15 Menu Design Mistakes to Avoid

Your restaurant menu isn’t just a list of dishes—it’s a key marketing tool that can influence customer decisions, drive sales, and shape your brand’s perception. However, many restaurants unknowingly make design mistakes that reduce engagement and revenue. Here’s a breakdown of 15 menu design mistakes to avoid, along with tips on how to fix them.

1. Cluttered Layout

• A cluttered menu can overwhelm customers and make it hard for them to find what they’re looking for. Overcrowded design with too many fonts, colors, or items creates confusion and indecision, which can lead to customers abandoning their order or feeling frustrated.

• Fix: Use whitespace strategically to create an organized and clean layout that directs attention to key areas of the menu. Group similar items together in logical categories (e.g., appetizers, mains, desserts), and highlight your specialty items or best-sellers by giving them extra prominence. Digital menus can help by allowing interactive navigation, so customers can more easily focus on specific categories and promotions, enhancing their overall experience. Check out digital menus for more tips on interactive layouts.

2. Tiny Fonts

• Font size might seem like a small detail, but it’s one of the biggest offenders in menu design. Tiny or hard-to-read fonts frustrate diners, especially older customers or those with vision impairments. If your menu requires customers to squint or lean in to read, it’s a sign that readability is being compromised.

• Fix: Opt for larger fonts (12–14pt for body text), ensuring that the menu is accessible to all customers. Consider the size and style of fonts to enhance readability—simple, sans-serif fonts like Arial or Helvetica are typically clearer. Digital menus provide the added advantage of dynamic resizing to adjust font sizes, offering a more accessible experience for all diners.

3. Poor Descriptions

• The descriptions on your menu should do more than just name the dish—they should sell the dish. Vague descriptions, such as "Salad with dressing," don't entice customers and fail to convey the value of the dish. When descriptions lack flavor, texture, or ingredient details, they can make the dish feel unremarkable.

• Fix: Use sensory language to describe dishes. Talk about the crispness of vegetables, the succulent tenderness of meat, or the creamy texture of sauces. Describe key ingredients that elevate the dish, like local, organic tomatoes or a unique, house-made dressing. Using customer data to identify high-performing dishes and using this information in descriptions can also increase sales by highlighting popular items.

4. Lack of Visuals

• In the age of Instagram-worthy food, menus that lack visual appeal miss a major opportunity to entice customers. Without visuals, diners may struggle to imagine the dish or feel less motivated to try something new.

• Fix: Incorporate high-quality images or icons to enhance the visual appeal of your menu. For high-margin items or seasonal dishes, consider showing beautiful photos that highlight fresh ingredients or showcase how the dish is presented. However, be careful not to overload the menu with too many images; choose a few select items that will catch customers' eyes. Effective food photography can make all the difference in boosting orders for certain dishes.

5. Ignoring Menu Psychology

• Menu design is not just about aesthetics; it's also about psychology. How you position dishes, the colors you use, and even the font style can influence customer behavior. High-margin items should be placed in the most visually prominent spots to increase sales, such as the top-right corner or center of the page, where eyes naturally fall.

• Fix: Use color psychology to guide customer decisions. For example, red can stimulate appetite, while green can evoke freshness and health. Consider using strategic placement to highlight high-margin or popular items, such as placing your signature dishes near the top of the menu or around the “golden triangle” area (the top right of the menu). Understanding these principles will help design a menu that maximizes both profit and customer satisfaction.

6. Too Many Choices

• The paradox of choice is real—offering too many options can overwhelm customers and make it harder for them to make a decision. When a menu features too many dishes, it can lead to decision fatigue and a poor dining experience.

• Fix: Keep your menu concise and focused on your best-sellers or seasonal specials. Offer variety, but don’t overwhelm diners. Consider rotating items seasonally to keep the menu fresh and exciting while keeping the number of options manageable. By focusing on a curated selection, customers will feel more confident in their choice and appreciate the simplicity.

7. Poor Pricing Presentation

• Pricing is often one of the first things diners look at on a menu, and if done incorrectly, it can turn customers away. Dollar signs can make prices seem more significant than they are, and inconsistent formatting can make prices appear unclear or less professional.

