AI prompts for restaurant menu descriptions that raise spend
Guests read a menu for about 109 seconds. These five prompts write menu descriptions that answer the question blocking the order.
Menu descriptions get about two minutes of attention. A guest spends somewhere around that long with a menu before ordering, and in that time they are not savouring your prose — they are trying to resolve a small anxiety: will this be enough food, is it going to be too rich, is the thing I want secretly spicy, will I regret this in front of the people I am with.
Menu descriptions that raise spend answer that anxiety. Descriptions that stack adjectives — succulent, hand-crafted, locally sourced, drizzled — do not, because every dish on every menu claims the same things. These five prompts fix it: a core writer, a variant for premium dishes, a variant for allergen and dietary clarity, a review prompt that catches unverifiable provenance claims, and a batch prompt for a full menu.
Why do most menu descriptions fail?
Because they describe the kitchen’s pride rather than the guest’s decision. “Slow-braised for eight hours” is genuinely interesting to the chef and answers no question the guest has. What the guest wants to know is what arrives on the plate and roughly how much of it.
The second failure is adjective inflation. When every dish is succulent and hand-crafted, the words carry no information, and a menu of undifferentiated praise pushes the guest back onto the only distinguishing feature left, which is price. That is precisely the mechanism that suppresses spend.
Third, most menu descriptions omit the one thing that resolves anxiety fastest: the component that makes the dish unusual, named plainly. “Anchovy” in a description loses you the guests who would have sent it back and wins you the ones who order it specifically.
What should menu descriptions actually say?
What is on the plate, in order of prominence. The guest is assembling a mental picture, and the picture should start with the largest thing on it.
Then the one detail that differentiates this version of the dish from the version they have had elsewhere — a specific preparation, a named ingredient, a regional style. One detail, not four. And then anything that would surprise them: heat, strong flavours, bones, raw components, small portions on a large plate.
Provenance is worth including only where it is specific and true. “Locally sourced” means nothing; a named farm twelve miles away means something, and it justifies a higher price in a way adjectives never do.
The core prompt for menu descriptions
Click any highlighted blank to fill it in before you copy.
You are writing menu descriptions for a restaurant. Guests read
for about two minutes and are deciding, not reading for
pleasure.
Restaurant: {{type, price point, service style}}
Guest: {{who eats here, and what they are usually deciding
between}}
Dish name: {{as it appears on the menu}}
Components in order of prominence on the plate: {{list}}
Preparation that genuinely differs from the standard version:
{{detail}}
Named provenance, only if specific: {{producer, farm, region}}
Portion reality: {{is it larger or smaller than a guest would
expect for the price}}
Anything that surprises: {{heat, strong flavour, bones, raw,
fermented, offal, very rich}}
Allergens and dietary status: {{list}}
Price: {{price}}
What it is usually ordered with: {{sides, wine}}The writing rules
Write the description in 12-25 words.
Rules:
- Lead with the main component, as the guest would name it.
- Include exactly one differentiating detail. Not two.
- Name anything that would surprise a guest. Never soften it.
Anchovy, offal, bones, chilli heat and fermentation get
named plainly.
- Maximum one adjective in the whole description, and only if
it carries information a noun cannot.
- Ban: succulent, tender, mouth-watering, delicious, crispy,
fresh, hand-crafted, artisan, drizzled, nestled, medley,
symphony, locally sourced, seasonal, homemade, to die for.
- Only include provenance if a specific producer or place is
named. Otherwise omit it.
- Do not list every ingredient. Three components maximum.
- No description may be interchangeable with another dish on
the same menu.
Then output:
- One alternative version at a shorter length.
- The single component most likely to cause a return, and
whether the description mentions it.A worked example
The brief
Dish: Roast hake
Components in order: hake fillet (200g), white beans, chorizo,
green sauce
Differentiating preparation: the beans are cooked in the
chorizo fat overnight
Provenance: hake from Brixham day boats
Portion reality: looks small on the plate, is filling
Surprises: the green sauce is heavily herbed and has anchovy
Allergens: fish
Price: £24The result
Brixham hake with white beans cooked overnight in chorizo fat, and a herb sauce made with anchovy.
