Menu Engineering is the study of carefully designing food items on the menu based on their individual prices. High margin dishes are highlighted vividly so as to attract as much attention it can. This helps in increasing your restaurant’s profits. There are people who are specifically devoted to making creative restaurant menu card designs based on certain price metrics and other factors. Global restaurant consultant, Aaron Allen, did a study which suggested that various colors used to describe dishes on the menu had a varied effect on customers. According to his research on the Psychology of Menu Design, he said, green color on menu items meant the food is fresh and organic, orange stimulates appetite, yellow attracts the reader’s attention since it’s a happy color, and so on. So now, it’s only fair that you work towards building a great restaurant menu card design. Something as minute as colors on the menu could affect the customer’s opinion about your restaurant. Also, remember, this is not a one-time job. With an influx of new cultures and trends, it’s important that you update your menu cards to suit these changes.

1. May 2,
2019
Creating The Best Restaurant Menu Card: Tips and
Examples from Top Restaurants Across The Globe
limetray.com/blog/restaurant-menu-card
A restaurant menu card is like a chef’s dish. If it’s not designed in a presentable manner, the
customers would jump to ugly conclusions without even tasting the dish.
Your restaurant menu card design plays a crucial role in shaping a customer’s perspective
towards your restaurant. In order to make an excellent first impression, you would want
your menu card to be something spectacular.
It’s your job to design the menu in such a way that it makes your customers curious about
various dishes served at your restaurant. An outstanding menu card is your dish’s one-way
ticket to fame.
How is menu psychology used in designing a restaurant menu card?
Menu Engineering
Menu Engineering is the study of carefully designing food items on the menu based on their
individual prices. High margin dishes are highlighted vividly so as to attract as much
attention it can. This helps in increasing your restaurant’s profits.
There are people who are specifically devoted to making creative restaurant menu card
designs based on certain price metrics and other factors. Global restaurant consultant,
Aaron Allen, did a study which suggested that various colors used to describe dishes on the
menu had a varied effect on customers. According to his research on the Psychology of
Menu Design, he said, green color on menu items meant the food is fresh and organic,
orange stimulates appetite, yellow attracts the reader’s attention since it’s a happy color,
and so on.
So now, it’s only fair that you work towards building a great restaurant menu card design.
Something as minute as colors on the menu could affect the customer’s opinion about your
restaurant. Also, remember, this is not a one-time job. With an influx of new cultures and
trends, it’s important that you update your menu cards to suit these changes.
How do you design a restaurant menu?
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2. You can be as creative and personal while designing menu cards. Let people know the story
behind your restaurant. This will make things more authentic and relatable to your
customers.
There are some things you should keep in mind before designing your restaurant menu
card.
1. Font it well
The text in your menu is your ultimate weapon. Incorporating appealing fonts in
your restaurant menu card and highlighting the necessary words will make a
huge difference. Italicized words have a different charm than the ones in bold.
A study by Georgia State University on The Psychology of Menu Design, suggests
that your menu should be limited to three font types. Anything more than that
and your customer’s eyes are on the next page. The items should not be
disorganized to look at.
2. Use the ‘eye movement’ in your favor
A customer’s eyes follow a particular direction while scanning through the menu card.
Their eyes tend to land right in the middle of the menu, then top right corner followed
by the top left. You can use it to your advantage and insert high-pricing dishes in this
‘Golden Triangle’ as referred to by menu engineers. Font size needs to be appropriate
as well. Nothing too big or small, just visually correct.
3. Utilize the space wisely
Putting too much in one page is going to cluster your customer’s mind eventually
making it tough for them to decide on one dish. To avoid this confusion, categorize
your restaurant menu card into different sections. Use more negative spaces. Balance
out the ratio between pictures and text.
4. Sensible organization
Organize your menu card in different sections. It should be listed in a particular order,
drinks and other beverages to desserts and not vice versa. Give your customers a
sufficient amount of time to browse through each of these sections.
5. Make it a visual delight
Your restaurant’s menu card should look as appealing as your dishes. Use vivid
imagery in your menu as a way of elevating your customer’s hunger. Make sure
you use limited yet high-quality pictures that actually resemble your dish and
vice versa. Another way is to use themed illustrations based on your restaurant.
If your restaurant follows a peculiar idea, go ahead and show it in your menu.
6. Spell out your dishes
Customers are your audience and the restaurant menu card, your book. Make sure
you engage them with interesting stories about your dishes and the reason why you
chose to include them in the menu. Go back to the roots, be informative. Remember,
people are always curious to know more about the food they eat.
7. Price it right (or don’t!)
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3. A tactic used by many is the removal of prices from dishes entirely or using round
figures. People tend to not notice the high-margin dishes if they’re written
alphabetically.
8. Limit options and hack your way through prices
Each page on your restaurant menu card should have a maximum of seven dishes in
each section. Anything more and your customer will end up ordering in a haste.
Placing more expensive dishes on top of the page gives the impression that everything
else that follows is way cheaper. Hack? Yes.
According to BBC’s article on The secret tricks hidden inside restaurant menus, the simplest
of changes like the order of items or the font in your menu card can deeply impact a
customer’s choice.
5 unique restaurant menu card ideas
The menu consists of different sections as discussed before. There are quite a few menu
card designs for restaurants that you could opt for. Now that the basics are done, let’s move
further ahead with some unique menu designs you could incorporate in your restaurant
menus.
