Menu Design - Save Money on Restaurant Bill - Save a Buck - AARP Bulletin

Hold the Heirloom Tomatoes

How menu design gets you to run up a big check

Getting wise to the tricks of "menu engineering" can save you money when you enjoy a meal out. A restaurant's menu is often deliberately and strategically designed to get you to order up the big bucks. Photo by Getty Images Save money on your restaurant bill with tips on how to read a menu. Here are four ways to read it: Avoid the upper right. The people who design menus often put the highest-profit items in the upper right corner of a menu, because that's the first place your eye goes. Look past the boxes. Pricey signature items may be highlighted in a box, circled or otherwise surrounded with fancy type to offset them from the rest of the menu and grab your attention. Recognize buzzwords. Trendy terminology is a tip you're being charged more. "Heirloom tomatoes" will cost more than regular ones, and anything described as "artisanal" will add bucks to your bill. Add the dollar signs back in. One study found that eliminating dollar signs on a menu reduced the "pain of paying" for the dinner, even though the price was the same. A dish listed as "12" seems cheaper than "$12."
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Aaron Crowe is a freelance journalist who specializes in personal finance.

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