Innovative Restaurant Menu Technology You Need to Boost Sales

Is your menu not converting as well as you’d expect? Are customers asking for restaurant menu technology like online ordering, dish customization, or tableside ordering?

In the article below, we show you how you can get ten menu tools and features that will help you attract more new and returning customers.

Implement This Restaurant Menu Technology to Boost Sales

Intuitive online menu builder for takeout orders

The purpose of a menu in the restaurant has evolved from a simple list of dishes designed to help customers make a choice to a catalog that allows customers to also place orders for delivery and pickup.

If you want to boost restaurant sales and not rely just on dine-in orders, choose a menu builder with built-in online ordering that you can display on your website.

With GloriaFood, you can easily create your online menu using the intuitive builder designed to make it easy for restaurant owners to display their dishes and for customers to order them.

Follow these step-by-step instructions to create an appetizing online menu that you can add to your restaurant website in just a few clicks:

Menu customization with choices and add-ons

Gone are the days when customers were limited by a small selection of pre-established dishes. While you don’t need a large menu to attract a variety of different customers, you do need to allow them to customize their order.

Providing a wide variety of toppings, types of crust and bread, add-ons, and other choices will make it easier for customers to order exactly what they want.

Using our menu builder, you can quickly customize your dishes with choices and add-ons that will help you increase the average order value. Here’s how:

Out-of-stock feature for menu items and add-ons

Restaurant menu technology like out of stock allows you to quickly and easily update the availability of your menu items and add-ons, so you don’t risk customers ordering something that you no longer have.

You can mark both menu items and individual ingredients as out of stock from your restaurant dashboard or directly from the free order-taking app we provide, like this:

Then, the item will appear as out-of-stock in your online menu:

Promotions module for your online restaurant menu

A simple and easy way to make your online menu stand out and persuade more customers to order is to display attractive promotions and discounts at the top of the menu.

You can easily do that using the promotions module built into our online menu builder. You can choose from a variety of restaurant promotions, from cart discounts to free delivery, meal bundles, and more.

Learn more about setting up your very first restaurant promotion in the tutorial below:

Built-in image gallery for menu items and promotions

The first thing customers will notice about your menu is the photos. Our eyes instinctively go to mouthwatering pictures of food, especially when we’re hungry.

Plus, images give potential customers an idea of what they’re ordering, which is a huge advantage when they’re sitting at home thinking about what to eat.

Do you need professional food images for your menu and promotions? We’ve got you covered with free access to a gallery of appetizing photos that you can use to attract more customers.

Integrated tipping feature for online payments

While tipping is simple and customary when you’re dining out, when ordering in, you need to give customers an easy way to leave a tip without too much hassle.

Our online payments feature comes with an integrated tipping section that you can activate with just one click:

At checkout, your customers will get the recommended amount that you set as default, but they can also use the slider to adjust the amount they want to tip:

Designated sections for allergens and nutritional values

The role of restaurant menu technology is not just to make the restaurant’s life easier by streamlining operations, but also to give customers all the information they need to make an informed choice about what they’re ordering.

For example, to ensure you reach a wider audience, including customers with allergies or healthconscious foodies who like to know how many calories an item has, add allergens and nutritional information to every menu item.

Easy menu labeling using menu icons

To help customers instantly spot items that have specific labels, such as vegetarian or gluten-free, use handy menu icons that are displayed next to the dish’s description.

You can choose from the following menu labels in your restaurant’s dashboard: Hot, Vegan, Vegetarian, Gluten-free, Halal, Nut-free, Dairy-free, or Raw. When hovering over the icon in your online menu, customers will be able to read the label.

Chain menu management for multi-location restaurants

What happens if you have a multi-location restaurant or if you’ve just opened a new location and you’re already using an online menu to accept orders in your first location?

Simple – you can just enable the multi-location dashboard in your restaurant account.

From there, you can create and manage separate menus for your restaurant locations or use a master menu that applies to both.

To learn more about setting up an online menu for a chain restaurant, watch this video tutorial:

Digital menu via QR code

Restaurant interactive table menu technology has become increasingly popular during the pandemic because it involves minimal human contact. Now, it has remained a staple of many restaurant businesses due to the convenience it brings to both the restaurant and the customer.

A digital table menu allows customers to scan a QR code to view the menu, place an order, and even pay for it. All of this as soon as they sit down, without waiting for a server.

With GloriaFood, you can use the same menu you use to accept takeout orders for dine-in ordering too. All you need to do is generate a QR code, print it on the flyer we provide, and display it on every table.

Check out this tutorial to learn how to enable dine-in ordering for free:

Final Thoughts

Restaurant menu technology can significantly improve your operations, from helping you create a more attractive menu to streamlining the ordering process and appealing to a larger clientele. Using the menu tools above, you can easily turn your restaurant menu into a money-making machine.