What parents actually order
Anyone who has worked a family brunch knows the kids menu is not where the kitchen shows off. Parents order what they know the child will eat, and they order it fast because the child is already hungry. The dishes are the same in most American dining rooms for a reason: they are plain, they are familiar, and they can be eaten with a fork or hands.
- Chicken tenders with fries or fruit.
- Grilled cheese on plain bread.
- Pasta with butter and cheese, or a plain red sauce.
- Cheese quesadilla, cut in wedges.
- Small burger or cheeseburger, nothing on it unless asked.
- Small cheese pizza, if there is a pizza oven.
A kid-sized version of something from your main menu is worth adding too. A child who likes the house meatballs is a family that comes back. What does not work is a kids menu with dishes the kitchen does not already make; it adds prep and product for a small slice of covers.
Drinks are part of the kids menu too. Milk, apple juice, lemonade, and water cover most tables. If you sell soda, decide whether it comes with the kids plate or costs extra, and write that down so the server does not have to guess. Refill rules on kids drinks cause more small arguments at the table than anything on the food side.
Kids menu ideas built from your existing prep
Every kids dish should borrow its prep from the main line. This is how the usual items map to a normal kitchen:
| Kids dish | Borrows from | Station |
|---|---|---|
| Chicken tenders | Fried chicken sandwich or salad chicken | Fry |
| Grilled cheese | Sandwich bread and cheese | Flat top |
| Buttered pasta | Any pasta on the menu | Sauté |
| Quesadilla | Tortillas and shredded cheese | Flat top |
| Small burger | Burger blend, portioned smaller | Grill |
| Fruit cup | Breakfast or dessert fruit | Pantry |
Watch the station. If every kids dish comes off the fry station, the fryer backs up at the exact moment families arrive. Spread them across two or three stations.
Portion and price on a children’s menu
Portion by what a child eats, not by what looks good on the plate. A smaller protein, a side, and something to drink is the usual shape. Spec the weights like any other dish, or the cook on a busy Sunday will plate an adult portion at a kids price.
Price it from the plate cost. The menu item price calculator takes the cost and the food cost percentage you want and gives you a starting price. Then look at what families nearby pay. Many restaurants sell each kids plate as one price that includes the side and a drink, which saves the parent a decision and the server a modifier. Put the age limit under the heading: “12 and under” is the common line, some use 10.
Decide ahead of time what happens when an adult orders from the kids menu. Some rooms allow it at the same price, some add a charge, some say no. Any of those is fine; the server making it up at the table is not.
Allergens on a kids menu
Parents of children with food allergies read the kids menu more carefully than anyone in the room. Name the common allergens in each description, and do not assume a “plain” dish is safe: grilled cheese is milk and wheat, tenders are often egg and wheat, and the fryer oil may be shared with fish or shellfish. Say so.
Ask every table to tell the server about any allergy before ordering, and make sure the kitchen can make a simpler version on request, like pasta with olive oil instead of butter. For what the FDA covers and what a menu allergen notice should say, read restaurant allergen labeling.
A kids section on the main menu, or a separate sheet
| What matters | Kids section on the main menu | Separate printed kids sheet |
|---|---|---|
| Parents see it | With everything else, on the same QR | When the host hands it over |
| Children can draw on it | No | Yes |
| Changing a price | Same edit as any dish | Reprint the sheet |
| Best for | Counters, fast casual, brunch | Sit-down family dining rooms |
Plenty of places do both: a kids section on the QR menu so parents can plan, and a printed sheet at the table for the child.
Crayons and paper are fine
A kids menu is the one menu that gets better on paper. It keeps a child busy for ten minutes, it can go home in a pocket, and kids menu prices tend to move less often than the main menu’s. A single printed sheet with a few simple drawings to color, a maze, and the menu on one side is all it needs. Print it on plain text stock so crayons take to it, and hand out a few crayons with it.
Setting up a kids menu in Gaslamp
Add a Kids section to your main menu and put the rules in the subtitle under the heading, up to 120 characters: “12 and under. Served with fries or fruit, and milk or juice.” Each item carries a price (up to three labeled ones, if a kids plate comes in two sizes) and a description of up to 300 characters, which is plenty for the dish, the side, and its allergens. Most menus put the Kids section near the end. Dietary tags such as vegetarian or gluten-free can go on any item, and your allergy notice belongs in the menu’s disclaimers field, which shows as fine print on the hosted menu (only two of the eight print designs carry it, so check the PDF).
On a paid plan you can also make the kids menu its own menu and download a print-ready PDF for the table. Gaslamp does not make coloring pages or activity sheets, and it does not print; draw those yourself or have a local designer do one page you can reuse for years. More on printing in the restaurant menu printing guide, and see how diners and brunch spots run theirs.