Death to QR Code Menus

Imagine. You're just finished walking around the mall after looking at new shoes and accessories. You feel hungry. You and your family pointed at a nearby restaurant, reminding it's lunch time. You all walked in, sat on a table, and the waiter approached the table to give you menus. The images look appetizing, and you feel you're torn between choosing the steamy noodle meal or BBQ beef slices. You called the waiter and asked for his opinion between those two. He informed you of the two menus and you chose BBQ after a moment of consideration. He took your orders, confirmed them and said they would be ready in fifteen minutes. You thanked him and he bowed as he left your table.

If only, right? Instead of holding a menu book with its immersive pictures, the waiter handed you a piece of paper with the ever-increasingly familiar black-and-white grids. The darn QR code menus.

It was bothersome enough for me who spends everyday using my smartphone. Since the menu was in form of a .pdf file automatically saved to the device, my father had difficulty in locating the file in his smartphone. I had to try assisting him without being too invasive towards his phone. I re-downloaded the menu two times before we could open it, and even then it was too small for my father to see the whole menu clearly. Even I was getting disinterested to order anything.

Has this ever happened to you? What happened to the ultimate dining experience?

I don't want to sit here scrolling my phone straining my eyes to look at the small pictures in the digital menu, the file cluttered in my google drive for who knows how long. I want to be immersed in my dining experience. Just the foods and me (and whoever was eating with me).

Since the infamous Covid-19 pandemic period, restaurants seem to resort to switching their physical menu with QR code menu. I still like eating out, and I noticed in the many restaurants that I visit post-pandemic, those opting for QR code menus are divided into two types. First one is where the QR code only gives you the menu. This type of QR code only directs you to download a .pdf file of their menu, but you still have to call the waiters to order. The second type is where the QR code directs you to a website dedicated to their digital menu and you need to input the order directly through your phone, much like when you order UberEats or any type of food delivery service.

Now, I don't have any preference between the two. I would like both of them to just go extinct at this point, but they do come in different types of annoyance. Whichever kind the QR code menu we're talking about, ultimately the reason that I hate them is the inconvenience. Allow me to present several points of my argument here.

1. The menus aren't really optimized to phone viewing, and those that are, aren't as appetizing.

I've mentioned the two types of QR code menus. In restaurants like *some* sushi place I like to visit, they basically give us the un-printed version of their usually-physical menu. So instead of having the grand, big 'ol menu book with colored pages you can flip around to view the mouthwatering pictures, you have a lousy teeny tiny screen that you need to zoom in one by one to look at the topping.  

I would say this is a pretty time-consuming process, and not an exciting one at that. Unless you own an iPad, most times the items are too small to see clearly. Perhaps it's not too big of a deal if it's a place you like to frequent and you're already accustomed to the menu, and you have a regular order. Like in a *certain* sushi place, they recently shifted to the first type of QR code menu, but since I already know what I usually order, it's not as annoying. But the problem with this is then I'm doomed to repeat my usual orders, and there's no sense to explore other food because I'm already too lazy to scroll and zoom in on potential new favorites. 

There is also the second type of QR menu, which is akin to something you see in GoFood or UberEats. The menu is optimized for phone, because you order directly from your device. But I personally think this diminishes the experience of eating out. With this kind of menu it just feels like you're not dining outside your apartment. You don't really talk to the waiter, and it feels like you're not really expected to do so. Perhaps some people are okay with this change of not having to interact, but I feel like it's part of the charm of going out to eat.

2. "No-contact" safety? But you're already there!

One argument in favor for these QR code menus is the pandemic situation we all know have faced. Business owners are increasingly trying to appeal to more hygenic measures, such as cashless payment and contactless delivery. And now the QR code menu. Because they probably don't want our filthy hands on their physical, printed-out menu.

I don't know how to tell you this, but if you are eating out, you already risk yourself by going out, sitting on the assigned seat, out in the public. Looking back, I figured Covid-19 is transmitted airborne, so having removing your mask to eat out is far more risky. And if you're really a person who's concerned about hygiene, you would already accustomed to bring your own hand sanitizer, or own little bottle of soap to wash your hands?

3. Errors by customer's side.

Personal experience. I've once ordered via QR code where it directed me to the website to order on my smartphone. I was already tired enough that I didn't want to look at my tiny phone (I prefer one I can put in my pocket), but my family's lunch fate depended on me. I wouldn't possibly get my father or my mother to be the one ordering, right? So I explained what's on the (teeny tiny) menu, described the menu one by one, took their orders, and when I try to click the "submit" button, it just did nothing. I clicked and clicked. Nada. After several attempts and resetting my mobile data, I finally walked to the cashier and they inputted our orders manually. So much for automation, right.

Now, I could be just being an old grumpy hag in this case, but what if other errors happened? What if we ran out of mobile data? What if the menu refreshed itself and we had to re-input the orders? What if my parents wanted to eat there but their daughter wasn't there to help with order? What if their phone doesn't have a built-in QR code scanner? Would they still want to eat there, then?

What they have established by shifting the labor towards customer's side is basically adding more possibility to errors. For digitally inclined customers, perhaps this wouldn't be much of an issue. But they're saying to us that if we're not on our phone, they don't want our business.

4. Straight to system?

Perhaps another argument in favor is how the QR code menu adds convenience on behalf of the restaurant, particularly with the second type of QR menu. Because it inputs your order straight to their system. Possibly it's also to avoid human error in ordering, but personally I prefer the "repeating order" sequence from the waiter, as it feels more effective in confirming the order from both sides.

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I would add an example of a restaurant that I like to visit that had shifted to electronic ordering system but still not a hassle. Pizza Hut.

I've eaten at Pizza Hut many times post-pandemic, and I see they've implemented a decent mix of automation while not compromising the experience of eating out. They still give us physical menu, a couple pages of binded paper, still with yummy-looking images, clearly informed price included tax. We still had to call the waiter to order, but instead of paper and pen, they now input our orders in an assigned non-assuming smartphone. So the labor of "inputting order" is still ultimately by their side, and not ours. And there's still room for order modification, menu recommendation interaction, and repeating-order confirmation.

I think that's a good example, because if there's change in the ordering system, the trained waiters would be the most qualified to bridge between us customers and the management.

I would like to see opinions regarding why the QR code menu should persist. Sure, I am no restaurant owner, but as a customer who loves casual dining every once in a while, I would like to keep my experiences valuable, unbothered by the hindrance of smartphone-induced inconvenience. Sometimes you just don't buy a lot of mobile data package, you know. Sometimes you just want to enjoy your leisure time by eating out without getting distracted by your mobile phone. Sometimes you just want to disconnect for a bit.

I'm just wondering with the unpopularity of QR code menus, why are they still prevalent? Is it because we don't directly complain about it to the restaurant?

In the meantime, please bring physical menu back with all those mouthwatering images that make me want to buy them all. Make dining out great again.