How Menu Whisperer Works
From menu upload to dish recommendation in seconds. Here's what happens behind the scenes.
Three Simple Steps
1. Upload Your Menu
Take a photo of a paper menu, upload a PDF, or paste a restaurant website URL. We accept images (JPG, PNG), PDFs, and web links.
2. AI Analyzes the Menu
Our AI reads every dish on your menu and evaluates it across three dimensions: ingredient value, preparation complexity, and overall popularity.
3. Get Recommendations
Receive the top picks for appetizers, mains, and desserts — each with a detailed explanation of why it's recommended.
Supported Menu Formats
Menu Whisperer is designed to work with menus in whatever format you have them. Here are the three ways to get your menu analyzed:
Photo Upload
Snap a photo of a physical menu using your phone camera and upload it directly. Works with JPG, PNG, WebP, and other common image formats. The image is automatically compressed to ensure fast analysis without losing readability.
PDF Upload
Many restaurants offer downloadable PDF menus. Upload the PDF directly and our tool converts the first page into an image for AI analysis. This works great for high-resolution digital menus.
URL / Website
Paste a link to a restaurant's menu page. Our tool automatically detects whether the URL points to an image, PDF, or HTML page with menu content. For web pages, it intelligently extracts menu images or text.
What the AI Evaluates
Each dish on your menu is scored across three criteria that culinary experts consider when judging a restaurant's offerings:
Ingredient Value
The AI assesses the quality and value of ingredients listed in each dish. Dishes featuring fresh, premium, or seasonal ingredients score higher. For example, a dish with "hand-pulled mozzarella" or "wild-caught salmon" signals higher ingredient quality than generic alternatives. This helps you identify dishes where the restaurant is investing in quality.
Preparation Complexity
Complex dishes — those requiring specialized techniques, long preparation times, or careful execution — are often where a restaurant's skill shines. A braised short rib that's been slow-cooked for 8 hours, or a soufflé that requires precise timing, can reveal the kitchen's true capabilities. The AI identifies these complexity indicators to highlight dishes worth ordering.
Popularity
Drawing from a broad understanding of global cuisines, the AI estimates how well-received each dish tends to be among diners. Some dishes are crowd-pleasers across cultures — a well-made pasta carbonara or a perfectly grilled steak, for instance. The AI factors in this "crowd appeal" while still surfacing unique dishes that food-curious diners would appreciate.
Visual Menu Highlighting
When you upload a menu image, Menu Whisperer doesn't just tell you which dishes to order — it shows you exactly where they are on the menu. Click on any recommended dish to see a full-screen view of the menu with the dish's location highlighted. This is especially helpful for large, multi-page menus or menus in foreign languages where finding a specific item can be challenging.