom categories — automatically corrected on file open
- Prevented duplicate “Base Recipe” entries in Chef Tables Recipe Categories
- Expanded Chef Tables import/export to support up to 20 ingredient categories
- Added protection on all three summary tables (Ingredients, Recipes, Plates) to prevent data from being accidentally pasted outside table boundaries
- Fixed first ingredient category not appearing in the Add Ingredient dropdown — caused by an incorrect named range definition introduced in a previous update
- Fixed Base recipe Last Update from going blank in core recipes.
- Fixed Mac drop-down results showing no categories when creating a recipe
- Added trim () wrappers in import data to prevent “empty space” errors
v1.3.1 — Improvement Update (February 9th, 2026)
Added file protection for core RECIPES that are included in a PLATE. Increased font sizes and dialogue pop-ups for Mac USERS.
v1.3 — Feature Update (February 6, 2026)
- NEW: Menu Engineering Matrix Export — Export your plates to a standalone Menu Matrix workbook for menu engineering analysis. Includes automatic KPI calculations, CM scoring, menu mix analysis, and item grading (Star, PlowHorse, Puzzle, Dog)
- NEW: Menu Section categories — Organize plates by menu section (Dinner, Lunch, Breakfast, etc.) for targeted matrix analysis. Set categories in Chef Tables
- Expanded plate capacity — 10 recipe slots and 10 ingredient slots per plate card (up from 6)
- Expanded ingredient category capacity in Chef Tables
- Collapsed Conversion Table in Chef Tables for a cleaner layout
- Improved sorting and filtering on all summary tables (programming oversight resolved)
- Bug fixes and performance improvements
January 7th, 2026
Added USER prevention from naming duplicates. When a Recipe, Plate or Ingredient is created, the name must now be unique. A warning will display and force the USER to make adjustments to the name. This is because Excel has a difficult time with duplicate names.
January 7th, 2026
Corrected click and right-click protection issues on Ingredients and summary tables. Added ability to sort named columns in summary tables, while keeping data columns protected from USER input errors.
January 6th, 2026 – Version 1.2 Released!
Version 1.2 introduces full Mac Excel support. Import/Export, Add Ingredient, license activation, and all core features now work on both Windows and Mac. Paste buttons added to recipe info and license forms for Mac users. Set Zoom expanded to 250% for Retina displays.
Known Excel for Mac Issues
- Use the Paste buttons to paste text into form fields (Cmd+V not supported by Microsoft in Excel forms)
- URL validation disabled on Mac (links assumed valid)
- Zoom settings may need to be reapplied after navigating to recipe/plate cards
- Some button styling and form colors may appear differently than on Windows
.
January 3rd, 2026
Added “Paste” buttons in the Add Recipe Info dialogue to accommodate Mac platform pasting errors resulting from Excel limitations.
January 2nd, 2026
Added “Delete Item Row” button on PLATE Template. This allows for selecting an ingredient or recipe on a PLATE CARD and deleting the whole row. Using a button to do this instead of Excel’s built-in is less clunky and leaves no “residue” math or formula in any of the cells on that row. The button is located in the lower left corner between the DELETE PLATE and DUPLICATE PLATE buttons.
Dec 26th, 2025
Fixed Workbook_Open to hide Recipe/Plate card tabs on file open properly.
Added cross-platform file path handling
Dec 14
CRITICAL FIX: New base recipes now correctly populate UOM, Unit Cost, and Last Update columns
Fixed summary table protection to allow column sorting functionality
Dec 8th, 2025
Product Launch Date:
- Fixed blank row creation when cancelling Weight/Volume ingredient pairing
- Fixed form distortion issue when opening dialogs at different zoom levels
- Added right-click protection to Recipe Cards, Plate Cards, and Home Dashboard
- Protected Home Dashboard navigation buttons from accidental editing
- Added consistent “Hey Chef!” branding to error messages