• Fix: Use subtle pricing to avoid drawing too much attention to the cost. Remove dollar signs and use rounded numbers instead of pricing items with cents (e.g., $15 instead of $14.99). This psychological trick can improve the perceived value of the dishes. Ensure that prices are aligned and consistent to maintain a clean, polished look.

8. Outdated Items

• Nothing frustrates diners more than being told an item they’re excited to try is no longer available. An outdated menu with items that are no longer served can damage your restaurant’s reputation and decrease customer satisfaction.

• Fix: Keep your menu up-to-date, removing any discontinued or out-of-season items. Digital menus can help here, as they can be updated in real time, ensuring that your menu always reflects what’s currently available. This reduces customer frustration and builds trust. By using real-time updates, you can avoid disappointments and keep diners happy.

9. Ignoring Mobile Users

• Many diners now browse menus on their phones before visiting a restaurant. If your menu isn’t optimized for mobile viewing, you’re missing out on an opportunity to engage potential customers before they even step foot in your restaurant.

• Fix: Ensure your menu is mobile-friendly and responsive, allowing customers to easily browse on their phones or tablets. Mobile-first websites are crucial in today’s digital age, as they improve user experience and increase engagement. Learn more about how a mobile-first approach can impact your business in this guide.

10. Missing Branding Elements

• Your menu should reflect your restaurant’s identity. Inconsistent use of fonts, colors, and design elements can confuse customers about your brand and weaken its impact.

• Fix: Align your menu design with your restaurant's overall branding. Choose fonts, colors, and images that reflect the atmosphere and style of your restaurant. If you run a modern, casual café, opt for a bright, contemporary design. If your restaurant is upscale, choose elegant fonts and subtle colors. Branding tips can help guide the design process and ensure your menu feels like a natural extension of your restaurant.

11. Hard-to-Find Specials

• Your specials or seasonal dishes should always be easy to spot. If customers have to hunt for your specials, they might miss out, which can reduce sales and frustrate your diners.

• Fix: Use visual cues such as bold text, boxes, or icons to make your specials stand out. Consider adding a seasonal menu section or a highlighted box that draws attention to limited-time offers. In addition, promoting your specials online through seasonal campaigns can further boost engagement.

12. Ignoring Dietary Preferences

• Today’s diners are more health-conscious and have specific dietary preferences. A menu that doesn’t cater to vegetarian, vegan, or gluten-free customers limits your audience and may drive away potential diners.

• Fix: Clearly mark dishes that cater to specific dietary needs, like vegetarian, vegan, or gluten-free. Use symbols or color coding to make these options easy to spot. Doing so will not only expand your customer base but also increase customer satisfaction as diners will feel more valued and accommodated.

13. Unclear Sections

• If your menu is not organized into clear sections (e.g., appetizers, entrees, desserts, etc.), diners may become frustrated and struggle to find what they want.

• Fix: Group similar items together and use clear section headings to guide the diner through the menu. If you have many different types of offerings, such as vegetarian or raw food options, consider breaking down those sections separately for easier navigation. With digital menus, interactive categories can enhance this organization, allowing customers to filter items based on their preferences.

14. Failing to Cross-Sell

• Menus can subtly boost your average order value by suggesting complementary items, like wine pairings or side dishes.

• Fix: Use cross-selling techniques by pairing complementary items together. For example, a hearty steak might pair perfectly with a rich red wine. Including food and wine pairing suggestions can drive both sales and customer satisfaction by enhancing the overall dining experience.

15. Not Tracking Performance

• A menu is only effective if it’s monitored for performance. How do you know which items are doing well or which need reworking? Tracking helps you make data-driven decisions.

• Fix: Use your POS system to track sales data and identify which items are most popular and which are underperforming. Analyze this data to make adjustments to your menu, whether it’s tweaking descriptions, changing prices, or removing underperforming items. Integrating POS systems with your website can provide even deeper insights into customer preferences.

Conclusion

By avoiding these 15 common menu design mistakes, you can significantly improve the guest experience, increase sales, and reinforce your restaurant’s brand identity. A well-designed menu is not just about presenting dishes—it’s about creating an experience that connects diners with your restaurant. By combining smart design, digital tools, and customer insights, your menu can become a powerful revenue-generating tool. For additional tips, explore how to turn website visitors into paying diners and how to use influencers to boost restaurant visibility.