QR Code Menus for Restaurants in North Cyprus

If you run a restaurant, café or bar in North Cyprus, whether in Kyrenia, Iskele, Famagusta or Nicosia, a single evening's guests might include Turkish Cypriot regulars, visitors from Turkey, British residents, international students and holidaymakers. One printed menu rarely works well for all of them, and every time you change a price, the printed copies are out of date.

A QR code menu deals with the practical side: one menu, in more than one language, that you can update in minutes. This guide explains how it works, what to put on it, and what it costs with Hani Menü, a QR menu service for venues in North Cyprus.

How a QR code menu works

1. A small card with a QR code sits on each table.
2. The guest points their phone camera at it. Most modern phones read QR codes straight from the camera app.
3. Your menu opens in the phone's browser. There's no app to download and no sign-up.
4. When you change a price or mark a dish as sold out, the menu updates straight away. Nothing needs reprinting.

It's a menu, not an ordering system: guests still order from your staff as usual. It's also worth keeping a few printed menus for guests who prefer paper.

Keep your printed price list too

North Cyprus's regulation on labels, tariffs and price lists, published in the Official Gazette on 16 October 2024, asks businesses that serve customers to keep a price list on display, or to hand a booklet to each guest before service if the list is too long to put up. Prices must include VAT and other taxes, be given in Turkish lira, and be readable from outside the building. The regulation doesn't mention digital menus, so keep the price list at the entrance and a few printed menus, and check with the Trade Department (Ticaret Dairesi) if you're unsure.

Turkish and English on the same menu

Each dish gets a Turkish and an English name and description. If a guest's phone is set to English, the menu opens in English automatically, and anyone can switch language with one tap. The menu can also show Russian, German, Greek, French or Arabic; each extra language needs its own dish names and descriptions.

Keep the local names

Many visitors want to try local food, so don't translate it out of sight. Keep the Turkish Cypriot name, add a better-known name in brackets if there is one, and put a short description underneath. Where an English name is well established, as with halloumi, use it as the main name:

Describe your own recipe: if your şeftali kebab is a lamb and beef mix, say so. For more examples, see our guide to Turkish Cypriot dishes on an English menu.

Allergens and dietary labels

In the EU, Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 lists 14 allergens in its Annex II and requires allergen information for food served unpackaged, as in restaurants. UK rules place the same duty on restaurants and takeaways, as the Food Standards Agency's guidance for England, Wales and Northern Ireland explains. So guests from the UK and Europe may well ask about allergens or look for them on the menu. Whether a similar rule is in force in North Cyprus is worth checking with the relevant ministry.

The 14 are: cereals containing gluten, crustaceans, eggs, fish, peanuts, soybeans, milk, nuts, celery, mustard, sesame seeds, sulphur dioxide and sulphites, lupin, and molluscs.

In Hani Menü, each dish can be tagged with any of the 14 allergens, shown as icons, along with vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free and spicy labels. The menu also reminds guests to ask your staff if they're unsure. One caution: an icon is only as reliable as the recipe behind it, so check the tags whenever a recipe or supplier changes.

What else can go on the menu

• Photos and descriptions, with no limit on dishes or categories
• Sizes and portions with their own prices, such as small and large
• Extras, such as extra cheese
• A "sold out" mark, and the option to hide a dish or a whole category without deleting it
• Timed categories: breakfast, for example, can be marked as served 08:00 to 12:00; outside those hours it moves to the end of the menu, marked as closed
• Bulk price changes by percentage or fixed amount, for the whole menu or one category, with a preview before you save
• Your logo and brand colours
• WhatsApp, Google Maps, a Wi-Fi QR code and your opening hours
• Instagram, Facebook and TikTok links
• A link card as a paid add-on: one QR page that gathers your menu, Google reviews link, WhatsApp and location
• Print-ready table cards with your QR code

Setup is free

We set everything up at no charge. We open your account, move your current menu into the system, arrange the categories, enter dishes and prices, add the photos you already have, apply your logo and colours, prepare your QR code and put the menu live. A professional photo shoot isn't included; the menu still looks tidy without photos, and you can add them later.

Two ways to manage it

The plans differ mainly in who updates the menu:

• What counts as one request: a batch of changes sent in one go. New prices for 15 dishes, two new dishes and a weekend offer can all be a single request. Requests renew monthly and unused ones don't roll over; an extra request costs 300 TL + VAT. The panel stays open on every plan, so you can always make a change yourself.
• Branches: on Zincir, each branch gets its own QR code and can have its own prices and sold-out items, and you can change prices for all branches at once or for just one.
• Your own domain: connecting the menu to your own domain name is included on Pro and Zincir.
• Paying yearly: pay for 10 months and use the menu for 12.
• No commitment: on monthly payment you can stop in any month.

The full comparison is on our plans page, and common questions are answered in the FAQ.

Try it with your own menu

The easiest way to judge a QR menu is to see your own dishes on your own phone. Send us your current menu as a link, PDF or photos, and we'll prepare a free demo with your dishes and prices. We don't ask for payment details.