Most restaurants use menus that are printed on high quality paper and laminated or placed in a small binder. These menus are used over and over by multiple customers every day. While this may seem like the most environmentally friendly and cost-effective option, there are actually a number of reasons why using disposable menus is the better option. If you haven’t thought about disposable menus for your restaurant, here are a few reasons why you should consider them.
They Make it Easy to Change Up the Menu
If you’re a new restaurant or are experimenting with some menu changes, disposable menus make it very easy to make those changes. You may have seen reusable menus that have items marked out, things added in pen, new food safety labels and warnings, or even sticky notes attached to them that list new menu items or prices. This can look very unprofessional, but reprinting these menus often can become very costly because of the quality of the paper used. Disposable menus can be changed as often as you like. You can even create unique disposable menus for special events.
They Aren’t as Expensive as You May Think
Disposable menus are also actually less costly than many people think. There are a few reasons for this. First, you can use standard paper instead of card stock. Second, buying in bulk decreases the cost even more. You may need to carefully manage your disposable menus and make certain you reorder when necessary, but that’s a fairly small task.
Third, disposable menus are typically only a single front and back page, not several pages like reusable menus typically are. That may mean limiting your selections, but typically, it’s easy enough to fit everything onto one page if you cut out unnecessary descriptions and images. If you do want to include extra information that won’t fit on the page, you can always add QR code labels that your guests can scan with their phones to view an expanded online menu.
They Double as Advertising
When you use disposable menus, you expect either your customers will leave them on the table, will drop them in the garbage or recycling, or will take them. The ideal option is that they take the menu home with them. This helps spread the name of your restaurant, especially if they take the menu to work or show it to others. If you offer takeout or delivery, you no longer need to print menus specifically for these options. One disposable menu works for dine-in, take away, and delivery.
They Can Be Recycled
Your disposable menus can also be recycled, which is helpful to the environment and creates less waste. Simply place a bin near the door with a sign indicating that customers are free to take their menus or, if they don’t want them, they can drop them in the bin for recycling. You could add a small line of text to the menu itself letting customers know they can take the menu or leave it for recycling.
These are just a few reasons why you may want to use disposable menus. Give it some though and look at the pros and cons for your restaurant. You may discover that disposable menus are actually a better option than reusable ones.