Glossary A–ZLetter M
Menu board
A menu board is a screen that shows food, drinks and prices, replacing the printed board or menu above the counter.
It is used mainly in restaurants, bakeries, canteens and takeaways.
Its advantage over paper lies in how easily it can be changed. Sold-out items disappear without anyone covering them up, prices change at all locations at once, and at lunchtime the lunch menu automatically replaces the breakfast menu. Several screens often hang side by side to form one large menu, frequently in portrait orientation. Photos and short moving images of individual dishes draw the eye.
Operators should remember that price information is subject to legal rules, on a screen as well. If the image changes too quickly, a guest cannot read the prices before ordering; prices of the main items should therefore remain visible at all times. Dish and price must be legible from the usual distance. When a price changes, the new version must actually arrive on every device. A screen failure must not mean that no prices are visible at all.