How to design a restaurant menu: 10 rules that help it sell

Ideas and examples9 min read · Updated: 03.11.2026

The menu is the only piece of marketing a guest reads from start to finish, and they read it at the very moment they decide to spend money. A well-designed menu draws the eye to the dishes that make you the most, speeds up ordering and doesn't leave anyone squinting in dimmed lighting. Below you'll find 10 rules, plus specific font sizes, formats, paper stocks and file settings to help you prepare a table menu, a menu board above the counter and a takeaway leaflet.

10 rules that help a menu sell

These rules work in a bistro, a pizzeria, a café or a restaurant with table service. What changes is the scale: the shorter the menu, the fewer highlights, icons and dividers you need.

• Follow the order of a meal – starters, soups, mains, desserts, drinks. Guests read from the top and don't have to hunt for anything.
• Keep each section short – aim for around 7 items. Split a longer section into sub-groups, e.g. pasta and risotto, rather than running one long column.
• Put profit first and last – place your highest-margin dishes at the start and end of each section, as these are the items guests notice most easily.
• One highlight per page – a box, a tinted background or an icon next to 1–2 dishes. Highlight everything and you highlight nothing.
• Descriptions that whet the appetite – 1–2 lines: the main ingredient, how it's cooked, what it comes with. Skip empty adjectives such as “delicious” or “exquisite”.
• Prices without a currency symbol or dots – just the number right after the description, in the same typeface, not in a separate right-aligned column.
• Legible type and size – no more than two typefaces, dish names at 12–14 pt, descriptions at 9–11 pt, strong contrast.
• Allergens in a key – numbers or icons next to each dish and one key per page, instead of full names beside every item.
• A format that suits the setting – an A4 or A5 menu for tables, DL for narrow tables and daily specials, a board above the counter, a folded leaflet for takeaway.
• Consistency across every version – the same names, order, colours and prices on the table menu, the board, the leaflet and online.

How should you arrange sections and dishes on a menu?

Start with a spreadsheet listing each dish: name, description, price, allergens and margin. Only once you know which items you want to sell most should you move them into the design. The most important section, usually the mains, should get the most space and be visible as soon as the menu is opened.

On an A4 page, 1–2 columns work well; on A5 and DL, use a single column. Leave margins of 10–15 mm and clear spacing between sections, because white space organises content better than rules and boxes. If there are so many items that descriptions would have to drop below 9 pt, move to a folded spread or create a separate drinks and wine list.

Gather sides, sauces and portion sizes (e.g. 0.3 l / 0.5 l) in one place beneath the section rather than repeating them next to every dish. This shortens the menu and makes later changes easier.

How do you highlight dishes and write descriptions that sell?

A highlight works because it's rare. A thin 0.5–1 pt box, a background in a light tint of one of your brand colours (10–20% tint) or a small “recommended” icon is enough. Use photos sparingly – at most one per section, and only good-quality images at 300 DPI. A poor phone snap drags down the impression of the whole menu more than having no photo at all, although in quick-service outlets photos of meal deals are standard.

A description runs to 10–20 words and answers three questions: what is it, how is it prepared and what is it served with. Specifics sell better than gushing: the cooking method (roasted, smoked, grilled), the origin of an ingredient and a distinctive accompaniment. The dish name shouldn't repeat what's already in the description.

• Instead of “Delicious pork with potatoes”, write “Roast pork loin with garlic, new potatoes with dill, cucumber salad”.
• Instead of “Chef's salad”, write “Salad with goat's cheese, roasted beetroot, walnuts and honey”.
• Instead of “Homemade soup of the day”, write “Soup of the day made with vegetable stock – please ask your server”.

Menu prices: why leave out the currency symbol and leader dots?

A currency symbol next to every item and leader dots running from the dish name to a price in the right-hand column turn a menu into a price list. Guests then run their eyes down the column of figures and pick the cheapest option instead of reading the descriptions. A price placed straight after the description, in the same typeface and no larger than the description, is clear without dominating.

Write whole amounts: “8” rather than “€8.00”. If you use cents or pence, keep the form “8.50”. Add a single line in the footer, e.g. “All prices include VAT”, and on menus aimed at tourists you can add it in other languages too.

What font and text size should you use on a menu?

Choose one typeface for headings and one for body text – serif or sans serif, but clearly legible at small sizes. Save script and decorative typefaces for the logo and section names, never for descriptions. Line spacing of 120–140% of the type size and dark text on a light background is the safest choice in a dimly lit dining room.

Use white text on a black or dark background only for short copy, at a minimum of 10 pt and in a slightly heavier weight. On a smaller format such as A5 or DL, don't shrink the type – reduce the number of items instead. For menu boards, work on roughly 2.5 cm of capital height for every 3 m of reading distance.

Allergens on the menu: how should you mark them?

EU Regulation No 1169/2011, which is also retained in UK law, lists 14 allergens that food businesses must tell customers about: cereals containing gluten, crustaceans, eggs, fish, peanuts, soya, milk, tree nuts, celery, mustard, sesame, sulphur dioxide and sulphites, lupin and molluscs. The most convenient way is to give this information directly on the menu, so guests don't have to ask the staff.

Allergen icons become legible from about 4–5 mm high and always need a key. Don't rely on colour alone, because some guests struggle to distinguish colours and differences fade in poor lighting. Apply the same principles to “vegetarian”, “vegan” and “spicy” labels.

• Allergen numbers in superscript, 7–8 pt, immediately after the dish name.
• One key with the numbers 1–14 on every page, or on the last page with a cross-reference.
• A line in the footer: “Have an allergy? Please ask your server about the ingredients”.
• Every recipe change means updating the labels across all versions of the menu.

Table menu, board and takeaway: which format and paper should you choose?

Each version of the menu works in different conditions. A table menu has to withstand wiping and frequent handling, a daily specials sheet should be cheap to replace, a board must be readable from several metres away, and a takeaway leaflet needs to fit in the bag with the order and include everything needed to order again. The choice of paper and finish depends on how often you change your prices and how many menus are in circulation in the dining room.

Prepare the print file in CMYK, at 300 DPI, at trim size with 3 mm bleed. Keep important text 3–5 mm from the trim line and, where the piece is creased and folded, from the fold lines as well. Set small black text as 100% K, and embed the fonts in the PDF or convert them to outlines. For boards and banners, large-format printers often accept PDFs at 1:10 scale, so check their requirements before exporting.

If you'd like to compare several layouts quickly, at plakaty.shop (wielkareklama.eu studio) you can order a menu design in A4, A5, DL or 210 mm square, with a print-ready PDF including 3 mm bleed – e.g. 3 concepts in a package for €24. Before printing, still read through every name, price and phone number yourself.