Designing Profitable Menus

The article "Designing Profitable Menus" by Linda Lipsky offers some great information regarding what a menu should and should not have. She begins the article by focusing on the fact that "a flashy menu" does not necessarily "generate sales." It is important that menus be "designed to maximize sales and promote the items which are most profitable and unique to the property." Ms. Lipsky reinforces the fact that the menu is a major marketing tool and the design should be created carefully and with thought.

The article discusses things like color, icons, typeface, seasonal offerings, costing and recipes, legibility and much more. For the color of the menu, the author suggests that if a menu printed professionally, using at least three colors is best. One color should be used for section headers like "Appetizers" or "Entrees"; a second color is used for menu item names and their description; a third can be used to highlight a few "key items within each menu section."

Another ...