ECONOMY & WORK
MONEY 101
NEWS
PERSONAL FINANCE
NET WORTH
About Us Contact Us Privacy Policy Terms of Use DMCA Opt-out of personalized ads
© Copyright 2023 Market Realist. Market Realist is a registered trademark. All Rights Reserved. People may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.
MARKETREALIST.COM / NEWS

10 Most Common Menu Tricks Restaurants Use To Make People Spend More

Restaurants use these tricks to subtly nudge customers into increasing their spending.
PUBLISHED JAN 22, 2024
Cover Image Source: Pexels | Photo by jona
Cover Image Source: Pexels | Photo by jona

While These Tricks Are Common, They Maybe Hard To Spot 

Cover Image Source: Pexels | RDNE Stock project
Cover Image Source: Pexels | RDNE Stock project

Restaurants across the globe employ ways to get customers to get more food and choose more profitable selections. They do so as they have high turnover numbers, and they need to figure out a way to make enough money to keep the doors open. The industry is ever evolving with new changes coming to menus that suit customers. However, restaurants often use new tricks in their menus as well to subtly nudge customers into increasing their spending. As these tricks can be hard to spot for the laymen, here’s a look at 10 sneaky menu tricks that restaurants use to make more money.

1. Number trickery

Representative Image | Getty Images | Photo by Mario Tama
Representative Image | Getty Images | Photo by Mario Tama

This is one of the most popular tricks used not just by restaurants but in retail as well. Restaurants turn a $10 meal into a $9.99 meal to make it look like a better bargain. Others may price it at a $9.50 or $13.50 model to make it look even better. Thus, while customers are surfing through the menu, they tend to gravitate toward the lower-looking digits. One exception to this may be the high-end restaurants, which don’t use the tactic as customers already know that they are going to be spending more than usual.

2. Missing Dollar Signs

Representative Image | Pexels | Photo by Pixabay
Representative Image | Pexels | Photo by Pixabay

Barring a few restaurants, most restaurants avoid using dollar or currency signs on the menus to help people not think about money. Restaurants want customers to think of food instead as they order. The removal of currency signs is also a tiny psychological trick that proves to be quite effective. Customers are more likely to buy something if they go by the enticing name of the food item instead of being reminded about the money they are spending.

3. Use of Value Menus

Representative Image | Pexels | Photo by ROMAN ODINTSOV
Representative Image | Pexels | Photo by ROMAN ODINTSOV

Restaurants often introduce value menus that offer items and meals of different price points. This is done to motivate customers to opt for the high-end or the priciest items on the value menu thinking it offers value. Further, a value menu with limited cheap items may also cause customers to bypass it entirely and opt for the expensive items on the regular menu. For example, if a value menu offers items like burgers and spaghetti, a customer looking for a steak may bypass it entirely and go for the regular menu.

4. Use of Brand Names 

Representative Image | Getty Images | Photo by Stephen Lovekin
Representative Image | Getty Images | Photo by Stephen Lovekin

This is a common practice even among some of the most popular restaurant chains and high-end places. For example, TGI Fridays uses Jack Daniels BBQ sauce to create an association between the alcohol brand and their food. Thus, fans of whiskey or Jack Daniels are more likely to be attracted to sauce which is made from one of their favorite beverages. This is simple logic as people will tend to buy stuff with brand names that they have heard of before.

5. Use of Anchor Items

Representative Image | Pexels | Photo by Narco Pertama
Representative Image | Pexels | Photo by Narco Pertama

In restaurant menus, an anchor item is the ridiculously expensive one. However, it is placed on the menu next to other expensive items (like an anchor) to make them seem like a better value. For example, one menu may have a $10 and a $20 stake option and the other may have a $20 and a $30 steak option. In this case, the $20 option becomes a value deal for the second menu while it is the expensive option in the first one. Further, putting the $20 option next to a $50 steak makes it seem even more valuable.

6. Secret Portion Sizes

Representative Image | Pexels | Photo by Dana Tentis
Representative Image | Pexels | Photo by Dana Tentis

Despite offering full or half salads or sandwiches restaurants often avoid revealing the real portion sizes. This makes the consumers feel that the half-size options may be overpriced and it is more economical to go for the full-size options or vice versa. This is also referred to as bracketing and it is it may be targeted towards people who are looking to eat less. On the other hand, marked-up full-size options may cause people to spend more thinking they’re getting a better deal.

