Menu Design: Our Pick of the Most Delicious Designs
Menus are an integral part of any dining experience. If care and attention has been put into the design of the menu, then it’s a good sign that the quality of the food and service will be equally exceptional.
Be inspired by our edit of the very best menu designs.
1. Polpo
Polpo, a London-based restaurant serving Venetian food, commissioned beautiful menu designs from Richard Marazzi which blend old-world illustrations with a contemporary mix of typefaces for a high-impact, unique aesthetic.
Why not layer modern Sans Serif fonts over vintage-style illustrations for an individual, quirky look to your own menu designs?
2. Ateneo Condesa
A strong minimal logo inspired by the jaguar takes centre stage on these menus for Mexican eatery Ateneo Condesa. The designs, by Cardumen 467, are graphic, simple and high-contrast, while maintaining a luxe feel with feline-print textures and wooden covers.
If the restaurant you’re designing a menu for already has a strong logo or brand identity, consider making this the focal point of your menu design. Or why not offer to design a new logo for them!
3. El Burro
It’s great to see menus with a splash of colour, and these menu designs for El Burro show how introduction of just one strong shade can transform a menu from traditional to exciting and invigorating. Designed by Monday, these menus give a fresh update to Mexican-style illustrations and typefaces.
Try introducing just one stand-out colour in your own menu designs, contrasting against an otherwise monochrome palette.
4. Royale Eatery
Also designed by Monday, the more restrained designs for Cape Town restaurant Royale Eatery showcase minimal, traditional designs printed on luxurious textures, with logos and text pulled out in gold foil. We love the vintage-style line illustrations, which give a homely, localised feel to the menu.
Some restaurants won’t suit a menu design that shouts; instead incorporate subtle design elements to create a harmonious, calming layout.
5. Cozmo Café
With a fun look and a nod to the industrial design trend the menus for Cozmo Café are young and lively, promising great food in a relaxed environment. Designed by W8, the menus give off a disposable vibe, which adds to the casual-cool feel of the restaurant.
Mix grungy fonts with casual textures, like brown paper and wood, to give a young, casual feel to your menu designs.
6. Fat Cow
Japanese beef restaurant Fat Cow turned to Singapore-based studio Foreign Policy to design their fantastic minimal menus. Lending a contemporary edge to the simplicity of the Japanese design aesthetic, the simple, four-column menus work in calm harmony with branded wooden covers.
Think about the final printed result when designing your menus. What will you print the menu on? Can you encase the printed menu in unusual materials, which will add to the sensory dining experience?
7. Kayaba Coffee
A cute and gorgeous menu design from Japanese coffee chain Kayaba Coffee. Tiny detailed illustrations of each item on the menu are a wonderful feature, earning this menu a spot on our ‘Delicious’ list.
Special, bespoke artwork can give your menu designs a truly individual feel, and can even double as a PR-friendly souvenir for customers to take away and treasure.
8. Café Kafka
An immersive, vintage-inspired menu design for Barcelona-based haunt Café Kafka earns the final spot on our menu edit. The branding carries over to business cards and table settings, and brings grand, formal designs bang up-to-date. Designed by Lo Siento.
Lift your own monochrome InDesign layouts with high-impact, vintage-style illustrations or photographs.
Want more inspiration? Check out more inspirational designs here.