Restaurant Menu Types & Styles

Types of Restaurant Menus

Menus can be categorized by type based on the way items are sold and organized to create the perfect menu. Use this menu glossary to familiarize yourself with common types of menus. The style you will require depends on the type of restaurant you operate.

• Static menu: Separated into categories like appetizers, pasta, sandwiches, sides, etc. The dishes are served year-round and are mostly prevalent in fast casual and fast food restaurants.
• A La Carte Menu: French for "according to the menu", an a la carte menu usually features seasonal faire and offers greater flexibility for ordering when compared to a static menu.
• Du Jour Menu: A menu that changes daily. Plat du jour is a dish of the day, which is equivalent to a daily special.
• Cycle Menu: Different daily menus for a set period, then menus are repeated. For example, there could be a different menu every day for two weeks, and then the menu cycle starts again from the beginning.
• Table d'Hote Menu: French for "the host's table." All main courses have a set price with the customer's choice of an appetizer or dessert. Surcharges may apply if certain appetizers and desserts are pricier.
• Prix Fixe Menu: A meal that includes an appetizer, entree, and dessert that is set at one price. Unlike a table d'hote menu, the chef picks the three courses in a prix fixe menu, whereas a table d'hote allows customers to pick and choose their set of three courses.
• Tasting Menu: A collection of a certain number of small courses that serve as a customer's entire meal. Tasting menus can be tweaked to fit dietary needs or created anew if the same customer is dining again, giving them a whole new tasting menu experience.
• Beverage Menu: A list of a restaurant's drinks. This is often cocktails, wine, beer, and other alcoholic drinks sold a la carte, or the menu can be displayed on the wall at coffee shops or juice bars with their list of options.
• Dessert Menu: A list of desserts, like a beverage menu is often separate from the regular menu and sold a la carte. It is usually presented with the beverage menu again for after-dinner drinks at the end of the main meal.
• Wine Captain's Book Menu: An extensive beverage menu that covers each wine's history and features so guests have a better understanding of how they would like to pair their drinks with their meal.
• Children's Menu: To create a kid-friendly environment, restaurants will develop a children's menu that features limited choices and incorporates bright colors and activities. It is often disposable for easy cleanup.

Ways to Display Your Menu

When considering the most appealing way to display your menu, you must first consider your restaurant's setting and dining style. Is your restaurant formal or casual? Sit down or counter-order? Are you looking for a specific menu cover design? Do you need a menu you can throw away? With the answers to these questions in mind, use the following information to find the best menu display option for your needs.

1. Menu Clipboards

Menu clipboards provide a practical way to present daily specials and promotions alongside your static menu. Here are some key facts about menu clipboards to help you choose the best option for your business:

• Easy Menu Swapping: Menu clipboards make it easy to swap out daily menus or update menu items. This flexibility allows you to adapt to changing menu offerings quickly and efficiently.
• Check Presenter: In addition to displaying menus, menu clipboards can also act as check presenters. This dual functionality streamlines the dining experience for both your staff and customers, providing a convenient way to present the bill at the end of a meal.
• Material Options: Menu clipboards are often made from a variety of materials, including wood, metal, or cork. Each material offers a unique aesthetic and durability, allowing you to choose a menu holder that complements your restaurant's decor and withstands daily use.
• Ideal For: Bistros, cafes

2. Displays / Tabletop Tent Menus

Displays tabletop tent menus are a versatile and space-saving solution for showcasing menus and promotions in a commercial dining setting. These tabletop menus can also be used to promote daily specials, upcoming events, or seasonal promotions. This added functionality makes them a valuable marketing tool for restaurants looking to attract and engage customers with enticing offers.

• Durable Materials: These menus are typically made from durable materials such as wood, acrylic, or leather, ensuring longevity and a professional appearance.
• Compact Design: Their compact design allows for easy placement on tabletops or counters without taking up too much space, making them perfect for busy dining environments.
• Viewing Angles: They offer many viewing angles, allowing customers to easily browse through the menu options from different perspectives.
• Ideal For: Casual dining, fine dining, bistros

3. Menu Sign / Board

Menu boards are customizable ways to broadcast your menu. You can easily update them to include your daily or weekly specials. This flexibility is especially useful in the fast-paced environment of cafes, fast food restaurants, and food trucks where menu items and prices may frequently change. They typically come as dry-erase boards or chalkboards.