Old school
If you are a distant cafe say, near a beach, you could highlight the main dishes
or the day’s special on a chalkboard to make it interesting. Chalkboard menus
can be revised any time of the day, chalking out the offers, discounts and more.
Freddo’s ice-cream parlor in Curitiba, Brazil, has a well-executed chalkboard
menu concept.
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4. Themed menu
If you’re a themed cafe, build your menu card around that. This gives a complete
experience of what your restaurant is all about. A cafe in Napa, Ninebark, has leaves
attached on each page of their menu.
Cuisine specific
You could design a menu that revolves around the cuisine of your restaurant.
For example, the menu of, Saray, a Middle Eastern Restaurant located in Boston,
showcases the traditional patterns which were prominent in the architecture
there.
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5. Illustrated menu
Use captivating illustrations in your restaurant menu card. You’d want to make sure
not to load the menu with too much imagery. Just enough to increase the overall
appeal of it. a restaurant in San Diego, uses distinct illustrations on each page of the
menu. It’s based on various tales that have evolved from the idiomatic expression,
“The Lion’s Share”.
Smartly worded
There’s nothing more engaging than a quirky one line at the beginning of your menu.
Another way of incorporating humor in your restaurant menu card is by naming your
dishes in a witty manner. But make sure that you describe what it is otherwise your
humor would go in vain. The bar menu of The Royal Mail, in Singapore, has very
interesting cocktail names.
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6. 15 fascinating restaurant menu card examples from around the world
1. Andrea’s Kitchen, New Delhi, India
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7. This soulful restaurant menu card of Andrea’s Kitchen will most definitely
inspire you to pack your bags and go on that long awaited vacation. Their menu
is designed in such a way that each of its dishes is based on the famous food
served in major cities across the world.
2. Niche, Missouri, USA
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8. Focussing heavily on the niche, this restaurant’s menu card knows how to
elevate curiosity in the minds of customers. It has a distinct way of letting
customers know about the ingredients going into the dishes they are about to
taste.
3. Mansion Bar and Parlour, London, UK
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9. Their menu is in the form of various editions of a newspaper. The morning edition has
breakfast, daily edition for the mains and an evening edition for alcoholic drinks and
food. The menu gives a classy vintage appeal attracting quite a few.
4. Westbound, Los Angeles, CA
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10. The copper embossed letters in royal blue give the menu of Westbound an
elegant look. It contains a lot of white spaces, that’s divided equally between
illustrations and text, making the menu neat.
5. Rococo, Beirut, Lebanon
This gastro bar in Beirut has a peculiar menu card design. It showcases the 18th
Century Rococo paintings with a very formal font. They have added a touch of
humor in their menu without disturbing the original paintings.
6. Grey Tiger, Toronto, Canada
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11. This menu is nothing short of magic. The owners of this restaurant have put in a
lot of thought and effort into creating it. Each page gives out their house drink
with almost majestic illustrations and a spell defining that drink.
7. Hiding in Plain Sight, Amsterdam, Netherlands
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12. The leather-bound menu of Hiding in Plain Sight perfectly resonates the 20th-century.
Following major themes of that era, the illustrations, and language used are in total
agreement with the restaurant’s concept.
8. 13 wives, Singapore
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13. The menu of this bar in Singapore is rather one of a kind. It’s a black book that
contains hand-written fictional stories related to each of the drinks served
there.
9. Demoiselle by Galvin, Dubai, UAE
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14. Beautifully illustrated with gold foil on the outside and simplified floral design
on the inside surely makes this French restaurant’s menu card aesthetically
appealing.
10. Alamo, Zaragoza, Spain
The menu of this Spanish restaurant is engraved on circular wooden blocks with
their logo on top, giving it a very sturdy appearance.
11. Chez Panisse, Berkeley, CA
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15. Opened in 1971, this place has a separate Cafe and Restaurant. Their menu
changes every day and new menus are designed on special days.
12. Oregano’s, Arizona
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16. It’s true that music and food is a heavenly combination. The menu here is placed
inside classic record covers. How cool is that!
13. Picasso Cafe, Oklahoma
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18. Each section of their menu is beautifully hand painted with vibrant colors.
14. The Tokyo City, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
This menu defines simplicity. It’s one of those ‘oddly satisfying’ menus that
make you feel good just by looking at it. It does not have any illustrations yet
the neatly proportionate text makes it stand out.
15. Grandmama’s Cafe, Mumbai, India
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19. Apart from classy Victorian-era interiors, this restaurant’s menu card makes
everyone go down the memory lane. Each section of their menu has witty
quotes and graphical images sketched on it.
Why restaurant menu cards should be focused on?
Your restaurant menu card consists of different sections like Appetizers, Alcohol and
Beverages, Mains, Desserts and more. Each of these sections can be customized depending
on many factors related to your restaurant.
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20. It is imperative that you invest a sufficient amount of money and time in planning your
restaurant menu card. If constructed well, a restaurant’s menu reverberates. Today, people
check out the menu of a restaurant before visiting it.
With the changing trends and food prices, it becomes important to update the already
existing menu of your restaurant. Constantly updating your menu card is going to help you
perform better in this challenging food sector.
Given that most restaurants also have an online presence, you might also want to focus on
creating digital menus for your restaurant, which shouldn’t be very different from the
printed ones. That also can be the deciding factor for your restaurant sales.
Here’s to creating a spectacular restaurant menu card!
Cheers!
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