How to Create a Restaurant Menu in 8 Steps

10min Read

As your business grows, consider employing a food photographer to take high-quality food photos of your offerings. Furthermore, working with a professional designer can help you upgrade your restaurant menu design.

A menu does more than list food items. It communicates your restaurant’s identity, showcases your culinary strengths, and sets expectations. Moreover, it’s an essential marketing tool that can retain regulars and attract new clientele.

Let’s have a short recap on the step-by-step process of how to make a restaurant menu:

If you have design skills, consider starting with a blank template in your restaurant menu maker. This allows for complete personalization, amplifying your unique qualities.

Observing these elements can offer insights into how your kitchen staff manages order flow, prep times, and workload during service. Check if the setup facilitates smooth movement and provides staff with easy access to tools and ingredients.

To ensure your restaurant remains competitive, it’s crucial to update your menu regularly.

• Balance text and images. For each menu item, consider using one small, high-quality image alongside the description rather than multiple images that can clutter the page.
• Size matters. Oversized photos can dominate the page and detract from the descriptions. However, images that are too small may not be compelling.
• Strategic placement. You might include a standout photo for each section rather than for every single item. This approach reduces visual overload and highlights key dishes. See an example from Loro:

• Simplify layout. Use a straightforward layout with clear headings for each section. Maintain consistent alignment, like left or center, throughout the menu to create a clean, organized appearance.
• Adequate spacing. Incorporate sufficient space between menu items and sections to avoid visual clutter and improve readability. Consider using white space effectively to separate different parts of the menu.
• Carefully select your font. Choose menu fonts that are clean and ensure there is a good contrast between the text and the background.

Whether you’re opening a new restaurant or revamping an existing menu, this guide will walk you through eight steps to create a restaurant menu. Every detail counts, so read on to learn how to develop a menu that looks great and elevates the dining experience.

After the test phase, review all collected feedback and analyze data from your A/B tests to identify patterns that suggest changes. For example, you might need to tweak a dish’s flavors, adjust portion sizes, or change the description on the menu to match guest expectations better.

In the following example, Dim T offers a Dietary Filter button for customers to sort the menu offerings into Vegetarian, Vegan, Vegan Option Available, Non-Gluten, and Non-Gluten Available.

For example, a fine dining restaurant might focus on exotic ingredients and complex dishes to attract diners who appreciate a high-end, gourmet experience.

You can incorporate dishes that accommodate religious dietary practices, such as halal or kosher. Additionally, include options that cater to common dietary restrictions and preferences, such as gluten-free, vegan, vegetarian, and keto-friendly choices.

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Constant evaluation is vital to maintaining a vibrant menu. Incorporate customer feedback to understand what dishes resonate well and which ones could be improved or replaced. This direct insight helps refine the choices you offer.

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You should also monitor the operational aspects like the speed of service and kitchen efficiency.

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• Icons or symbols. Indicate specific attributes of dishes, such as icons for spicy foods, vegetarian or vegan options, or signature dishes.
• Color coding. Employ color coding to draw attention to special categories like organic ingredients, locally sourced items, or low-calorie options.
• Footnotes or sidebar. Provide additional information about the sustainability of ingredients, the origin of certain dishes, or explanations of unique cooking techniques. These details give customers more context about what they are choosing to eat.
• Bolding. It’s one of the most common ways to highlight allergens.

Bundling dishes or offering specials, for example, can attract budget-conscious customers without diminishing value. Applebee has always been well-known for its bundling packages:

Remember to test the readability and overall functionality of the physical or digital menu. Make sure the QR code, if used, links correctly to the online menu. This testing phase helps refine your menu into an effective tool for both customer satisfaction and operational efficiency.