Designing A Menu

Objectives:
At the end of this lesson, students should be
able to:

Identifythe different formats of menu.

Distinguish and characterized each format.
Value each format and how it can influence
the customers feel about a restaurant.
 Importance of The Menu
 The menu style and design reflects the
restaurant’s personality and the customers who
frequent it.
 The menu can be a creative way to market a
restaurant and is the main way a restaurant
communicates with its customers.
 The menu needs to reflect what the customers
want…
www.hulu.com/watch/208808/portlandia-ordering-th
e-chicken-part-1
 Factors that impact
style & design of a menu…
 Target Customers
 Price
 Type of Food service
 Equipment
 Skill of Workers
 Geography & Culture
 Eating Trends
Where to Start?
1. Decide on type of food that you want on menu
2. Organize it in an appealing way for customers
(dishes grouped in categories are easier for
customers)
3. The look and feel of menu also influences what
customers think of restaurant
4. Menus design, cover, weight of paper, and
descriptions of food items influence customers
Choose a Format…
3 COMMON FORMAT
Printed Menu
Menu Board
Spoken Menu
 Printed Menu Format
A printed menu format Printed Menu Terms…
is any form of printed  Clip-on: Is a special
menu list that is list that is fastened
handed to customers directly to the menu
as soon as they sit  Table Tent: Folded
down cards that stand on
Advantages: the table and list daily
menus can be changed specials
daily using a computer
Printed Menu Format
Printed Menu Format
 Menu Board Format
 A menu which  Advantages…
contains a handwritten  Easy to change
or printed menu on a  Informality
board on a wall or  Flexibility
easel.
The menu board format is great for
cafeterias & fast food restaurants as well
as upscale restaurants…for Example: a
chalkboard menu in an upscale restaurant
can emphasize freshness and creativity!
Menu Board Format
 Spoken Menu Format
 The spoken menu  Advantages…
format is when  Friendly
customers are seated  Increases conversations
and then the server between customers &
servers
says what foods are
available and what the
prices are. Disadvantages can be that
the spoken menu does not
give the customer time to
study the menu & make a
decision
Spoken Menu Format
 Menu Psychology

When menus are published, operators have the opportunity

to use “menu psychology” in their menu design to try to
influence customer choices and purchases. Increasing sales
by raising the average check of a restaurant or overall
participation or promoting healthier choices for an onsite
foodservice operation are typically the overall goals of using
menu psychology.
Menu Psychology
 Menu psychology involves using a variety
of techniques typically based on research
about how people read a menu and make
choices about spending money.  Some
examples of menu psychology in menu
design include:
1. Consider Eye Movement
Patterns
 Put high-margin
dishes at the top
left, top right, and
center of your
menu.
2. Use White Space Well
 Studies show that good
of white space improves
reader comprehension by
up to 30%. If you want
your menu items and
descriptions to shine,
plan to incorporate a
solid amount of white
space into your menu
design.
3. Use Boxes and Color for
Visual Direction
 Emphasize certain bits of
information, menus
highlight certain items
that restaurants want
customer to order using
what industry pros call
“eye magnets.” An eye
magnet is just what it
sounds like—anything
that attracts the eye.
4. Don’t Use Money/Currency
Sign
  Consider removing
money/currency
signs, and don’t list
prices in a single
column, because it
immediately invites
comparison.
5. Use Descriptive Language
 Use menu item
descriptions to
communicate the
taste of a dish.
 An experiment by Dr. Brian Wansink
 at Cornell University found
that descriptive menu labels
increase sales of an item by 27%,
and they result in customers feeling
more satisfied with their meal. This, in
turn, led to more favorable customer
feedback (as long as the item lived up
to the glowing description). 
6. Consider Using Photos 
 Renowned menu engineer 
Gregg Rapp found that
including a nice-looking
picture alongside a food item
increases its sales by 30%. 

 Don't use mediocre photos on

your menu or on your social
media. Better to use no
photos than bad photos.
7. Design with All Senses and
Needs in Mind
 Usable and legible  Menu should be
for all your guests. sturdy and feels
 Menu size is nice to the touch.
manageable.
 Consider the color
theory.
REFERENCES

CULINARY ESSENTIALS
McGraw Hill-Glencoe
Johnson & Wales University
Copyright © 2010 The McGraw-Hill
Companies, Inc.
WEB REFERENCES
 https://4colorprinters.com/menus/
 https://www.plasticprinters.com/custom/menu-printing
 https://www.digitalsignagetoday.com/articles/digital-menu-boards-the-perfect-value-
combo-for-operators-and-consumers-alike/
 https://www.tripadvisor.com/LocationPhotoDirectLink-g48990-d13162244-
i291381363-3T_s_Chicken_Shakes-Burlington_North_Carolina.html
 https://bashooka.com/inspiration/chalkboard-restaurant-menu-designs/
 https://psu.pb.unizin.org/hmd329/chapter/ch4/
 https://pos.toasttab.com/blog/on-the-line/8-tips-for-effective-menu-design
 https://www.canva.com/learn/menu-psychology-design/
THANK YOU!