How to Design a Phenomenal Restaurant Menu

Other than the actual restaurant itself, the menu is the most important aspect of a restaurant. The way that your menu is designed determines more than many think. Customers want a menu that is easy to read, provides good information about the food, and looks good. In designing or re-designing your menu there are a few important rules that you should know in order to have a phenomenal menu.

First, you should divide your menu into thirds. The items that you sell the most of should be placed in the middle portion. The top portion is the next best area, while the bottom portion is last. The top portion should be where you put those items that you would like to sell more of. The bottom portion should be reserved for your beverages.

When you use categories for your menu, such as platters and specials, you should put the most popular items at the beginning of each category. For an effective subliminal message, a lightly shaded box for those highly popular items should be used. It should be very subtle. Only choose the items that represent less than 20% of your total items.

Using price pointing is also an effective way to create a phenomenal menu. The idea is to set your prices just under the major prices. For example, a chicken platter would be $9.95 instead of the full $10. It gives the items on the menu the allure that they are cheaper.

Another general rule is to use special touches for special items. You need to include little graphics or icons to denote new items or items that are the manager's special choices. An additional option is to use miniature logos to draw attention to these items.

You can offer additional pay to your waiting staff for selling certain items as well. By applying a point system, you can keep track of what each person sells. You can tally the results of each individual and give them a percentage of the profits for those items. By offering these extra incentives, you will motivate your staff to add to the profits that your restaurant earns.

Try to limit your menu items. You don't want to have hundreds of choices for your customers. Instead, you can effectively choose a few main courses and appetizers that will be enough. Make sure that your main dishes include a pasta and salad. Make it a complete meal. Your portions should also be the right size. They should be large enough for your customers to be satisfied, yet not big enough that they are taking huge amounts home or throwing the majority away. The idea is not to offer more food for the same price as what you would charge for smaller portions.