Seventeen words. One differentiating detail (the overnight beans), one specific provenance (Brixham, not “locally sourced”), and the anchovy named plainly because it is the thing that causes returns.
The version this replaced read: “Succulent pan-roasted hake fillet, served on a bed of creamy cannellini beans with chorizo, finished with a vibrant salsa verde drizzle.” Twenty-two words, four adjectives, no provenance, and the anchovy hidden inside “salsa verde” — which is exactly how a plate comes back.
The prompt for premium dishes
When a dish is priced noticeably above the rest of the menu, the description has a second job: it has to make the price legible. Not justify it defensively — make the reason visible.
Click any highlighted blank to fill it in before you copy.
You are writing the description for the highest-priced dish in
its section. The guest is asking why this costs more.
Dish: {{name}}
Price, and the price of the next dish down: {{figures}}
Where the cost actually is: {{the ingredient, the time, the
yield, the skill — be honest}}
Components in order: {{list}}
Preparation time or technique: {{detail}}
Provenance: {{specific}}
Portion: {{reality}}
Who orders it: {{occasion, table type}}
Write 18-30 words.
Rules:
- The reason for the price must be visible in the description
without being stated as a justification. Show the cost, do
not argue for it.
- If the cost is in time, name the time. If it is in the
ingredient, name the ingredient and its source. If it is in
yield or skill, describe the process concretely.
- Still no more than one adjective.
- Do not use price-signalling language: premium, luxury,
finest, exclusive, signature, our famous.
- If the honest answer is that the cost is not visible on the
plate, say so to the writer rather than inventing a reason.The prompt for allergens and dietary clarity
Click any highlighted blank to fill it in before you copy.
You are producing the allergen and dietary presentation for a
menu. This is a legal and safety matter first and a copy matter
second.
Dishes: {{table — dish, full ingredient list including
garnishes, oils, stocks, sauces and dusts}}
The 14 regulated allergens present per dish: {{list}}
Cross-contamination reality: {{shared fryers, shared boards,
shared grill, flour in the air}}
What can be modified on request, and what cannot: {{list}}
Vegetarian, vegan and halal status, with reasons where a dish
is nearly but not quite: {{detail}}
Produce:
1. The per-dish allergen presentation, in the format used on
the menu.
2. A short standing statement about cross-contamination,
written plainly rather than defensively.
3. A list of dishes that can be modified, with exactly what
the modification is.
4. A separate list for the kitchen of any dish where the
allergen status depends on a supplier product that could
change without notice.
Rules:
- Never state that a dish is free from an allergen. State
which allergens it contains, and state the
cross-contamination position separately.
- Do not describe a dish as vegan or vegetarian if any stock,
cheese, sauce or oil in it is not. Flag near-misses to the
kitchen instead.
- Do not soften cross-contamination language.
- Flag any dish whose ingredient list appears incomplete.
Garnishes, dusts and oils are the usual omissions.This one is not really a copywriting prompt. Allergen information is governed by FSA guidance and the model’s output is a draft for a human to verify against the actual ingredient specifications, never a substitute for that check.
The review prompt: catching unverifiable claims
Click any highlighted blank to fill it in before you copy.
Audit these menu descriptions.
Output, quoting the exact text:
1. UNVERIFIABLE PROVENANCE — every geographic or producer
claim, and whether the input substantiates it. Flag
"local", "seasonal", "day-boat", "free-range", "wild" and
any breed or region name.
2. NAKED ADJECTIVES — every adjective, with a verdict on
whether it carries information a noun could not.
3. HIDDEN SURPRISES — every component that would surprise a
guest and is not named: anchovy, offal, bone, heat, raw
elements, very rich or fermented components.
