Whet your appetite with a history of menu design

 This book tucks into the history of menu design | Soho House

TASCHEN’s new book is a visual feast. Tuck in and see how your local Soho House’s offering compares

Sunday 4 September 2022   By Anastasiia Fedorova

Ah, that moment when the menu lands on the dining table. Rich in intrigue, curiosity and anticipation, it has the power to make or break the experience. Menus are habitually looked at as something purely utilitarian – a roundup of dishes, like an index in the book. But truly, the menu – the weight of paper, the font, illustrations and graphics – is the perfect vehicle for telling the complex stories of flavours, places and cuisines of any restaurant worth its salt. All of which makes Steven Heller’s new book, Menu Design in Europe – which traces the history of menus over the past two centuries – a veritable feast for the eyes and imagination. 

Featuring menus from leading collectors and institutions that span a variety of artistic and design styles – from masterpieces of Art Nouveau and Art Deco, to the graphic appropriations of the German Democratic Republic – Menu Design in Europe is as much a social and cultural history as it is a visual one. Minimal and incredibly detailed, classy and tongue-in-cheek, the menus featured are the proof that, as the book states, ‘a beautiful menu will not make a dish taste better, but it will make the dining experience a total experience’. 

Heller has produced over 200 books on visual communication and currently cochairs the MFA Design program at the School of Visual Arts in New York. Perhaps we should draw his attention to the latest version of the Cecconi’s menu next? 

For now, here’s a taster of the visuals from the book.

 This book tucks into the history of menu design | Soho House
 This book tucks into the history of menu design | Soho House
 This book tucks into the history of menu design | Soho House
 This book tucks into the history of menu design | Soho House
 This book tucks into the history of menu design | Soho House
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