A restaurant menu is a powerful sales tool that can significantly impact a restaurant’s profitability. Whether we’re referring to a printed menu or a menu online, it influences customers’ desire to buy food in your restaurant.
To help your restaurant design a practical menu, we have prepared this guide on making a menu for a restaurant.
Here’s how to make a menu to improve your restaurant’s financial results.
Key Takeaways
- Menu Item Limit: Limit the number of items to 7 per category, with a maximum of 30-40 items total.
- Menu Categories: Organize items based on menu engineering principles for profitability and popularity.
- Write Menu Descriptions: Write appealing menu descriptions and add photos to attract customers.
- Check The Menu Before Printing: Have a friend or employee proofread the menu for errors before printing.
- Menu Design: Use restaurant menu templates from an online menu creator to design your menu.
- QR Code Menu: Generate a QR code menu for easy access to your restaurant’s menu and offer tableside ordering.
Creating restaurant menu designs is a process of arranging dishes in a manner that encourages customers to order.
According to Medium report, including photos of menu items can increase restaurant revenue by up to 30%. However, ensuring the photos are high-quality and accurately represent the dish is important.
When creating a menu, remember to create both a digital restaurant menu and a printed one.
Step 1. Choose the types of menus your restaurant will offer
- Main Menu
- Kids Menu
- Wine Menu
- Drinks Menu
- Lunch Menu
- Brunch Menu
- Vegetarian Menu
- Gluten-Free Menu
When creating restaurant menus, remember to include the following:
- Names of dishes
- Descriptions of dishes
- Menu items prices
- List of ingredients used to prepare a dish
- Information on allergens
Step 2. Create a list of all menu items
Once you know what type of menu you want to create, a starting point is preparing a list of menu items you plan to offer. Then, you can build a restaurant menu in Excel or Google Sheets or even use a piece of paper to list all menu items.
Step 3. Organize menu items into categories
The second step is to create restaurant menu categories. These could be, for example, breakfast, starters, soups, main dishes, drinks, etc. Once you do this, think of which menu items you want to sell most, which main dish should be at the top of the list, and why.
A recognizable method of grouping your menu items into 4 categories based on their profitability and popularity is a part of the menu engineering process. These categories include “plow horses”, “stars”, “dogs”, and “puzzles”, which represent your menu items.
The number of categories to include in an online menu may vary depending on the restaurant’s offerings and needs.
- According to a study by SinglePlatform, restaurants with 3 to 4 menu categories tend to have the highest engagement and order frequency.
- A study by Toast suggests that 5 to 7 menu categories offer a good balance between variety and simplicity.
Important note: Having too many categories can overwhelm customers while having too few can make the menu seem limited. Therefore, finding the right balance is important to provide a positive customer experience.
Step 4. Decide on menu item pricing
Once you organize your menu items into categories using menu engineering principles, it’s time to focus on your restaurant menu pricing.
For example, suppose you are creating a menu from scratch and starting a restaurant business. In that case, you must determine the optimal pricing strategy for your restaurant menu to maximize profits while satisfying your customers.
- Research your market: Get to know your competition by researching their pricing strategies and analyzing factors such as location, menu offerings, and customer demographics.
- Calculate your costs: Calculate the cost of ingredients, restaurant labor costs, and overhead expenses to determine your food cost percentage.
- Use pricing strategies: Consider pricing strategies such as anchoring and odd pricing to influence customer perceptions of value. For example, pricing a premium item higher than others can make other items seem more reasonably priced.
- Test and adjust: Check your menu and pricing strategy with a focus group or soft opening. Analyze sales data and customer feedback to make informed decisions about pricing and menu items.
- Stay competitive: Stay up-to-date with market trends and regularly review your menu prices to ensure they remain competitive.
Alternatively, analyze your sales reports if you are running a restaurant and want to increase menu prices.
A good practice referring to increasing menu prices is to let customers know what you have done thanks to this rise. For example, you can put a note, “Thanks to the price increase, we can rely on fresh ingredients when cooking for you, despite the high price increase due to inflation”.
In the opinion of the National Restaurant Association, an ideal menu should have around 7 items per category, with a maximum of 30-40 menu items in total.
This allows customers to consider a manageable number of choices while still providing diverse dishes.
Step 5. Write menu item descriptions
The next step is to create restaurant menu descriptions for your dishes. Talk to your chef about ingredients used for preparation, and consider why you offer these dishes in your restaurant.
Below we listed a few tips on how to create restaurant menu descriptions.
- Tip 1. Use expressive language, but don’t exaggerate – Use adjectives and expressive language to vividly portray the dish and its distinctive flavors and ingredients.
- Tip 2. Ensure brevity in descriptions – While being descriptive is crucial, ensure your descriptions are short and easy to read.
- Tip 3. Highlight significant ingredients
- Tip 4. Consider presentation – Reflect on how the dish will be presented and use descriptive language to accentuate its visual appeal.