4. INTERCHANGEABLE — any two descriptions on this menu that
could be swapped without a guest noticing.
5. ALLERGEN LANGUAGE — any description implying a dish is
free from something, or any allergen visible in the
ingredients but absent from the description.
6. LENGTH — anything over 25 words.
DESCRIPTIONS: {{paste}}
INGREDIENTS: {{paste}}Category one has consequences beyond style. Provenance claims on a menu are subject to food-information law, and “Cornish crab” that is not from Cornwall is a trading standards matter rather than a marketing flourish.
Writing a full menu
Click any highlighted blank to fill it in before you copy.
You are writing the descriptions for a full menu. The menu is
read as a whole, so the descriptions must work as a set.
Restaurant: {{type, price point}}
Menu structure: {{sections and how many dishes in each}}
Dishes: {{table — name, components in order, differentiator,
provenance, portion, surprises, allergens, price}}
Voice reference: {{paste two approved descriptions}}
Write every description in the established format.
Rules for the batch:
- No two descriptions in the same section may share their
opening noun.
- Track adjective use across the whole menu. If the same
adjective appears twice, replace one.
- Vary sentence length across a section. A column of
identically-shaped descriptions reads as a list.
- Where two dishes share a component, only the dish where it
is prominent should lead with it.
- Output a check table: dish | word count | adjectives used |
surprising component named yes/no | interchangeable with.
- Flag any section where the descriptions are so similar that
the guest is left choosing on price.Common mistakes with menu descriptions
Filling the provenance field with “local”. It is the most common word on British menus and it is unverifiable, which means it is doing no work at all. Either name the producer or leave it out and use the words for something else.
Hiding the challenging component to protect the sale. It is a false economy: the dish comes back, you have lost the food cost and the cover, and the guest has had a bad experience. Naming the anchovy loses one order and prevents one return.
Writing descriptions dish by dish rather than as a menu. Individually excellent descriptions can still produce a section where every line starts with the same noun and reads as a list.
Letting the kitchen write the differentiating detail. Chefs choose the technically interesting step, which is often invisible on the plate. The differentiator should be something the guest can perceive when it arrives.
What to check before menu descriptions go to print
Check every provenance claim against a delivery note, not against the kitchen’s belief. Suppliers substitute, and a printed menu is a claim you are making for months.
Read a whole section aloud in order. That is how you find the four dishes that all start with “pan-fried” and the paragraph rhythm that makes the section unreadable.
Verify allergen information against the current ingredient specifications, including oils, stocks and garnishes, and re-verify whenever a supplier product changes. This is the one part of the menu where being approximately right is not acceptable.
Finally, hand the menu to someone who has never eaten there and watch where they hesitate. Every hesitation is a description that has not answered the question the guest was asking.
Frequently asked
Questions this article answers
Why do most menu descriptions fail?
Because they describe the kitchen's pride rather than the guest's decision. "Slow-braised for eight hours" is genuinely interesting to the chef and answers no question the guest has. What the guest wants to know is what arrives on the plate and roughly how much of it. The second failure is adjective inflation. When every dish is succulent and hand-crafted, the words carry no information, and a menu of undifferentiated praise…
What should menu descriptions actually say?
What is on the plate, in order of prominence. The guest is assembling a mental picture, and the picture should start with the largest thing on it. Then the one detail that differentiates this version of the dish from the version they have had elsewhere — a specific preparation, a named ingredient, a regional style. One detail, not four. And then anything that would surprise them: heat, strong flavours, bones,…
What to check before menu descriptions go to print?
Check every provenance claim against a delivery note, not against the kitchen's belief. Suppliers substitute, and a printed menu is a claim you are making for months. Read a whole section aloud in order. That is how you find the four dishes that all start with "pan-fried" and the paragraph rhythm that makes the section unreadable. Verify allergen information against the current ingredient specifications, including oils, stocks and garnishes, and…