This is a part of a series of Solutions on creating a menu in Aura. You can find the other parts here:

  1. Creating Stock - Categories
  2. Creating Stock - Items
  3. Creating Menu Items - Categories
  4. Creating Menu Items - Menu Items
  5. Creating Picklists


The full guide can be downloaded as a PDF here:


AURA Menu Creation Guide


4. Creating Menu Items

Once categories have been added, the menu items can be created. Navigate to the Menu Items page


  • Lists > Menu > Items


Here you will be presented with a screen similar to that of Stock Items, where you can view the properties of each menu item.


Again, click the [
+] to add an item. Fill in the following:
  • Item Code: This is an item’s unique code. Items can be rung up in Invoicing using this code, so it’s suggested to keep it simple, consistent and logical. For example, if creating the first of Large Pizzas in the PIZZA category, you may want to use the code PL1 for Pizza-Large-1.

  • Item Description: This is the name of the item as it will appear in Invoicing and on the slip.

  • Label Description: This field is only used if using a label printer, otherwise it can be ignored

  • Size: This allows you to group items within a category. It can be treated as a ‘Sub Category’ of sorts, but it’s best to keep it to sizes (e.g Small/Medium/Large pizzas, or Cans/Buddies for drinks).

    NB: To create a size option, simply type it in. Once captured, it can be selected from the drop-down list. If some items in a category are set to sizes and others aren’t, the items without a set size will be grouped into a <No Size> subdivision.
  • Sort Order: As with the menu categories, items are by default sorted alphabetically. This can be overriden using this function.

  • HO Code: This is specific to some brands for data capturing purposes. It may be ignored unless specifically directed otherwise.

  • RSP Incl./Excl.: Set the sales price of the item here. You can capture it in either field, and the system will work out the inclusive/exclusive price according to the global VAT rate in settings.


Click the [✔] to post the item. The Recipe field becomes available and you can now set the recipe for that item.




Here we have created an item called Hot Dog Standard, using the item code HDS and the size Standard. Now it needs a recipe.


4.1 Creating Menu Recipes

Building a menu item recipe follows the exact same procedure as we followed for the stock item recipe. Under the Recipe section (A), use the control buttons (B) to move ingredients from the Stock list (C) into the item’s recipe.


 
 

Control button have the following functions:




Adding an item prompts you to set the quantity of stock being used in the recipe. This can be edited by double-clicking the item.



 
For our
Hot Dog Standard menu item, we added one bread roll, one frankfurter, one packet, and one serviette. These are the base stock items for this item; no matter how the item is prepared, these stock items will always be used. Other stock items may be used whenever one is made, such as sauces or garnish, but since these are optional we will create them as Picklist items so that they can be selected depending on the customer’s choices.


Here is another item, called
Hot Dog Chip Combo:



 
Hot Dog Chip Combo has the same recipe as the Hot Dog Standard menu item, but it also includes the Chip Pack stock item. Remember, Chip Pack is a SubMenu item, meaning that it itself has a recipe for potatoes, salt and chip packaging that will be deducted whenever the Hot Dog Chip Combo is sold.


4.2 Menu Item Settings

After setting the recipe, the menu item is ready to use in Invoicing. There are, however, some optional settings for each menu item that may be set if necessary. For the purposes of this guide, we’re only going to look at a few of the settings as they relate to creating a menu; for more information on the other settings, you can press [F1] to bring up the Manual page of the Menu Item screen, which goes into detail on each setting. For the most part they can be left on their default settings.



Other

Under the Other tab, next to Recipe, there are a few key options:

  • Inactive: Setting this removes the item from the recipe. This is necessary if the item has been used in sales history, or needs to be temporarily removed. Items that have not been used in any sales may be deleted permanently with the [X] button under Navigation near the top of the screen. You can view inactive menu items using the Show: drop down.

  • Display - With this option selected, it will cause the selected menu item to display inside Invoicing. With it de-selected, the item will still be available from a picklist, but will not display as an item on it's own in the menu.

  • Child Item: If you have a menu item that is only ever rung up through a picklist, and never on it's own, you can unset Display and select Child Item. This will prevent the item from being available in the Invoicing menu, and will highlight the item on the kitchen slip, making it clearer on the slip that it is a child of item above it.

  • Don't Print - Selecting this option will prevent this item from printing on the customer's slip. This is most often used on instructions for the kitchen staff, and can only be set on items with a 0 selling price.

  • Optional Item - An optional item is active and available from BackOffice at any time, but only in Invoicing once it has been marked as an Optional Item In Use, a setting which becomes available in Item Properties when Optional Item is set. This is useful if the same menu is being used in different stores if some stores sell items that others don’t.

  • Prompt for Quantity - Selecting this option will make Invoicing bring up a quantity prompt whenever this item is rung up on an order.

  • Price is Locked - Selecting this option prevents cashiers and managers from overriding the price of the selected menu item.

  • VAT Exempt - Selecting this option will mark the selected item as exempt from value added tax.


Printers - This block lists the available production printers set up in Aura. Invoicing will print the selected menu item to any kitchen printers that are ticked here.





Coloring
You can use this tab to set the colour that this item appears as in Invoicing. Use Font to set the colour of the text, and Brush to set the colour of the button. By default, Custom.. will show white text on a blue background.

Once the colours are set you will see them as example buttons. You can apply the item category’s colour (set in Menu Categories) to the item using Apply Category Color To Item, or Apply to Current Filter to set the colours to everything in the current filter (depending on what filtering options are set under Navigation).



Using this screen, we can build up a menu database. It often feels tedious to set up each menu item one by one in such a manner, but making sure each item is set up correctly in the first place minimises the amount of corrections and maintenance that needs to be done later.


We’ve continued to add items to our menu here, including things like
Drinks and Extra portions. There are some menu items which special settings, such as instructions like Uncooked Onion which has no recipe and no price, and the option Don’t Print set, and some None items such as No Bread Roll which we’ve set to have a negative stock quantity in the recipe in order to make sure that the stock tracking stays accurate.
 



Finally, we added some selection options to the hidden Picklist category. These are items that won’t be sold on their own but will be offered as choices on some menu items, so we don’t want them to appear except when the right menu item is selected. These picklist items are Mustard, Tomato Sauce, and Must+Tomato Sauce, and we want them to show only when a hot dog is rung up.
Part 5: Creating Picklists