A menu in several languages: how to serve tourists better without the hassle

Spain welcomes a huge number of visitors from other countries every year, and many of them eat out almost every day. If your menu is only in Spanish, some of them won’t know what to order, will pick the first thing they recognise, or will go somewhere they can understand. A menu in their language is one of the cheapest ways to serve them better.

Why it really matters

• Tourists don’t want to guess. Faced with a menu they can’t read, they order the safest thing or nothing at all.
• It helps everyone, not just visitors. Foreign residents and people with guests in tow appreciate it too.
• It avoids allergy misunderstandings. If someone doesn’t understand “frutos secos” or “sin gluten”, the risk is real.
• Fewer questions for the waiter at peak times, when there is the least time.
• It shows in the reviews. When the menu is understood, guests say so.

Which languages to put first

Start with English: it is the common language of most travellers, and it covers a good share of them. Then look at who comes to your area. You know that better than anyone, but here are some pointers:

• Costa del Sol, Balearics and Canaries: English and German; in many areas also French and the languages of northern Europe.
• Cities with cultural tourism (Madrid, Barcelona, Seville, Granada…): English, French, Italian and, depending on the season, German.
• Inland villages and hiking areas: English and French are usually enough.
• Border areas or places with lots of domestic tourism: if your region has its own language, consider adding it.

Don’t add ten languages on day one. Start with the two or three you will really use and add more if people ask. Watch your guests’ faces and the questions that keep coming up.

Typical mistakes when translating a menu

Translating names that shouldn’t be translated

“Salmorejo”, “ajoblanco”, “pringá” or “papas arrugadas” are proper names in your cuisine. Translated word for word they come out odd or confusing. It is best to keep the original name and add a short explanation: “Salmorejo: cold, thick tomato and bread soup, topped with ham and egg”.

Translating literally instead of explaining

“Huevos rotos” isn’t “broken eggs”. It is “fried eggs over chips, broken at the table”. A literal translation doesn’t help anyone who doesn’t know the dish. Think about what the guest needs to know: main ingredients, how it is served and whether it is for sharing.

Forgetting portion sizes

“Ración”, “media” and “tapa” don’t exist in the same way in other countries. Explain them once on the menu, for example: “Tapa = small plate; Media = half portion; Ración = full portion to share”.

Leaving allergens untranslated

Allergens are the most important thing to translate well. Icons help because they are understood without language, but the text that goes with them must also be in the guest’s language.

Using a translator without checking

Machine translators struggle with food: “a la plancha” can end up as “on the iron”. Any machine translation should go past human eyes. Yours, or someone on your team who knows the language, or a regular who will give you a hand.

Mixing languages in the same line

Either everything in one language, or the original name with the explanation after it. Mixing two languages mid-sentence is confusing.

How it works with Saboria

With the Pro plan you can have your menu in as many languages as you like:

1. Add the languages you want.
2. Press the translate button and the AI translates the whole menu: sections, dishes and descriptions.
3. Check what it has written and change by hand any translation you don’t like. This is the most important step, and it takes little time if you focus on dish names and allergens.
4. Your guests choose the language on the menu itself, with one tap. They don’t need to install anything.

If you later change a dish, it takes a minute to update its translation too. The translated menu doesn’t fall behind.

AI translation is a quick aid, not a professional translator. For a bar or restaurant menu it is usually more than enough, as long as you check it. If your menu has very local dishes or lots of your own expressions, spend a little longer on those.

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A practical way to review

• Start with your star dishes: the ten you sell most.
• Check the allergens and the main ingredients.
• Check the proper names that shouldn’t be translated.
• Ask someone who speaks the language to read the menu as if they were a guest. Whatever makes them hesitate, you fix.

Beyond the menu

A menu in several languages goes well with other small things: a “hello” and a “thank you” in the guest’s language, a sign with the QR code clearly visible from the street, and the menu link on your Google profile. With that, a tourist knows what you offer before sitting down.

To see everything each plan includes, check the pricing; the features page explains what else the menu does; and if you have any doubts, see the FAQ.

Try it with your menu

AI translation is on the Pro plan, which you can try free for 14 days, no card needed. If you don’t continue, your menu moves to the Free plan and keeps working.