- Tip 5. Tell a story – Make use of menu descriptions to share a story about the dish, its origin, or how it’s prepared.
- Tip 6. Address dietary restrictions sensitively – Mention any dietary restrictions or allergies related to the dish, such as “gluten-free” or “vegan.”
- Tip 7. Avoid cliché Refrain from using worn-out phrases like “mouthwatering” or “full of flavor.” Instead, use unique and creative language that genuinely portrays the dish.
- Stimulate customers to explore new menu items
- Provide information to customers with dietary restrictions
- Assists customers in discovering a dish that caters to their taste preferences
- Makes global cuisine easier to understand and appreciate
- Increases sales and profitability
Step 6. Select menu colors
Picking the right colors for your restaurant menu can reveal much about your brand, so making thoughtful selections is vital.
In general, the colors of your restaurant menu should be consistent with your restaurant branding and interior design. Moreover, the colors you choose can influence your guests’ hunger levels.
The colors of your menu can affect customers’ perception of a restaurant and their willingness to order certain dishes.
In addition, different colors can evoke different emotional responses, affecting how customers perceive food and the overall dining experience.
- Red: Stimulates appetite and enhances recognition.
- Yellow: Evokes freshness and stimulates appetite.
- Green: Represents health and freshness, ideal for plant-based dishes.
- Blue: Creates a calm, relaxed atmosphere, suited for upscale dining.
- Orange: Stimulates appetite and symbolizes nutrition.
- Brown: Conveys warmth and comfort, great for traditional or home-style cooking.
- Black: Implies sophistication and luxury, perfect for upscale restaurants.
Step 7. Concentrate on the restaurant menu design
Having created your menu in Google Sheets or Excel and choosing colors, the next step is designing it. Again, you can use tools available on the market, such as a restaurant menu maker, or hire a professional designer.
If you are creating an online version of your menu, you can use ready-to-use, restaurant templates for menus.
In addition, you can customize the free menu templates to create a beautifully designed menu that’ll help draw attention to your business and increase the number of orders from your restaurant.
While designing your menu, don’t forget about the basic rules like
- Using the Golden Triangle rule,
- Keeping your menu short
- Removing currency symbols or using round numbers instead of .99
- Avoiding displaying a price column on the menu
- Reducing the number of menu pages
We prepared a menu engineering guide where you can read more about these rules.
Step 8. Include high-quality restaurant menu photos
When designing a printed menu, maintain a balance. Ample white space makes the menu visually appealing, while overloading it with photos or icons can distract from the main content.
If adding images, ensure they are high-quality—blurry photos can deter customers. Focus on featuring pictures of your most popular or high-value items to draw attention and boost sales.
Remember to add your high-quality pictures to your restaurant’s online menu. In the UpMenu free online menu maker, you can do this quickly by clicking the “Add image” button and uploading the image from your source.
We created a list of food photography tips to help make your restaurant’s dishes more tempting and attractive to your customers.
Alternatively, you can hire a professional photographer, but you must face additional costs in this case.
Step 9. Choose suitable fonts, spacing, and layout
This is the next step in creating a menu for a restaurant. You need to decide on fonts, spacing, and general menu layout. You can do it independently using menu creators like:
or hire a professional to help you in creating a food menu.
- Use easy-to-read fonts: Use clear, legible fonts that are easy for customers to read. Sans-serif fonts like Arial, Helvetica, and Verdana are popular choices for good menu design (source: The Balance Small Business, 2021).
- Limit the number of fonts: Limit the number of fonts used on the menu to maintain a clean and organized appearance. Use no more than two fonts to avoid overwhelming customers (source: Toast, 2021).
- Match the font to the restaurant’s brand: Choose a font that matches the restaurant’s brand and personality. For example, a classic, elegant restaurant may opt for a serif font, while a modern, trendy restaurant may choose a sans-serif font (source: Canva, 2021).
- Consider the menu item descriptions: Choose a font size and style that suits the length of the menu item descriptions. If the descriptions are short, a smaller font size may be appropriate, while longer descriptions may require a larger font size (source: OpenTable, 2021).
- Use font variations for emphasis: Use bold, italics, and different font sizes to emphasize important items on the menu, such as specials or signature dishes (source: FSR Magazine, 2019).
It’s important to remember that updating your menu regularly should be a simple process.
Updating your restaurant menu can be a great way to keep things fresh and exciting for your customers.
Step 10. Decide on the menu layout
Following the previous steps leads to a final decision. You have a few custom menu design projects and must decide which one to choose.
Selecting a menu style that reflects your business’s concept and resonates with your customers is crucial. Ensuring the restaurant menu style matches your business is vital to creating a cohesive and compelling brand identity.
- Minimalist: Focuses on simplicity and clarity for easy navigation.
- Vintage: Evokes a sense of authenticity by referencing specific eras.
