Restaurants in the Bozeman area were allowed to open back up again two weeks ago, and most, if not all, are having to incorporate changes in how they operate. Some of the changes may even become permanent. I hope that becomes the case with QR Code menus.

A major concern for restaurants right now is the use of physical menus. They are an obvious place for the coronavirus to lurk since so many people touch them, and for that reason, many customers are hesitant to use them. To get around this, the Gallatin County Health Dept has advised that disposable menus should be provided.

This brings up another challenge, though. Printing disposable menus is not very cost effective, and this is where contactless QR Code menus come into play.

In the first week of printing and using disposable menus, we went through over 1,000 sheets of paper," says Arkinda Mickelson, Food & Beverage Manager at The Club Tavern & Grill. "We knew we had to come up with a more sustainable option, not only to help with costs and paper waste, but to maintain quality health standards for our customers.

 

Using your smartphone, you take a picture of the QR code or use a QR code app. The code takes you directly to the The Club Tavern & Grill Menu page displaying their full menu including Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, Appetizers, Beer Menu, Specialty Cocktails, Wine Menu, Kid’s Menu, & Pizza.

For restaurants interested in leveraging QR codes, it takes less than a minute to upload a menu in the PDF format and convert it into a QR Code but it goes a long way in keeping customers engaged and safe.

We recognize that everyone is in a different place with this pandemic and our goal is to meet the customer where they’re at," Mickelson continued. "and give them options so they feel comfortable and safe dining with us.

There are several different ways to use QR codes including menu cards, virtual tours of the kitchen, enabling mobile ordering, even dynamic QR codes. There will no-doubt be a learning curve for customers and restaurants adhering to all health guidelines while maintaining top-notch customer service, but the QR Code menu is one change we could see sticking around when restaurants and life returns to normal.

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