Dining out is an event most popular for couples and families. Although it is not entirely uncommon for an individual patron to frequent a restaurant, parties that represent two or more people are far more frequent. Menu printing has to take into consideration the audience to whom it is targeted. For family restaurants where children will be dining often, catering a menu printing job to the appetites and tendencies of children can help to drive business. Kids meals are often among the most profitable for restaurants due to the ease with which most children's meals are prepared and the affordability of their simple ingredients. Capitalizing on an opportunity to drive business from younger patrons can help a restaurant establish new levels of revenue and expand their existing customer base.
Children's menus are often accompanied by an activity or crayons to entertain the young customers while waiting for their meal. A children's meal that is printed directly on a book or pamphlet with activities can help to engage the customer and get them interested in the restaurant's offerings. Working to create a menu printing job friendly to kids is beneficial to the restaurant in many ways, not the least of which is the satisfaction of parents whose children are interested in the reading material or activities offered. Parents who see a child excited, intrigued or involved with their menu and the offerings a restaurant has will likely be promoters of the establishment to other parents and families. The most common types of menus used for children's meals are flat placemats with puzzles and other activities or traditional folded menus of casual dining establishments, only in paper so that they are disposable.
Menu printing for kid's dishes at a restaurant will usually make good use of color or contain outlined pictures for the children to color in. Photographs, graphics and illustrations showing pictures of the food and any characters affiliated with an establishment are good methods of conveying the dining options while marketing effectively. Some restaurants will use their mascot or comic character to tell a story or series of stories through a menu. Activities can be a joy for kids who regularly return to the same establishment with family and eagerly anticipate new menu designs and options in coloring and puzzles. Ultimately, serving food that suits a child's taste buds will determine a child's happiness with a restaurant; though they may be more likely to enjoy the food they're served if they associate it with a good time. Toys and games have proven to be extremely successful marketing for kid's food.