A menu is a whole food and drink offer, such as "Wedding feast", "Canapé reception" or "Three-course corporate". On the booking form the guest picks a menu, then makes their choices inside it.
One menu, many choices
A menu isn't a list of single dishes. It's the whole offer, laid out the way you'd print it: headings, a few words of introduction, then the dishes. If you want guests to choose between a sit-down meal and a buffet, make two menus.
Creating a menu
Open Menus and click New menu. Give it a name and a short description for guests, then build it from blocks. Click Create menu when you're done.
| Block | What it's for |
|---|---|
| Heading | Section titles: Starters, Mains, Desserts. |
| Text | A paragraph for guests, such as how your tasting works. |
| Image | A photo with a caption. |
| Product | A dish or drink guests can choose, with a price. Add your own, or pick one from Products. |
| Group | A choice, e.g. "choose 1 of 4 mains". You set the minimum and maximum picks. |
| Package | A bundle of choices at one price: a fixed price per guest, a fixed fee, or the total of what's chosen. |
| Divider | A line to break up the page. |
Setting up a dish
Each Product block has a name, description, optional image and a Price (£). Charged is almost always Per guest for food. Drinks can be charged per bottle or per half bottle. You can also:
- Add Dietary labels, such as vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free or halal. They show as small labels next to the dish.
- Make it pre-selected, so it starts ticked.
- Let guests pick a quantity within a range, instead of using their guest numbers.
- Choose whether it counts towards your pricing plan's catering minimum.
Who sees which menu
At the top of the editor, Shows for sets when a menu appears. Leave it on Every event, or add rules by venue, event type, dates and guest numbers. A Christmas menu might show only for December dates; a buffet only for parties over 80.
How it looks on the booking form
- The guest picks a menu from the ones that suit their event.
- They work down it in the order you laid it out.
- Pre-selected dishes start ticked. They can untick them.
- If a group needs a choice, the form tells them what's still to choose.
- The total updates as they go.
Dietary labels aren't your allergen information. They help guests choose. They don't replace the allergen information the law asks you to give on your menus and at the point of service.
Several menus for the same event
You can have several menus showing for the same event type. The guest sees them all and picks one. It's a simple way to offer, say, a classic and a premium option, or a seasonal menu.