Turning a menu into something that actually makes you hungry

The existing menu did the job… but only just.

  • Heavy blocks of text with very little hierarchy

  • Inconsistent formatting across pages

  • Photos treated as an afterthought

  • No real brand identity beyond a logo at the top

It meant customers had to work to understand what was on offer — and when you’re sat in a restaurant, that’s the last thing you want.

It also wasn’t doing them any favours online. On platforms like Google Maps, where people often check menus before visiting, it didn’t stand out or build much appetite.

The approach

The goal wasn’t just to “tidy it up”.

It was to turn the menu into something that:

  • Felt like the restaurant

  • Guided decisions quickly

  • Made the food the hero

So the focus became:

  1. Build a clear, consistent brand system

  2. Design for how people actually read menus

  3. Let the food do the heavy lifting

Building the brand (beyond the logo)

The logo was already there — but nothing around it.

So I built out a simple, recognisable identity:

  • Bold, playful headline type for section titles

  • Clean, readable body text for descriptions

  • A tight colour palette (greens, reds, neutrals) to guide attention

  • Subtle background watermark to add texture without distraction

This meant every page felt consistent, intentional, and unmistakably “Filthy Vegan”.

Putting the food front and centre

The biggest shift was visual.

Instead of tiny, low-impact images buried at the bottom:

  • Food became the focal point of each page

  • Clean cut-outs made dishes pop against the background

  • Layouts were built around the imagery, not the other way round

Now, you don’t just read the menu — you scan it and instantly want something.

The result

The new menu doesn’t just look better — it works better

  • Improved in-restaurant experience - easier to browse, quicker to order, more enjoyable overall

  • Stronger first impression online - stands out on Google Maps and review platforms

  • Better conversion from browsing → visiting → ordering

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Turning a busy, text-heavy leaflet into something people actually want to pick up