Usual sections
- Rotisserie chicken: quarter, half or whole, and its variations (peri-peri, lemon and herb, garlic, free-range).
- More from the grill: ribs, wings, chicken wraps and burgers.
- Sides: chips, roast potatoes, spicy rice, coleslaw, corn on the cob, salad, gravy.
- Meal deals: for one, for two, for the family.
- Desserts and drinks: a brownie, ice cream, large soft drinks.
Few sections, all very clear. Most customers know what they want before they walk in; the menu needs to confirm the price and remind them of what they’d forgotten to order.
Quarter, half, whole and weight
Use price columns with the label written once at the top of the section:
| Quarter | Half | Whole | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rotisserie chicken | 4.50 | 7.50 | 13 |
| Peri-peri chicken | 5 | 8 | 14 |
Example prices in pounds. Underneath, a note with the approximate weight and whether it’s before or after cooking: “Whole chicken approx. 1.3–1.5 kg, weighed before cooking”. That way customers know what they’re getting and can compare with other shops. In the US, many rotisseries split the quarter into “white” (breast and wing) and “dark” (leg and thigh): two rows make it clear.
If some birds vary a lot in weight, such as a free-range chicken, sell them by the piece with an approximate weight, or by weight with the price and its unit: “12/kg”.
Sides get two columns too (“Regular” and “Large”), or the weight of each tub: “250 g” and “500 g”. If gravy is included, say so; if it’s extra, give it a price.
If you’re not sure what to charge, the guide on how to price a menu shows how to work it out from your costs.
Meal deals and pre-orders
Meal deals sell themselves if they’re well explained: one fixed price and everything that’s included, with no ambiguity. “Family deal: whole chicken, large chips, coleslaw, two corn cobs and a 1.5-litre drink”. Feature your best-seller.
Pre-orders are half the weekend in a chicken shop:
- The phone number, in large type, at the top or the foot.
- Collection times, especially on Sundays and bank holidays.
- The order cut-off: “Sunday orders by 8pm on Saturday”.
- What’s only made to order, such as free-range or stuffed chickens, said on its own line.
From the counter to the customer’s home
In a chicken shop, the menu works in three places:
- In the window or behind the counter: an A3 poster or a 16:9 screen, to be read from the queue or the street.
- In the bag: a tri-fold or an A5 with the full menu, the phone number and opening hours. With two A5s per sheet you use half the paper.
- On social media: a post or story on Friday to remind people about weekend pre-orders.
It all comes from the same content: change a price once and export again. The guide to menu sizes explains each format.
Allergens in a chicken shop
Chicken roasted with salt contains none of the 14 allergens. They’re in everything that goes with it:
- Marinades and rubs: depending on the recipe or the product, mustard, celery, soybeans, gluten or sulphites (wine, vinegar).
- Gravy: gluten if it’s thickened with flour; celery in many stock cubes.
- Eggs: coleslaw, mayonnaise, aioli.
- Milk: buttermilk coatings, mash, mac and cheese, ice cream.
- Fish: the anchovies in a Caesar dressing.
The shared fryer is the tricky part: if you fry chips and breaded chicken in the same oil, the chips can carry traces of gluten, egg and milk. Say so in a note, as the template does. And if you sell stuffed chicken, its allergens are those of the stuffing.
If you pack tubs before customers ask for them (coleslaw or salads already potted up on the counter), the rules can be different from those for food served to order. In the UK, food packed on the premises before it’s ordered counts as prepacked for direct sale (PPDS) and needs a label with the full ingredients list and the allergens emphasised. In the US, check with your county or state health department. The guide to allergens on menus explains how to show them on the menu.
Format and style
The template’s style is Market, like a fish-market chalkboard, with condensed lettering and leader dots up to the price. Embers suits you if you also do chargrilled meats, and Chalkboard works for a daily special or the deal of the week. More examples in menu templates.
Make it in MenuDesign
Open the chicken shop template, add your quarter, half and whole prices, your meal deals and the phone number for orders, mark the allergens and download the A3 poster and the tri-fold for the bag. Free, no sign-up, and saved in your browser.
Frequently asked questions
How do I price a half and a whole chicken?
With price columns, ‘Quarter’, ‘Half’ and ‘Whole’, and a note with the approximate weight of the bird and whether it’s before or after cooking: ‘Whole chicken approx. 1.3–1.5 kg, weighed before cooking’. If you sell some by weight, such as a free-range bird, give the price per kilo.
Does rotisserie chicken contain allergens?
Chicken roasted with just salt contains none of the 14. But marinades, rubs and bought-in sauces can contain mustard, celery, soya, gluten, milk or sulphites. Check the spec sheet of everything you use and mark it on each chicken.
How do I show pre-orders on the menu?
With the phone number in large type, the collection times and the order cut-off: ‘Sunday orders by 8pm on Saturday’. On the leaflet that goes in the bag, put the phone number on the front.