• Two Main Styles: Choose between dry-erase or chalkboard materials for your menu sign depending on the aesthetic of your business.
• Ease of Use: You can easily clean them and change out the items listed to include your daily or weekly offerings.
• Include Images: Select a magnetic menu board and include hanging ads and pictures.
• Ideal For: Cafes, fast food, food trucks

4. Menu Covers

Typically made of durable vinyl, menu covers offer both protection and a sleek aesthetic to your menu. These covers keep your menu safe from spills and tears, ensuring a professional and polished look. Menu covers are easy to clean, helping you maintain a sanitary dining environment.

• Accommodate Expansive Menus: Menu covers are ideal for establishments with lengthier menus, as they provide a convenient way to organize and display a wide variety of menu items.
• Customizable: With clear sleeves that hold menu pages securely in place, these covers allow for easy customization and updating of menu offerings without the need for reprints.
• Protects Menus: The vinyl cover protects the menu from spills and smudges reducing the need for replacements. It also is easy to clean after busing the table.
• Ideal For: Diners, casual dining

5. Deluxe Menu Covers

By opting for deluxe menu covers, you can instantly elevate the presentation of your menu and create a more upscale and polished look for your establishment. These covers are perfect for showcasing lengthier menus, as they provide a sleek and organized way to present a wide range of food and beverage options to your customers.

• Materials: Typically made of leather or hardboard. There are LED deluxe menu cover varieties that are perfect for upscale restaurants with darker settings to help their patrons view the menu.
• Aesthetic Appeal: They provide an upscale, professional appearance.
• Broad Menus: Deluxe menu covers accommodates and organizes lengthier menus.
• Ideal For: Fine dining, bistros, contemporary casual restaurants

Types of Menu Holders

The term menu holder encompasses a broad category of styles. From small card holders for buffets to menu racks for diners, we cover the most popular types of menu holders below.

• Card Holders: Perfect for caterers, menu card holders help you label the items on your buffet line.
• Menu Inserts: Protect the pages of your menu with menu inserts. You can easily swap out menu specials as they rotate.
• Menu Labels: Adhere menu labels to your buffet line display so guests can quickly identify your offerings. They're also perfect for labeling containers of baked goods in your coffee shop's countertop display.
• Menu Racks: Ideal for diners and cafes, menu racks provide storage for your menus. You can choose wall-mounted menu racks so customers can grab a menu when they first enter the queue at your fast-casual restaurant. Diner businesses can choose tabletop menu racks that accommodate menus as well as sugar, salt, and pepper shakers all in one convenient location.
• Sign Holders: With their excellent visibility, adding your menu to a sign holder will make it easy to promote your happy hour specials or seasonal offerings.

Types of Menu Boards and Signs

While briefly mentioned above, this section will explore the many different types of menu boards that can provide easy customization to promote your daily or weekly specials. This flexibility is especially useful in the fast-paced environment of cafes, fast food restaurants, and food trucks where menu items and prices may frequently change.

• Tabletop Boards: Prop your menu up for maximum visibility with tabletop boards. Their compact size easily fits on tables while prominently showcasing your offerings.
• Chalk Boards: Perfect for cafes, chalkboards create a homey aesthetic by using your staff's handwriting to broadcast your menu items. They allow you to easily and regularly change your seasonal food and drink specials.
• Digital Boards: Digital boards allow you to regularly change your menu display. They're perfect for fast food and fast casual dining establishments because they make it easy for customers to browse your menu while they wait in line.
• Glass Boards: Glass boards provide a professional, eye-catching way to display menu specials, dinner deals, and nightly entertainment. They're ideal for indoor use.
• Marker Boards: Marker boards are an easy-to-clean way for casual restaurants to display their daily specials. They're also ideal for breweries so they can advertise their upcoming releases.
• Illuminated Boards: Illuminated menu boards draw attention to your menu, specials, or announcements. They're perfect for dimly lit bars, restaurants, or nightclubs.

Types of Menu Paper

When choosing menu paper for your restaurant, consider the durability and aesthetics that best align with your establishment's ambiance and branding. Investing in high-quality menu paper will not only elevate the presentation of your menu items but also leave a lasting impression on your patrons. Learn more about the most essential types of menu paper below

• Cover Pages: The cover page of a menu provides ample space to fit your required text. It can be plain or feature an image that matches your theme such as nautical for a seafood restaurant.
• Insert Paper: These heavy-weight sheets of paper are perfect for adding to tabletop displays. These sturdy pages offer a polished and professional appearance.
• Left, Middle, and Right Insert Menu Paper: When you put the left, middle, and right inserts together in a menu cover, their design runs seamlessly together enhancing the overall aesthetic of your menu and creating continuity.