Digital menu: for us, it’s also an interface
We pay a lot of attention to the menu
Why? Because it matters. The menu above the register serves three purposes at once: it reduces anxiety, speeds up the decision-making process, and subtly guides the guest toward a more profitable order.
It eliminates the question, «What's even on the menu?». The guest sees categories: combos, pizzas, appetizers, drinks, desserts. Their brain latches onto familiar patterns: getting a combo is easier than putting together an order piece by piece. When categories are given their own screens, and everything within them is organized logically — the guest feels that someone has already thought of them.
The menu shortens the path to a decision. A good menu has no clutter—just names, prices, and bold highlights on key items. People have time to choose while walking to the register, so the line doesn’t slow down.
The menu drives the check. If you show value combos on the first screen, unique pizzas on the second, and appetizers that make sense to add to the order on the third, guests are more likely to buy something extra. Not because they’re being forced, but because you’ve offered a clear, pre-curated option: a set for one person or a group.
The menu above the register is the last point of influence before payment. The website and app still need to be opened, but here you literally have a screen right in front of the guest.
It eliminates the question, «What's even on the menu?». The guest sees categories: combos, pizzas, appetizers, drinks, desserts. Their brain latches onto familiar patterns: getting a combo is easier than putting together an order piece by piece. When categories are given their own screens, and everything within them is organized logically — the guest feels that someone has already thought of them.
The menu shortens the path to a decision. A good menu has no clutter—just names, prices, and bold highlights on key items. People have time to choose while walking to the register, so the line doesn’t slow down.
The menu drives the check. If you show value combos on the first screen, unique pizzas on the second, and appetizers that make sense to add to the order on the third, guests are more likely to buy something extra. Not because they’re being forced, but because you’ve offered a clear, pre-curated option: a set for one person or a group.
The menu above the register is the last point of influence before payment. The website and app still need to be opened, but here you literally have a screen right in front of the guest.
How we design menus at Dodo
At Dodo, the menu is a living system, not just a picture that gets printed, put up, and forgotten. It consists of several layers.
First come the products and flavors. The Global R&D team develops recipes and adapts the menu for different markets. For each market, they select a local twist: Croatia has its own popular ingredients, Azerbaijan has its own. In other words, the foundation is the same, but the flavor palette and best-sellers vary.
Next is the menu structure. At the brand level, there’s a logic: which categories must appear on the first screens — pizzas, appetizers, combos, desserts. This logic is customized for each market: what exactly to highlight as a unique offering, which products to use as "beacons" at the lowest price, and which items are key for profit margins.
The visual system is a separate story. Within the company, there is a modular design system for the menu: templates for different screens, from the first board with combos to the list of pizzas and appetizers. It accommodates constant changes: seasonal products, price changes, and the launch of new formats. At the same time, there is a single system, but the style can vary from market to market—adapted to the local context and language.
In the end, all these decisions come together into a specific set of TV boards: what goes on which screen, in what order, and with what emphasis. And this isn’t a one-time exercise, but a continuous cycle: we launch a season, update the boards, look at sales, and tweak the layout.
First come the products and flavors. The Global R&D team develops recipes and adapts the menu for different markets. For each market, they select a local twist: Croatia has its own popular ingredients, Azerbaijan has its own. In other words, the foundation is the same, but the flavor palette and best-sellers vary.
Next is the menu structure. At the brand level, there’s a logic: which categories must appear on the first screens — pizzas, appetizers, combos, desserts. This logic is customized for each market: what exactly to highlight as a unique offering, which products to use as "beacons" at the lowest price, and which items are key for profit margins.
The visual system is a separate story. Within the company, there is a modular design system for the menu: templates for different screens, from the first board with combos to the list of pizzas and appetizers. It accommodates constant changes: seasonal products, price changes, and the launch of new formats. At the same time, there is a single system, but the style can vary from market to market—adapted to the local context and language.
In the end, all these decisions come together into a specific set of TV boards: what goes on which screen, in what order, and with what emphasis. And this isn’t a one-time exercise, but a continuous cycle: we launch a season, update the boards, look at sales, and tweak the layout.
TV boards vs. printed menus
A printed menu is set in stone. TV boards is an interface that can be updated just as easily as a website. And here are the benefits it offers.
Attention. Large, bright screens above the cash register, featuring animations and changing images, attract the eye far more effectively than a laminated sheet on a counter. You can display mouthwatering close-ups of pizza, rotating seasonal specials, and subtle animations of combo deals to draw the guest’s attention to the right items.
Speed of updates. Prices have changed, a new product has been released, or the season has ended — no need to wait for printing, delivery, or rehanging. Data is updated centrally, and the menu changes in real time. This is especially important for chains with dozens or hundreds of locations: a mistake in price or ingredients on a physical poster turns into a nationwide quest to replace all the displays.
Variety and experimentation. TV boards allows you to rotate multiple versions of displays: appetizers in one slot, desserts or promotions in another. You can test different product layouts, change major focal points, and see how this affects the average check and sales of specific items. A printed poster can’t do that.
Consistency. Across the chain, brand consistency depends on how uniformly key touchpoints look and function. If uniform templates are used for TV boards everywhere — fonts, spacing, grid layout, and category placement logic — the guest recognizes the brand, even if they’re in a different country. At the same time, local products and prices can easily be integrated into the same system.
Attention. Large, bright screens above the cash register, featuring animations and changing images, attract the eye far more effectively than a laminated sheet on a counter. You can display mouthwatering close-ups of pizza, rotating seasonal specials, and subtle animations of combo deals to draw the guest’s attention to the right items.
Speed of updates. Prices have changed, a new product has been released, or the season has ended — no need to wait for printing, delivery, or rehanging. Data is updated centrally, and the menu changes in real time. This is especially important for chains with dozens or hundreds of locations: a mistake in price or ingredients on a physical poster turns into a nationwide quest to replace all the displays.
Variety and experimentation. TV boards allows you to rotate multiple versions of displays: appetizers in one slot, desserts or promotions in another. You can test different product layouts, change major focal points, and see how this affects the average check and sales of specific items. A printed poster can’t do that.
Consistency. Across the chain, brand consistency depends on how uniformly key touchpoints look and function. If uniform templates are used for TV boards everywhere — fonts, spacing, grid layout, and category placement logic — the guest recognizes the brand, even if they’re in a different country. At the same time, local products and prices can easily be integrated into the same system.
That said, printed menus aren’t going away: at Dodo, they usually complement the digital displays. Some people prefer to hold a printed menu in their hands and take their time looking over the options, especially if they’re not in a hurry. But it’s the screen above the register that plays the leading role in the flow.
The menu in Dodo is also part of the interface
Dodo is a digital pizzeria, so the menu here consists of screens equipped with their own mini-computers and the Dodo IS system: from a single central location, layouts across the entire network can be updated in just a couple of minutes, and for some tasks, there’s no need to update the layouts at all — for example, the system automatically updates prices in the layout!
