this post was submitted on 23 Apr 2025
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you know the computer thing is it plugged in?
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Reading other comments I'm on the unpopular side, but I prefer QR menus to physical ones. We don't have that surge price thing here, prices are pretty stable usually.
Printing several menus and having to replace them when they get dirty and stuff is such an unnecessary waste.
Aside from finding it annoying, QR code menus effectively prevent some people from viewing the menu.
Think about the requirements to view the menu. You must have a smartphone and a cellular data plan. People that aren't well off may skip on those in order to purchase things that are more important, like food. I guess I could understand if it was just fancy/expensive restaurants doing this, but I'm seeing it all over.
It's a similar issue to businesses that are cashless. You're effectively barring people who can't/don't have a bank account or credit card from paying. Both of which are notoriously hard to get if you're homeless.
Why can't you have both?
I don't mind when there's physical menus but people saying that they would leave the restaurant when there's not is crazy for me, menus are a waste of paper and ink.
I'm more used to either PDFs that are updated once per year (and the restaurant usually has a bunch of physical copies, but not enough for everyone on peak hour and that's completely reasonable) or webapps that have the regular menu where they can strikethrough sold out items so that it's easier for customers to notice, add dynamic items like "the fish of the day", or even being able to click each item to get a preview image.
I agree that having prices be updated every hour/minute day according to demand is incredibly scummy and completely inexcusable, and restaurants that do those things should be boycotted, but that's a separate from the menu digitalization.
Clearly the correct answer is to have a digital menu and either printed as a backup, or provide tablets as a backup if it HAS to be all digital...
If you complain about providing tablets, then I ask: which is more wasteful? Printing a handful of menus each time it changes, or an entire set of tablets?
I'd be fine with it if all the we page did was take my order. Too often I need to put in a name and email address, just to order food, and that pisses me right off. I just want to eat at your stupid place, not sign up to the foodies-food-fanclub
In my experience, after thinking what I want I ask a server to take my order. The digital menu is there as a replacement of the physical menu. All the complaints I read are about the extra things the restaurant tries to do with it. Replacing servers' tasks and abusive pricing practices. Fix those, complain about those.
I'm not trying to touch a poorly laminated menu with the last guys spilled salsa on it that's been wiped "clean" by the hostess with a rag in some bucket of water that's been sitting there for god knows how long. Minutes before I touch my food.
Nah you'll just touch the table with the last guys spilled salsa on it that's been wiped "clean" in the same way
Why the fuck would I touch the table with my fingertips? Am I some kind of sicko in this scenario? Do you think people sit down and just scrape their fingertips across the table like some cult ritual before they eat.
If they're following food safety laws, that bucket of water is likely bleach water or a similarly potent sanitizing agent...
If it were plain water, do you think they'd go through the effort to make a separate bucket of it? Also, if they're not rinsing off crud before putting the rag back in the bucket, they're doing it wrong.
Ok cool I'll make sure the 16 year old girl doing her first job ever knows all about food safety laws. Restaurant operators are so famous for following food safety laws. Thanks for the big tip my guy.