We’ve all picked up several menus during our travels, celebratory occasions, and on a regular day just eating out. As a customer we just know that some menus are really just better than others. However, have we ever stopped to wonder why it is the way it is? What makes a good menu and how does it affect us as consumers or as restaurateurs? This time around, let’s take a quick look at the science of menus. It’s not just a pretty piece of laminated paper or a fancy booklet with the names of dishes and the corresponding prices. There’s definitely more to it!
Let’s start by clarifying that menu engineering is in fact a thing! I did not make this up nor did I coin the term. There’s a whole science behind how a menu is made and it goes far beyond color schemes or font size.
What’s important about a menu is that it is a great deciding factor as to whether the customer chooses to order or not. On top of the ambience and hospitality a customer sees and feels when walking into an establishment, the menu is what will make them stay or go. And this could be due to varying reasons from price, to the kind of food, the ingredients involved, portion sizes and more.
It’s not only important for restaurateurs to calculate the costs on the menu correctly in order to make a profit. It is also about finding the balance between making sure every item on the menu is profitable as well as desirable. Although some items may be highlighted such as specials or top selling dishes, every item on the menu must still be likable by a customer and most importantly must be profitable. This will not only ensure that you are making the most out of your menu and food but it also helps the establishment cut down on waste. You do not want to have a whole list of produce and ingredients going to waste because of poor-performing items on the menu.
Aside from determining what sells and what doesn’t, there’s also the design aspect of the menu. Design is an important part of creating a menu and it’s not just choosing the right font or color although those two things do still help. You have to keep in mind how the human mind and habits work. For example, you must take into consideration how we read. Our eyes move in certain patterns whether it's up to down or left to right. You can use this knowledge when creating the flow of the menu.
