Hotel menus: room service and breakfast

Two different menus

A hotel usually needs at least two menus, and each has its own logic:

• Room service: read in the room, with no rush and nobody to explain it. It has to give the serving times, how to order and what the service costs.
• Breakfast: buffet, à la carte or both. Read in the dining room or by the buffet, often with children and in a hurry to get out.

If the hotel has a restaurant, its menu is a third one. The room service menu is usually a short selection from it, with the dishes that travel well on a trolley or a tray.

Room service sections

1. Breakfast in your room, with its serving times.
2. Light bites: club sandwich, salads, a burger, soup, something hot and quick.
3. Mains from the restaurant, with their serving times.
4. Desserts.
5. Drinks: water, soft drinks, coffee and tea, beer, wine and Champagne.
6. Kids’ menu, if you welcome families. The kids’ menu guide explains how to put one together.

The key is the serving times on every section, in the note under the heading: “7:00–11:00”, “12:00–15:00 · 18:00–23:00”. If something is served 24 hours a day, make it clear what.

What the in-room menu has to say

• How to order: the phone extension, in large type.
• Serving times for each section.
• The tray or delivery charge, if there is one, with its amount: “Tray charge 5 per order”.
• The approximate delivery time.
• How to pay: charged to the room or paid on delivery.
• Allergens, as on any menu.

In the UK, the advertised price has to be the final one, VAT included, with any compulsory charge shown up front; a “Prices include VAT” note at the foot avoids doubts. In the US, prices usually exclude sales tax: say so, and say whether a service charge or gratuity is added. The guide to menu labelling rules has the details.

Breakfast: buffet, à la carte or both

• Buffet: price per person for guests who don’t have it included in their rate, serving times and anything charged separately (eggs cooked to order, fresh juice, a glass of Buck’s Fizz). If children pay less, say up to what age.
• À la carte: Continental, Full English and individual dishes (toast, eggs Benedict, porridge, fruit, yoghurt). Each breakfast with what’s included, with no ambiguity: “Coffee or tea, fresh orange juice, pastries, toast, butter and preserves”.
• In the room: if it costs more than in the dining room, say so on both menus.

The ideas in the cafe menu guide about breakfast deals work here too.

Allergens at the breakfast buffet

The buffet is where it gets complicated: lots of items, many of them bought in ready-made, and guests serving themselves.

• A card for each dish with the name of the item and its allergens, or a buffet menu listing everything at the entrance. What matters is that guests see it before they help themselves.
• Bought-in pastries, breads and cold meats: the supplier’s spec sheet is what counts. Gluten, eggs, milk, soya, tree nuts and sesame turn up often.
• Gluten-free: if you offer gluten-free bread, give it its own toaster and its own space. If you can’t avoid cross-contamination, say so.
• Separate tongs and spoons for every dish, so allergens don’t travel from one to another.
• Eggs or omelettes cooked to order: if the same griddle is used for everything, there may be traces.

In the UK, allergen information for food that isn’t prepacked can be given verbally, as long as a clear notice tells guests to ask and the information is written down so staff give the same answer every time. At a buffet, having it on display is clearest for everyone. In the US, the FDA’s nine major allergens, sesame included, are the reference. More in the guide to allergens on menus.

Menus in more than one language

• The local language and English at least, with the second language under each dish.
• Dishes with their own name keep it, with an explanation: “Full English — Bacon, sausage, fried egg, black pudding, baked beans, mushrooms, tomato and toast”.
• Fixed text too: serving times, tray charge, phone extension.
• One menu per language if you have many guests from a particular country, in the same order and with the same prices.

The guide on how to translate a menu has a checklist to review it before printing.

Format and style

• Slim A4 or booklet in the room: it fits in the welcome folder and looks polished. In the US, use US Letter instead of A4.
• A5 for the breakfast menu on the tables.
• A3 poster at the entrance to the dining room, with serving times and the buffet price.
• 16:9 screen in reception or by the dining room, if you have one.

The template’s style is Brasserie, a classic grand café with leader dots and serifs. Nordic suits a small or city hotel, and Déco a classic one. More examples in menu templates.

Make it in MenuDesign

Open the hotel menu template, change the dishes, prices and serving times, mark the allergens and download the PDF. For breakfast, duplicate the menu from My menus and adapt it: same style, different content. Free, no sign-up, and saved in your browser.