Stop making me scan for supper
A rant about QR code menus and payment. An open letter to restaurateurs around the world.
Every now and again, I have a rant over on Instagram about all sorts of F&B industry issues, and on this platform with my restaurant reviews. The subject of the last gripe was my pet peeve with QR code menus, which garnered a helluva lot of traction, as with all rants. Especially on Instagram stories, where followers can private message confidentially.
However, what I found interesting was that everyone agreed, which doesn’t always happen. Yet, while plenty of industry followers, chefs included, weighed in, not a single word from restaurateurs and front-of-house managers specifically - even though many viewed the story. That, in itself, speaks volumes.
The high engagement and feedback to that story has encouraged me to pen a longform, more nuanced piece, so here we are.
Consider this newsletter an open letter to restaurateurs around the world.
QR code menus
Let me first paint a picture of the incident that sparked my rant.
Dinner at a restaurant haunt with visiting friends. In Cyprus, though the following issue is far too common in the UAE. Worth noting that having recently returned from a two week trip to the UK, dining out twice a day, I was never presented with any QR codes.
Back to the dinner in question. A table of seven. For the first time at this particular restaurant, the menu was only available via QR code, a dreaded Covid relic that should have been banished, as masks were.
Five of our guests had no data package. There was no WiFi password on the QR code card. And some older friends aren’t particularly tech-savvy. So I was forced to order for everyone, whilst also keeping in mind a few dietary requirements. Otherwise, by the time everyone had connected to WiFi, and figured out how to navigate the online menu, we’d have been ordering breakfast.
This wasn’t a meze-sharing-style taverna, where I could easily order for the table, but a classic à la carte menu with starters, mains and desserts. In a country that relies so heavily on tourism, assuming every guest has mobile data, or can easily connect to WiFi seems like an unnecessary barrier.
As one chef over on Instagram responded, “offering a QR code menu is the same as handing me an unopened bottle of beer, whilst I have to fetch the bottle opener, glass and coaster.” The perfect analogy.
One of the pleasures of dining out is gathering around a table and chatting. QR code menus immediately send everyone looking down at their phones - the very devices many of us are trying to escape over a meal, myself included. On the other hand, print menus encourage interaction. A waiter handing over a menu naturally leads to recommendations, wine suggestions, conversation - and yes, smart upselling. QR code menus make the experience feel transactional rather than welcoming.
And then there’s the practicality, or lack of it. Online menus are still poorly designed for phones - tiny text, endless scrolling, awkward navigation - and far slower to browse than a well-designed print menu.
QR code payment
And whilst on this subject, I’d also like to raise QR code payment, which as readers of my reviews know, makes my blood boil even more.
A useful tool if you’re splitting the bill. But in my culture, we typically take turns paying. I don’t want to type in my credit card details (I refuse to install Apple Pay after falling victim to a scam), open another app for authorisation and then, to add insult to injury, pay a ‘service’ fee for the inconvenience, which in the UAE typically sits at another 1 to 1.5% on top of the bill.
Once again, technology strips away another moment of engagement. Guests pay without speaking to a waiter, eliminating a natural opportunity to upsell a nightcap - and making a tip less likely too. That’s lost revenue all round, at a time when many UAE restaurants can least afford it as they work to rebuild trade in the wake of the war.
These menu and payment solution companies have given us a solution to a problem that never existed. And one that ruins both the first and last impression with a restaurant - and we all know how these set the scene for the whole dining experience.
I only see the benefit of QR code menus and payments in fast food joints. The clue’s in the name. Zero staff engagement required.
But they are becoming increasingly prevalent across all types of restaurant concepts from high-end to casual, leaving a very sour aftertaste. I understand the cost-saving and sustainability benefits of QR codes, but in pursuing them we’ve lost sight of what makes our industry special.
HOSPITALITY.
Offer a QR code by all means, but also keep a handful of printed menus for those who prefer them - or genuinely need them. A small stack of menus, even no-frills print-outs do the job, and cost very little compared with the goodwill they create.
Let the waiter present the bill, both printed and via QR code - with the handheld credit card device ready for payment.
Technology should enhance hospitality, not replace it. That’s not resisting progress; it’s recognising that true hospitality is about accommodating your guests, not expecting your guests to accommodate your systems.
Dear restaurateurs, isn’t that the most hospitable solution?
Resources and links…
I’ve been buying still and sparkling Monviso, 100% Italian natural mineral water for drinking since I first stumbled upon the brand 11 years ago, limiting local water to cooking. Why?
Bottled directly from the springs of Europe’s highest natural water source, it has one of the lowest sodium contents in the world at only 0.33 mg/litre.
All bottles, whether BPA-free PET or glass, are collected directly from homes and recycled free-of-charge.
Easy online ordering with next-day delivery.
Monviso supports medical research through the UAE’s Al Jalila Foundation, with a donation of over one million dirhams to date based on water sales. Customers also have the option to contribute directly at checkout.
For a 25% discount across multiple purchases, use promo code FOODIVA25 on the online store here.
If you’re looking for a gift for a foodie friend, you may like to consider an annual subscription to this newsletter with restaurant reviews, breaking news, advance notice of my dining experiences, invitations to special events, direct message access to moi, and a Whatsapp group. You’ll have my forever love.
Catch me on telly with this interview on CNN chatting UAE restaurants.
The home page shows tabs for Restaurant Reviews; Where Restaurateurs Eat Columns (including a special edition round-up of Where 14 Restaurateurs Eat in Dubai); Culinary Travel Guides; News Bites; and FooDiva-curated events.
My 2026 Dubai restaurant guide on where I dine out celebrating 40 homegrown concepts. Paying subscribers also receive a PDF of this online guide - as well as a Google maps link with all restaurants mapped out, plus new discoveries added throughout the year.
A round-up of my go-to gourmet food and beverage retailers in Dubai, with promo codes included.
I update My Little Pink Lifestyle Book with new finds regularly.
Keen to work with me? There’s seven ways you can here.
If you’d like to connect on other social channels, you’ll find me on Instagram, Threads, Facebook, X and LinkedIn.
FooDiva. x
I like both: many non-English readers can benefit from a QR with alternative languages, food photos, even in fancy places. But this should be on demand, not via a plastic table tent sitting on every table. It can also house allergen information, dietary filters, or sections based on meal size. If calibrated correctly, it can also upsell (like Deliveroo or Careem).
In a café, for me, it can sit on the table as an alternative. I agree with your piece that physical menus should always be present in all venues, all the time. The experience you had abroad sounds awful. Luckily, I’ve not had the same problem, but I can see how it goes wrong - operator error, in my opinion.
Similarly, my pet peeve in a café or restaurant is when servers try to memorise the order instead of using a notepad and pen, then get it wrong. With QR ordering, it’s entirely on the customer, reducing the room for error. In low-engagement settings - cafés, QSRs, etc. - it makes sense for me, and I don’t really need to make conversation with the team or be upsold extra cream on my coffee. In restaurants, or any remotely premium setting, I’d expect the first option to be a printed menu. Always.
Sorry for the essay, a lot to unpack and we could go on 😁
Absolutely
I love the unopened beer analogy too!
We go out to dinner to engage with humanity not a bot - there are far too many digitised “solutions” that actually equate to less service and more work for the customer - not exactly what I would call a solution!