Free PDF · the Food Truck design

Specials board template

Soup of the day, today’s plates, the catch, a sandwich special, and pie by the slice, in type big enough to read from across the room. This is a sample specials board set in Gaslamp’s Food Truck design.

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A printed menu with a price crossed out in marker and a new price written in by hand
Illustrative scene. The menu on this page is a real Gaslamp render.

The real menu, first two pages

The sample is five short sections of three lines each. Each section’s note says when it ends: “until it runs out”, “served until 3 p.m. or until gone”. That note is what a specials board is for.

Food Truck specials board menu template, first menu pageFood Truck specials board menu template, second menu page

Sample menu. Dishes and prices are examples. Want to see one on a phone? Scan a live sample menu.

  • The filePDF, 53 KB
  • Pages3, with a coverThe cover carries the name and a QR code to the live menu.
  • PaperUS Letter, portrait
  • To download and printfree
Download the specials board template (PDF)

No signup, no email. It is a finished sample, so it carries sample dishes. Putting your own menu into it takes the free trial. The trial includes one published live menu with QR codes. PDF downloads and additional menus start when you pick a plan.

What belongs on a specials board

A specials board changes every day, sometimes twice. It should hold a few lines per slot, each with a price, and a note that says when the slot ends. Everything else stays on the regular menu.

  1. Soup of the day

    One line per soup with two labeled prices, Cup and Bowl. The note says “until it runs out” because it will.

    • Chicken and wild riceCup 6 / Bowl 9
    • Tomato basilCup 7 / Bowl 10

  2. Today’s plates

    Two or three hot plates with their sides in the description. The hours go in the note.

    • Meatloaf plate16
    • Chicken pot pie15

  3. The catch

    Whatever fish came in, at today’s price. On paper this is where MP lives; on a menu you edit from your phone, it is today’s number.

    • Blackened redfish24Today’s price

  4. Sandwich special

    One to three, the kind of line a regular asks about at the counter.

    • Reuben15

  5. Dessert by the slice

    Pie and cobbler, with the flavor in the name so it changes with one edit.

    • Coconut cream pie7

Example lines and prices show format only. They are not pricing advice.

How Food Truck sets it

Food Truck sets each section name in a solid red tab, dish names in heavy condensed caps, and prices big and bold on the right. It is built to be read from a distance, which is what a specials board is: printed at letter size for a clipboard, or enlarged at a print shop for the wall.

The section note prints to the right of the tab in spaced caps. It is the right place for “Served until 3 p.m. or until gone” and it reads at a glance.

The QR code prints on the cover page. For specials, many places make the board its own menu with its own code on a counter card, so the regular menu’s code stays on the tables and the specials code sits by the register.

Prices on a specials board

Every special gets a price. Gaslamp does not print MP, so the catch shows today’s number and you change it with the delivery. That is the one thing a phone does better than chalk.

Sizes share a line: Cup and Bowl, Slice and Whole pie, up to three labeled prices on one item, so the board stays short.

When a special earns a permanent spot, move it to the regular menu rather than leaving it on the board for a month. Specials sell because they are temporary.

Set it up in Gaslamp

SOUP OF THE DAY Chicken and Wild Rice Cup 6 / Bowl 9 With a buttered roll Tomato Basil Cup 7 / Bowl 10 With a grilled cheese dipper Beef and Barley Cup 6 / Bowl 9 Slow-simmered, fresh thyme TODAY’S PLATES Meatloaf Plate 16 Mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans Chicken Pot Pie 15 Flaky crust, side salad Shrimp and Grits 19 Andouille, peppers, scallion THE CATCH Blackened Redfish 24 Dirty rice, slaw, lemon Fish Tacos 16 Three tacos, cabbage, chipotle crema Fried Clam Roll 22 Toasted roll, tartar sauce, fries SANDWICH SPECIAL Reuben 15 Corned beef, kraut, Swiss, Russian, rye Grilled Veggie Melt 13 Zucchini, peppers, provolone, pesto Cuban 15 Roast pork, ham, Swiss, pickles, mustard
The start of the sample, as plain lines: section, dish, price, a short description. You type yours over them in the editor.
  1. 1

    Start from this specials board

    Pick Food Truck and start from this sample. Every section, line, and price is already in place, so you type your own over it instead of building a blank page.

  2. 2

    Type your dishes over it

    Replace each name, description, and price in the editor. Delete the lines you do not serve and add the ones you do. The layout reflows as you type.

  3. 3

    Rewrite it each morning

    Change the soup, the plates, and the catch in the editor before open. Keep the section names; only the lines under them change.

  4. 4

    Publish, then print

    Publish the live menu behind one QR code that never changes, print the table tents once, and print the PDF whenever the paper copy needs to catch up.

Running it

  1. 10:45 a.m.

    Today’s specials go up

    Rename the soup, the two plates, and the fish on your phone before the doors open, set the fish price from the invoice, and save. The QR board is right before the first ticket.

  2. 1:20 p.m.

    Pot pie is gone

    The last pot pie went out. Mark it sold out and save; guests reading the board on their phones see it struck through, next to the plates you still have.

Specials board menus, straight answers

Is this specials board template free?
Yes. The Food Truck PDF on this page is free to download and print, with no signup. It is a sample, so it carries sample dishes and prices. To put your own menu into the design, start the 14-day free trial, no card needed. The trial includes one published live menu with QR codes. PDF downloads and additional menus start when you pick a plan.
Should daily specials be on the main menu?
Keep them separate. A specials menu with its own QR code by the register, or a Specials section at the top of the main menu that you rewrite each morning, both work. The regular menu stays stable either way.
How do I show market price on a specials board?
Gaslamp does not print MP; every item needs a price. Set today’s price when the fish comes in and change it tomorrow. The note under the heading can say the price changes daily.
Can I print a specials board big enough for the wall?
The PDF is US Letter with vector text, so a print shop can enlarge it without the type going soft. Gaslamp does not print or ship boards.
How fast does a change show up?
The hosted menu behind the QR code shows your edit about thirty seconds after you save.
How much does it cost?
Start with a 30-day free trial, no credit card needed. Then it is $19 a month, or $190 a year (2 months free). No setup fee. Cancel anytime. The trial includes one published live menu with QR codes. PDF downloads and additional menus start when you pick a plan.

If you run one

Every design takes every menu. Switch between them anytime and your dishes stay put.

For the day-to-day, menu software for diners covers what changes on menus like yours and how often. For what to serve and how to price it, read how to run daily specials.

The free QR code menu generator makes a code for whatever menu you have now.

All menu templates
Cooks plating on a steel pass

The pot pie went at 1:20. The board on every phone can say so at 1:21.

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No card needed · then $19/mo or $190/yr · cancel anytime

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