A Little History Lesson for Saturday That Will Make Restaurateurs Say ‘No Way!'

Jay Ashton, Canada's Restaurant Guy

Salvador Dalí was a master of the surreal, a provocateur who took the mundane and turned it into the extraordinary. His dinner parties were not merely social gatherings but immersive experiences, where food, art, and theatre collided in a spectacle of imagination. His legendary affair where everything was painted green was more than a colour choice; it was an experiment in perception, a fully orchestrated environment designed to challenge expectations. This eccentricity has direct parallels to the restaurant industry today, particularly in how operators must think about their menu design and engineering as we move into the spring and summer seasons.

The industry has always been about more than just food. A restaurant is a sensory experience, a curated environment where every element from the lighting to the plating to the wording of the menu plays a role in shaping the guest’s journey. Just as Dalí understood that his guests were not just eaters but participants, restaurant operators today must craft menus that go beyond listing dishes and instead build an emotional and psychological narrative. Menu design is a science and an art, balancing psychology with profitability, storytelling with strategy. Every element influences the way guests interact with it, from font choice to layout to the very structure of descriptions. In the same way that Dalí knew how to manipulate an environment to evoke a specific feeling, a well-structured menu can subtly guide guests towards certain choices, increase per-head spend, and create a lasting impression that brings them back.

Operators moving into spring and summer have a unique opportunity to reimagine their menus, to refresh not only their offerings but how those offerings are presented and perceived. The change of season is more than just a shift in ingredients; it’s an opportunity to create new experiences for guests who are ready to emerge from the heavier meals of winter into something lighter, fresher, and more vibrant. This is the time to rethink how a menu flows, how the guest's eye moves across the page, and how subtle nudges can encourage them towards high-margin items or innovative seasonal dishes. Dalí’s approach to his art was never passive, and the same should be true for menu creation.

Every element of a menu should be intentional. The way dishes are named can evoke emotion, nostalgia, or curiosity. The placement of items can influence choice. The way seasonal ingredients are highlighted can reinforce a sense of place and time, creating a menu that doesn’t just serve food but tells a story. Just as Dalí’s dinner guests stepped into a world where convention was abandoned, guests in a restaurant should feel transported, immersed in something memorable, something beyond the ordinary.

Menu engineering isn’t just about pushing high-margin items or upselling—it’s about crafting an experience that feels effortless yet designed, natural yet intentional. A well-designed menu can make a guest feel taken care of, guided, and engaged rather than overwhelmed or indifferent. The goal is to make choices feel intuitive, to make guests excited about what they are ordering, and to leave them with a lasting impression that draws them back again. Spring and summer offer a moment to reset, to refine, and to create a menu that doesn’t just reflect the season but capitalizes on the psychology of anticipation and excitement that comes with it.

Just as Dalí used surrealism to make people see the world differently, a well-engineered menu can make dining feel like more than just eating; it can turn it into an experience, an escape, a moment worth remembering. This is not the time for static, uninspired lists of dishes. This is the time for creativity, for careful construction, for a renewed focus on how guests engage with a restaurant not just through what they eat but through how they feel about it long after they’ve left the table.