A guest sits down at the table, opens the menu and for a moment feels lost - dozens of items, and all they want is to eat something good. In that moment a small chef's recommendation card acts like a friendly hand on the shoulder: it says plainly what is really worth ordering here. It is one of the simplest ways to guide guests toward the dishes the kitchen is most proud of.
A recommendation card is not just another print for its own sake. A well thought-out one helps sell dishes with a better margin, shortens decisions at the table and builds the impression that the venue has character and a clear idea of itself. Below we show how to prepare such cards - from what to put on them, through the design, to keeping them consistent with the main menu.
- A chef's recommendation card highlights a handful of chosen dishes instead of competing with the full menu.
- It works best as a separate, small format - a table stand, an insert or a card by the setting.
- Limit yourself to three, at most five items with a short, appetising description.
- Keep the same style, fonts and colours as the main menu - it should look like one family.
- Add a human touch: the chef's signature, a short line about ingredients, seasonality.
- Plan for easy replacement, because recommendations are worth rotating with the season.
Why have a recommendation card at all
A full menu is meant to show everything the venue can do. A recommendation card does the opposite - it narrows the choice and offers guidance. A guest who does not know the kitchen gets a ready path: these are the dishes the chef is betting on most today. Instead of reading the whole list, they can trust and order a proven option.
For the venue this brings concrete benefits. It is easier to draw attention to dishes with a higher margin or ones you want to promote in a given season. It is also easier to shorten decision time at the table - and a faster decision means smoother service and quicker table turnover. At the same time the venue looks well run, because someone sat down and thought about what is worth recommending.
If you want a broader look at how the layout of a menu affects guests' decisions, it is worth reading our post on how to design a menu so guests quickly find the key information. A recommendation card is a natural extension of the same idea - only focused on a few dishes.
What to put on the card
The strength of a recommendation lies in restraint. The fewer the items, the harder each one works. A card that recommends twenty dishes recommends nothing in practice - it becomes just another list. So stick to a few chosen suggestions and describe them in a way that sharpens the appetite.
- Three to five dishes - as many as a guest takes in at a glance, without turning a page.
- The dish name - legible, highlighted, easy to point out to the waiter.
- A short description - one or two sentences about the ingredients and what makes the dish special.
- A human touch - the chef's signature, a note about local suppliers or a seasonal vegetable.
- Optional markers - vegetarian, spicy, dish of the day - if they fit the rest of the card.
We deliberately leave out prices here. On a recommendation card what counts is appetite and trust, and the guest will find the figures in the main menu anyway. Focusing on the description and character of the dish works better than a numerical breakdown.
Write the descriptions as if you were recommending the dish to a friend at the table. Instead of a dry "cod fillet with vegetables" write what makes it worth it - the freshness of the fish, the crisp skin, the sauce the cook refined over weeks. Specifics and a warm note sell better than adjectives like "delicious" or "exquisite".
Format and place on the table
A recommendation card works best as a separate, small print - not another page in a thick menu, but an element that catches the eye right after the guests are seated. You choose the format based on how the table looks and how you present the cards.
Popular solutions
- Table stand - a small card in a plexi or wooden holder, placed by the salt cellar. The guest sees the recommendation before even reaching for the main menu.
- Card by the setting - placed on the plate or napkin, it greets guests as soon as they sit down.
- Menu insert - a loose card in a format smaller than the menu, easy to swap when the offer changes.
- Bottle or carafe tag - if you also recommend drinks or dishes to pair with wine.
An unfolded format works particularly well here - it is simple to produce, easy to clean and quick to replace. If you are looking for a ready solution, take a look at the unfolded menu category, which covers exactly these single-card formats. The full offer for gastronomy - folded and unfolded menus, coasters, waiter pads and table presenters - can be found in the HoReCa section.
Consistency with the main menu
A recommendation card should look like a member of the same family as the menu, not a random print from another world. Coherence comes from repetition: the same typeface, the same palette, the same way of describing dishes. The guest should not feel they are holding two different aesthetics.
Set a few constants and keep to them on both prints. Headings in the same font as in the menu, descriptions in the same one as the rest of the text, the logo in the same place. If the main menu has a warm, cream palette, the recommendation card cannot suddenly be cold and white. The same paper texture and finish also do the job - the guest feels the coherence before reading a single word.
It is worth thinking about the whole set of prints for the venue right away. The menu, the recommendation card, the wine list, the daily price list - if they are created in one style, they give the impression of a considered whole. You will find the full catalogue of formats to compose such a set in the menus, coasters and presenters section.
Replacement and rotation of recommendations
Chef's recommendations make sense when they are alive. A card that recommends the same dishes all year quickly stops recommending anything - it becomes background. That is why it is worth assuming, already at the design stage, that you will be swapping it out.
- Design a template, not a one-off print - a fixed layout into which new dishes are easy to enter. The content changes, not the whole design.
- Match the recommendations to the season - different dishes in spring, different in autumn. Seasonal ingredients are a natural reason to change.
- Order smaller batches, more often - this makes it easier to react to changes in the kitchen and avoids being left with outdated cards.
- Keep an archive of the files - a ready base design means the next version is a matter of swapping the text and a quick print.
Such rotation not only keeps the card fresh, but also gives guests a reason to return - a regular notices that the recommendations have changed and is happy to try something new. It is a small detail that builds the impression of a place with character.
A chef's recommendation card is one of those small prints that make a bigger difference than their size suggests. A few well-chosen dishes, a warm description, a consistent style and easy replacement - that is all it takes to lead guests straight to the best of what the kitchen offers. If you want to choose a specific format for your venue, take a look at our products or write to us via contact - we will help you put together a set of prints that looks like one considered whole.
