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Yes, you can check a restaurant menu before you go. Open the place in eatova (formerly AlignEat), or add its menu link, a PDF or a photo from home, and you'll see which dishes fit your profile, which to ask about and when the menu was last checked.
The decision happens before you arrive
The real choice about dinner gets made hours before anyone sits down, when someone suggests a place and everybody says yes. By the time you're at the table, the group is settled and the server is waiting, which is a hard moment to find out the menu doesn't work for you.
For our founders, every meal once meant long conversations with staff and trips to the kitchen. Telling the server about your allergy shouldn't be the end of the conversation, and it doesn't have to be the start of it either.
Reading the menu at home takes the pressure off. You arrive knowing what you'd order and what you need to ask, and if nothing fits, there's still time to suggest somewhere else.
Three ways to check a menu from home
There are three ways in, depending on how much you already know about where you're going.
- Browse places near you. Nearby you shows places around you that already have a menu in eatova, each read against your Dietary ID, so you can see how many dishes fit your profile before you choose.
- Search by name. Look up a place by name when you're planning ahead, or when you're booking for others and already know where you're going.
- Bring the menu yourself. Take a photo, upload an image or add the menu link. Digital menus and websites work, so a restaurant's own menu page is enough to start from.
Whichever way you come in, the result is the same reading of the same profile, so you only have to set your needs once. If you're planning a trip, the same check works for a city you haven't reached yet, which helps with a menu like the ones in our guide to reading a Japanese menu with a shellfish allergy.
Reading the result before you book
Each dish comes back with one of three answers. Compatible means it fits your profile as served. Avoid means it conflicts with your needs. Ask means the menu doesn't say enough for a safe call, and it's the most useful answer to have at home.
Look at the balance before you book. A menu with a few Compatible dishes gives you something to order. A menu with several Asks can still work, because each one comes with a specific question for the kitchen, and you can put it to the restaurant when you call to reserve. If nearly everything comes back Avoid, you've saved yourself an awkward evening.
The same goes for a group. Up to 10 profiles can be read against one menu, so whoever is booking can see what works for the whole table, which beats working it out at a business dinner with everyone watching.
When the online menu is out of date
Menus and preparation can change, and an online menu is a snapshot of one moment. So when you open a place in eatova, check two things: whether its menu is available, and when it was last checked. A recent date is a good starting point. An old one is a reason to pick up the phone.
The same caution applies to a PDF on a restaurant's website, which may have been uploaded long before the current menu was printed. Use it to plan and confirm the dish that matters to you.
On the night, eatova suggests the place you're at when you arrive, and one tap opens its menu. If the printed menu looks different, scan the one in front of you. See how a menu is read, then try it on the next place on your list.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I scan a menu from a link or a photo?
Open eatova, add the menu link or upload the image, and each dish is read against your Dietary ID.
What happens when the online menu is out of date?
Scan the current menu when you arrive. The kitchen's answer always beats an older online menu.