- Modern: Features clean lines and bold typography for a sleek look.
- Nostalgic: Creates warmth and comfort through familiar design elements.
- Artistic: Emphasizes creativity and visual appeal to reflect the restaurant’s unique vision.
- Classic: Prioritizes elegance and tradition for a timeless, sophisticated feel.
Step 11. Print your restaurant menu
Once you make a decision on the final menu layout, you are ready to print your restaurant menu.
Remember it’s essential to determine the size of the menu beforehand, as well as paper quality, making sure it’s durable and high-quality, with a weight that is appropriate for your menu’s size and design.
When choosing the size, take into account:
- Font size
- the number of menu items
- the layout
- Standard size: 8.5″ x 11″. This is the most commonly used menu size in most restaurants that have a dine-in option and is easy to read, making it ideal for menus with a wide variety of items.
- Compact size: 5.5″ x 8.5″. This size is commonly used in cafes, diners, and casual dining establishments, as it offers a more cost-effective and compact option for simpler menus.
- Large size: 11″ x 17″. This size is often used in upscale restaurants or for “daily specials” inserts to larger menus. It provides more space for creative designs and larger font sizes.
- International size: A4. This standard size is used in many countries outside the US, measuring 8.27″ x 11.69″. This size is commonly used in Europe, Asia, and Australia.
A custom-sized menu offers different benefits and is chosen depending on a restaurant’s specific needs and design preferences.
Step 12. Develop your online restaurant menu
As we already mentioned before, you can use a predesigned menu template to add your digital menu with the help of a free menu maker – all with just a few clicks.
Tips on how to make an online version of your menu for your restaurant
1. You start with creating menu categories and adding menu items from your list. Enter each item on your menu, along with its name, description, and price.
2. Remember that you can add the same menu item descriptions and photos as you used for your printed menu.
Bear in mind that you’ll need high-quality photos of your dishes. Take clear, well-lit photos of each item on your menu.
3. Don’t forget about the option to add modifiers. Menu item modifiers are a useful feature of the Menu Management Module, which allows restaurants to offer additional ingredients, replacement options, or paid extras to their menu items.
With this feature, restaurants can offer customization options and charge different prices depending on the size of the menu item.
4. Use upselling recommendations to increase sales. By setting up a popup window at the end of the buying process, customers can be encouraged to add extra products to their cart, thereby boosting overall sales.
5. Create a QR code menu for your restaurant. Doing so makes menu viewing easy for clients. Plus, they’ll be able to download a digital version of your menu and have it at hand at all times.
6. Don’t forget about tableside ordering. This option allows clients to order their meals right from the table, which makes it convenient for both you and your customers.
7. If you don’t have a website, you can create your own using UpMenu’s restaurant website builder, which will help you to create your own website in no time.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
What are the 3 parts of a menu?
The three parts of the menu are:
- Menu Header: The menu header typically includes the restaurant name, logo, and other branding elements. It can also include a tagline, address, phone number, and website.
- Menu Content: The actual dishes and drinks are listed in the menu content. This section can be organized by class size, type of cuisine, or dietary restrictions, and includes descriptions and prices for each item.
- Menu Footer: The menu footer often includes additional information about the restaurant, such as hours of operation, payment options, dress code, and special events or promotions.
How to build a restaurant menu that is profitable?
To build a profitable restaurant menu, employ menu engineering principles by strategically placing high-profit items where customers are more likely to notice them.
Analyze the cost of ingredients versus the selling price to ensure a favorable profit margin on each menu item.
Continuously monitor sales data and customer feedback to refine the menu and optimize profitability over time.
How to set up a menu?
To set up a restaurant menu:
- Organize Menu Items: Group dishes into clear categories like starters, mains, and desserts.
- Implement Menu Engineering: Prioritize high-profit and popular items.
- Write Menu Descriptions: Write concise, appealing descriptions.
- Set Pricing: Use strategic pricing, considering costs and profitability.
- Design Layout: Design custom menus with a menu layout that is visually appealing and easy to navigate.
- Add Images: Use high-quality photos for key dishes.
- Proofread: Ensure accuracy before printing or sharing digitally.
- Create an Online Menu: Set up an online menu with a QR code for easy digital access.
How can I write a menu?
Follow the steps below to write a menu:
- Keep it Simple: Limit your menu to essential items.
- Organize by Categories: Divide dishes into logical sections.
- Decide on menu pricing: Ensure pricing supports profitability.
- Add Photos: Add appealing images of your best dishes.
- Write Descriptions: Craft enticing descriptions to encourage orders.
- Select Menu Colors: Choose colors that align with your brand.
- Focus on Design: Make your menu visually engaging.
- Choose Fonts and Layout: Ensure readability and spacing.
- Print Your Menu: Finalize and print it.
- Create an Online Menu: Develop a digital version for your website.
- Offer Promotions: Use specials and discounts to increase the average check and encourage customers to spend more per order.
