Writing menu texts: Describing dishes that make you hungry
What a good description achieves
Anyone who writes menu texts has two readers at once: the hungry guest who wants to decide quickly, and the cautious guest who needs to know what is on the plate. A good description serves both. It says what the dish is, what distinguishes it, and what comes with it.
Here is the rule: The name of the dish may sound appealing, but the description must provide information. Omas Sonntagsbraten works if it says: Pork roast from the belly, cumin juice, napkin dumplings, sauerkraut salad.
Origin, preparation, side dish
Three details make a description concrete. Not every dish needs all three, but one of them should always be included.
- Origin: "Trout from the Ennstal", "Beef from Berger Farm" – only if it is true and you can prove it.
- Preparation: braised, grilled over beechwood, roasted whole. The verb often makes you more hungry than any adjective.
- Side dish and sauce: Guests want to know what is on the plate, especially when they dislike something.
Words that say nothing
Some words appear on so many menus that guests overlook them. They take up space without conveying any information:
- Fresh – every guest assumes this. Better: specify what is fresh, for example "freshly grated horseradish daily".
- Delicious, tasty, heavenly - the guest decides for themselves.
- House style" - sounds mysterious, but reveals nothing.
- Prepared with love" - well-intentioned, but interchangeable.
Be careful also with terms that are legally or technically defined. "Homemade" should only be used if the dish is actually made in your kitchen. If you write "Wiener Schnitzel," you should use veal; with pork, "Schnitzel Wiener Art" is common.
Length and tone
One line is usually sufficient, two are the upper limit. On mobile devices, long descriptions quickly look like a wall of text, and guests scroll past them. It is better to describe each dish briefly than to describe three in detail and the rest not at all.
The tone should suit your establishment: down-to-earth in a pub, playful in a bar, and reduced to the ingredients in fine dining. It is important that it remains consistent across the entire menu. On the digital menu from Same-QR, the description appears in the additional line below the dish, and there is also space for allergens.
Examples before and after
| Before | Afterwards |
|---|---|
| Delicious house-style salad | Leaf salads, roasted pumpkin seeds, seed oil dressing |
| Fresh fish from the grill | Grilled zander, parsley potatoes, lemon butter |
| Heavenly dessert | Topfenknödel in butter crumbs, Zwetschkenroaster |
| Burger Special | Beef patty, cheddar, bacon, fried onions, BBQ sauce, fries |
After rewriting, it is worth testing: Have someone from the service read the menu to you who knows the dishes well. If they ask questions, something is missing. If they remain silent, it is correct.
Checklist for every description
- Does the description say what is on the plate?
- Is there a specific detail - origin, preparation or side dish?
- Is every word true and verifiable, such as homemade or regional?
- Does it fit on one mobile phone line, at most two?
- Are the allergens clearly separated from the text?
Whoever measures every description briefly against this list gets a menu that sounds uniform and helps guests. And if a recipe changes, the description is adjusted accordingly.
Frequently asked questions
Not necessarily. For classics like Frittatensuppe, the name is sufficient. A description is worthwhile where guests would otherwise ask.
Yes, the allergens can be in the same row, preferably as abbreviations at the end and clearly separated from the text.
Use them if they are part of the dish and briefly explain them – for example, Gremolata (parsley, lemon zest, garlic).
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