7. Making it Difficult to Compare Prices

Representative Image | Getty Images | Photo by Andrew Burton
Representative Image | Getty Images | Photo by Andrew Burton

While all restaurants may not do this, there are plenty that do. Some restaurants put the prices all over the place, often at the very end of the name of the food item. This is unlike menus that place the price consistently at the right in a column. Further, the use of fonts that are difficult to read makes it even tougher to compare the prices. Aligning the contents of the menu to the center pushes customers to read through the item descriptions first before getting to the price.

8. Use of Ethnic Terms

Representative Image | Getty Images | Photo by Andrew Burton
Representative Image | Getty Images | Photo by Andrew Burton

Several restaurants, especially Italian restaurants may have dozens of items with ethnic terms integrated in the name of the food. For example, Shrimp Spaghetti may be put up as “Shrimp scampi tagliatelle” to make it sound more authentic and therefore appealing. However, in reality, tagliatelle is just the Italian word for “noodles”. Thus, customers who are bored with regular-sounding food may find these fancy-sounding items refreshing and new, even if the actual dishes are simple.

9. Use of Adjectives

Representative Image | Getty Images | Photo by Smith Collection
Representative Image | Getty Images | Photo by Smith Collection

Some menus add extravagant adjectives to simple food items to make them sound more appealing. For example, ice cream may be mentioned as “sweet and creamy”, buffalo wings may be portrayed as “tender, juicy, and drenched in a delicious, tangy sauce”, and so on. This is a common practice among restaurants that go to great lengths to make their food sound more appealing. Thus customers who are craving ice cream may find it humanly impossible to resist some “cold, creamy, and sweet,” dessert.

10. Highlight Items to Make them Look Special

Representative Image | Getty Images |  Photo Illustration by Scott Olson
Representative Image | Getty Images | Photo Illustration by Scott Olson

Most mid-range and low-end restaurants commonly employ this tactic to make some of their items look more tantalizing. They often put pictures of select items and highlight some as “Chef’s Special” to attract more attention to the dishes. These may be listed separately from all of the other dishes, and they tend to be the most expensive items as well. This is all to nudge the customers into spending more, especially the people who are celebrating a special occasion.

MORE ON MARKET REALIST
The entrepreneur impressed sharks with a pitch that involved a dance group using her product.
11 hours ago
In the 10,000th episode of the show, the prize money was boosted to a whopping $100,000 from $10,000
14 hours ago
Jennings has candidly spoken about the prospects of his return, and the chances are slim to none.
16 hours ago
It seemed like the 'Disco Fever' took over the cast who forgot they had to play the game.
17 hours ago
The expert needed further tests to be done before confirming the item's authenticity.
1 day ago
The player kept on winning but the host didn't encourage her to repeat her performance.
1 day ago
In the celebrity edition of the show, Harvey had a hard time going through with the questions.
1 day ago
She did not have a lot of confidence when she gave her answer, and her reaction was hilarious.
1 day ago
While the player got one of the top answers on the board, he put his marriage in jeopardy!
1 day ago
The old painting turned out to be an early piece from the renowned artist David Hockney.
2 days ago
The player aced the tricky game of 'Gas Money' and, needless to say, she celebrated in style.
2 days ago
Fans were shocked to see how the player couldn't solve one of the easiest puzzles in the show's history.
2 days ago
The company, Scholly, entered the Shark Tank Hall of Fame as it gave a 60x return years later.
2 days ago
After the contestant, Drew Carey broke the board further while trying to fix it...
3 days ago
As it so turned out, a crucial ruling from the judges led to a BIG win for the player.
3 days ago
When a guest brought a precious Charles Rohlfs chair, expert John Sollo confessed that he was nervous to appraise it.
3 days ago
The guest had no idea about the item being a Tiffany product and being embedded with a rare gem.
4 days ago
The host was baffled by the goof up that the contestant made between two words.
4 days ago
Carey showed that he has got the weapon of sarcasm, and he isn't afraid to use it.
4 days ago
Whatever the host was expecting, it was far away from what the contestant said on national TV.
4 days ago