# QR codes for restaurants

> How restaurants use QR codes properly: free menu codes, table sizing, Wi-Fi and review codes, and the printing mistakes that stop diners scanning at all.

Source: https://qr-code-build.com/qr-code-for-restaurants/  
Last reviewed: 2026-08-24  
Publisher: QR Code Builder

## Summary
Restaurants use QR codes for menus, Wi-Fi access, review requests and ordering. Print them 35–40 mm on matte table tents with the quiet zone intact, point them at a mobile web page rather than a PDF, and always keep paper menus available as an alternative.

## What to put on the table, and where
| Code | Placement | Size | Points at |
|---|---|---|---|
| Menu | Table tent, both faces | 35–40 mm | A mobile menu page |
| Wi-Fi | Same tent, reverse side | 30 mm | Guest network only |
| Review | Receipt and takeaway bag | 25 mm | Google review link |
| Booking | Window and A-board | 80–150 mm | Your booking page |

Resist the urge to add more. A table cluttered with five codes gets none of them scanned; diners cannot tell which is which and stop reading. Label each one in plain words — *Menu*, *Wi-Fi*, *Tell us how we did* — because an unlabelled code is a code nobody scans.

## What diners actually need on a phone
The failure mode is universal: a PDF designed for A4, opened on a 6-inch screen, requiring pinch-zoom to read a price. Diners give up and ask the server, and you have added friction rather than removing it.

- A web page, not a PDF. Headings per course, prices as text.

- Sixteen pixel minimum body text. Nobody should zoom to read the specials.

- Under 500 KB. A busy dining room means weak signal and shared bandwidth.

- Allergen and dietary information as readable text, not a legend of tiny icons.

- Prices in the same order as the paper menu, so staff and diners are looking at the same thing.

- A visible *updated* date so regulars trust it.

The [menu QR code generator](/menu-qr-code-generator/) builds this code for you.

Point the code at a stable URL like `yoursite.com/menu` and update the page behind it. The printed code never needs to change, which is the whole trick — it gives you the flexibility of a [dynamic code](/dynamic-qr-code/) with none of the subscription.

## Materials that survive a service
- **Matte, never gloss.** Restaurant downlights reflect off gloss lamination straight into the camera. This single choice fixes most table-code failures.

- **Wipeable.** Laminated card or vinyl. A code with a thumbprint of olive oil across it still scans; one that has been scrubbed to a haze does not.

- **Quiet zone intact.** Four modules of clear space on all four sides. Designers crop this constantly.

- **Both faces of the tent.** Diners on the far side will not turn it round; they will ask a server.

- **Reprint stock.** Table tents get spilled on. Order 20% spare with the first run.

## Keeping the code from costing you goodwill
QR menus generated real resentment during their forced rollout, and some of it stuck. The complaints are legitimate: low battery, poor eyesight, bad signal, and the feeling of being handed a task instead of a menu.

- Keep printed menus and offer them without being asked. *Menu's on the code, or I can bring you a paper one* costs nothing and defuses the entire objection.

- Never require an app download. The web page is the whole point.

- Do not gate the menu behind an email address or a sign-in. Diners will leave.

- Do not require the code for ordering unless you also take orders at the table. Some customers will not or cannot use it.

## Frequently asked questions
### What size should a QR code be on a restaurant table?
35–40 mm on a table tent. That gives comfortable module size for a diner scanning from a seated position with a mid-range phone.

### Should a QR menu link to a PDF or a web page?
A web page. PDFs are designed for paper, load slowly and require pinch-zooming on a phone, which is where most diners give up.

### Do I have to pay monthly for a QR menu?
No. A static code pointing at a page you control costs nothing and never expires. Monthly fees buy a redirect layer and analytics that a menu rarely needs.

### Can I use one code for the menu and the Wi-Fi?
Only by pointing it at a landing page carrying both. A single code holds one payload, so it cannot be a menu link and a Wi-Fi credential at once.

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Licence: this page may be quoted with attribution to QR Code Builder (https://qr-code-build.com/qr-code-for-restaurants/).