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Menus Overview

Tripleseat Team
Updated

Overview

Menus control how food, beverage, rental, and other offerings are organized, presented, and priced in Tripleseat. A menu can contain items, packages, or a combination of both, while options let customers make selections for individual items.

How menus work

Menus help you match Tripleseat to your venue’s offerings and pricing structure. For example, you can create:

  • A buffet menu priced per person.
  • A rental menu with individually priced items.
  • A beverage package priced per person or according to consumption.
  • A plated dinner package with multiple entrée selections.

You can reuse menus, items, packages, and pricing across bookings.

Menu pricing and selections

Per-person pricing

Per-person pricing works well for buffets, prix fixe menus, and open bar packages. Tripleseat calculates the price using the booking’s guest count.

For example, a menu priced at $65 per person for 100 guests totals $6,500.

Per-item pricing

Per-item pricing works well for à la carte selections, rentals, and optional add-ons. Tripleseat calculates the price using the selected quantity instead of the guest count.

For example, three cheese platters priced at $40 each total $120.

Choice-based pricing

Choice-based pricing works well for plated dinners and packages with multiple selections. Each selection can have its own price, and Tripleseat calculates the total using the customer’s choices.

Options

Options identify available choices or features for an item. Options are organized within option groups and can include pricing when applicable.

For example, a Chicken Parmesan item could use a Pasta Choice option group containing Ziti, Penne, and Angel Hair options.

Menu terminology

Your venue may use different terms for its offerings. Use the following Tripleseat terms when creating menus:

  • Item: An individual offering sold to a customer. An item is often consumable, but it does not have to be. Examples include Chicken Parmesan, two additional hours of bartender service, or a wireless microphone.
  • Item group: A group that organizes items within a package. Item groups often represent meal courses, such as Appetizers, Entrées, and Desserts.
  • Option group: A group of related options for an item. Examples include a Pasta Choice option group for Chicken Parmesan or a Microphone Type option group for a wireless microphone.
  • Option: An available choice or feature for an item. Options belong to an option group. For example, the options in a Microphone Type option group might be Handheld, Headset, and Clip.
  • Package: A collection of items offered together at a set price, often priced per person. For example, a $75-per-person plated dinner package might allow customers to select two appetizers, three entrées, and one dessert.
  • Minimum and maximum selections: Settings that control how many options within an option group or items within an item group a customer can select. If you do not enter a minimum or maximum, the number of selections is not limited. Tripleseat users can select any number of options or items within a document template regardless of these settings.
  • Menu: A collection of items, packages, or both. For example, a corporate group dinner menu might contain multiple dinner packages, while a continental breakfast menu might contain individual items such as muffins, fruit bowls, and breakfast sandwiches.

How menus support your business

Menus connect to proposals, invoices, reporting, forecasting, and revenue tracking in Tripleseat.

  • Accuracy: Apply the appropriate pricing structure to proposals and invoices.
  • Efficiency: Reuse menus, items, packages, and pricing across bookings.
  • Reporting: Analyze revenue by menu item, category, or pricing type.
  • Forecasting: Use menu data with Tripleseat’s forecasting tools to project food and beverage revenue and inventory needs.

Best practices for managing menus

  • Use clear categories and sections to keep menus organized.
  • Give menus and items descriptive names. Include helpful details or tags such as “gluten-free,” “vegetarian,” or “Winter Menu” when appropriate.
  • Use internal names to distinguish similar offerings when needed.
  • Review pricing regularly so that proposals, invoices, and reports use current information.
  • Use option groups to organize related choices for an item.
  • Confirm minimum and maximum selection settings before making a menu available.

Menu guides and videos

Go to Settings > Menus to find menu guides and videos at the top of the page.

menu guides pic (1).png

You can also view these Tripleseat University videos:

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