70% of customers will not come back to a restaurant/bistro/bar/cafe after the 1st visit. Your business needs to make an impact to beat the curve. To begin, spice up your coffee shop/restaurant menu. In this day and age, the online menu is among the 1st user interactions guests have with your site.
It all starts with a menu design that enables an appealing look on any device, including desktop and mobile. Optimizing the existing menu will likewise ensure that your diners have a great 1st experience. Read on to learn more about the best menu design ideas that ultimately help improve sales.
Collection of modern online restaurant menu design ideas
1. Make it effortless for customers to find your menu
Keep the important buttons noticeable, on the main page and ideally in the top navigation (see the example below). With these standing out, your visitor can see and click them quickly.
To be successful, you need a trusted partner that will provide a true turn-key technology solution. For Bangbop, we found such a partner in One2 and our success would not have been possible without One2Menu. (Bangbop)
2. Create food categories
One2 is incorporated into the website design of Anthony's
The online menus that your restaurants create with One2Menu are optimized to look eye-catching on any device. You can also boost menu usability by creating categories that organize your food items. It does not just help guests find the desired item in a breeze but keeps the menu layout easy to navigate.
3. Make your own menu designs a visual attraction
Take Instagram-worthy photos of your restaurant menu. Quality images can improve your sales by a whopping 50%! They create an appetite and engage patrons.
Some images your restaurants may add to the menu design include:
- Theme picture: These photos should best describe your brand.
- Food category picture: Pick attractive and representative images for each cuisine category.
- Food item picture: Upload the images that best represent what your restaurant will put on the diners’ plates.
4. Match your brand
Ensure that your cafe/restaurant menu design elements, menu templates, and layouts match the rest of your cafe/restaurant style. These include your own text, font style, icons, color schemes, heavy-lifting art, illustrations, hi-res file, page space, and background, aside from the bar/restaurant logo.
5. Write powerful descriptions of the cuisine
Anthony's dish descriptions
An online menu description that gives enough detail to stand out is always fantastic compared to a mere list of ingredients. This offers fresh new takes on the traditional food menu and gives your bistro/restaurant customers something special they can be eager to enjoy. Concurrently, keep it concise as your diners need to know what to expect. One of the good examples in this sense is, “fluffy pancakes bursting with blueberries, bathed in real maple syrup.”
6. Highlight special dishes
As part of the design process, this involves placing special food such as vegan in separate categories on the menus. Besides, you should point out when a specific food item has an extra strong taste. For instance, some meals in Indian cuisine are sorted depending on their spiciness level.
7. Focus on value
Avoid the trap of creating menus that look too fancy or expensive. A patron tends to look for good food at a good price. Center your restaurant menu on options that offer the highest value.
8. Tell a story
Consider using this way to cultivate a captive audience. You can share stories about your food, for example, discussing how it is prepared or underlining health aspects with nutritional information.
9. Keep it simple
Bangbop's menu
Create an intuitive online menu. For instance, it is preferable to get all the items on one page and ensure that scrolling it is a breeze. Choose a basic menu layout with clear fonts that enables scanning through fast.
Further, simplicity equates to using enough food photographs or illustrations (i.e., avoiding overstuffing). The designers should also use the right imagery in the right sections. Picture this, the diner has a hard time reading your restaurant menu due to all the other stuff that surrounds the actual food description. That may cause frustration particularly if they are using a small device.
10. Use CTAs
People are highly likely to explore your digital menu before visiting an eatery. You may encourage them to book a table or order by using clear and direct calls to action (CTAs) integrated into your paid or free restaurant menu template. Adding social media buttons is also recommended to enhance customer engagement. Seize/Grab/Snag X Now!, Review us, and Follow us are some great CTA examples.
11. Keep your restaurant menu updated!
It is frustrating for a guest to order some dishes, then realize they are out of stock or their price has changed. Remember to keep the menu updated with the latest list of items, prices, and images. Besides, focus more on the most popular items and keep a menu with them first.
One2Menu makes a huge difference here. It enables instant updating of your restaurant menus anytime, anywhere. Better yet, whenever you update the menu, it is published to Google, Facebook, and the website as well, getting you more customers.
Google menu powered by One2
One2Menu: The best contactless menu for your customers and budget
A part of the extensive services that the One2 platform offers, the instant contactless QR code menu empowers diners to see the items, order, and pay quickly and thus puts them in a good mood.
Some of the best features and benefits that One2Menu brings to the table include:
- Simplified menu management
- Instant updates of your restaurant prices and specials
- No app download required
- Fitting your brand perfectly
- Enabling contactless ordering
- Boosting search engine optimization
- Helping you collect data
- Improving your bottom line
A great example of modern menu design
Before using One2Menu
After
Sushi X is one of the best examples to get inspired for your menu designs. This award-winning Japanese restaurant has had One2Menu integrated into its existing website for broadened customer reach.
The restaurant proves that simplicity is sometimes the best solution. Its digital menu layout and design are minimal with plenty of space. That is why the menu is effortless to read and navigate. The white, black, and red design also guarantees it feels classy and aligned with the brand identity. Appetizing photos work to highlight each menu item. In general, without frills, the menu dishes speak for themselves, enabling the customer’s imagination to get to work.
One2Menu helped Sushi X increase traffic.
Related questions
1. Why should I mix digital and analog?
- To appeal to guests of all ages, including Gen Z and baby boomers.
- To offer more audience-centric order and pay processes.
- To provide your diners with interactive experiences from your restaurant websites.
- To make your restaurant space completely smart.
- To boost your promotional item sales.
2. Does One2 provide the restaurant menu template?
Yes.
