Overview
What this menu has to do
A bakery menu is read at a counter with a queue behind it, next to a case the guest can already see. Its job is not to describe what is visible — it is to price it, name it correctly and say what is in it.
Keep the four sections, adjust the counts to your bake, and write each item once — name, description, price, allergens — so the same entry works on the case label and in a link a customer opens before walking over.
Structure
The categories, in reading order
Keep the order, adjust the counts to your kitchen.
- 01
Bread
5–8 itemsThe daily base. Group by loaf rather than by flour, and say which days each is baked if the bake rotates.
- 02
Viennoiserie
5–8 itemsThe impulse section. Short names, and let the description carry the butter, the filling and whether it is finished sweet.
- 03
Cakes and tarts
4–7 itemsSold by the slice and whole. Show both prices where you offer both, and keep seasonal items clearly seasonal.
- 04
Coffee and drinks
4–8 itemsThe attachment sale. Six lines is plenty: a bakery is not a coffee bar, and a long drinks list slows the counter.
Worked example
What one finished entry looks like
One dish from each category, written the way a guest should read it.
This is how the same four entries reach a guest: one page, opened from a QR code or a link.
Example content for illustration. Prices are shown with the same formatting a published ListoQ menu uses.
Writing notes
Three things worth getting right
Do not describe what the case shows
The guest is looking straight at the pastry. Spend the description on what they cannot see: the fat, the filling, the ferment, the flour.
Gluten and milk are the whole menu
Almost every bakery item carries at least one of the 14 EU allergen categories. Tag them per item so the two or three that do not stand out clearly.
Say what is baked when
“From 7am” or “Fridays only” belongs on the item. It sets the queue's expectations and stops staff repeating it all morning.
Questions
Common questions about this menu
- How many items should a bakery menu list?
- Between 20 and 30 items across bread, pastry, cake and drinks suits most bakeries. The counts on this page add up to that range, which is roughly what a single bake can hold at consistent quality.
- Should bread or pastry come first?
- Bread. It is the reason regulars come and the item they buy on a schedule. Pastry is bought on impulse, and impulse items get found wherever they sit.
- How do I show items that are only baked some days?
- Put it in the item description rather than removing the item, so guests planning a visit can still see that it exists. The entry then stays correct in every language the menu is published in.
- How do I show cakes sold by the slice and whole?
- As one cake with two sizes, slice and whole cake, each with its own price. The cake section stays short and the whole-cake price is easy to find for orders.
- How do I take items off the menu once they sell out?
- Hide the item in the editor and publish. It leaves the guest menu but stays in your list, so you show it again and publish when the next bake is out.
More templates
Other menus you may be building
- Pizzeria menu templateA pizzeria menu structure you can start from: four sections, how many pizzas each should hold, and a worked example with prices and allergen labels.
- Food truck menu templateA food truck menu structure you can start from: four short sections, how many items each should hold, and a worked example with prices and allergens.
- Hotel menu templateA hotel food and beverage menu structure: four services, how many dishes each should hold, and a worked example with prices and allergen labels.