Importing your menu from a spreadsheet

Before you start

You can import a CSV or Excel (.xlsx) file with one row per item. The first row names the columns. Only Name and Price are needed; every other column is optional, and columns in any order are fine.

• Example menu (Excel)
• Example menu (CSV)
• Blank template (Excel)
• Blank template (CSV)

Tip: The Excel templates have a second sheet, “How to fill it in”, that explains every column. The same files are under Import in HQ.

A file can have up to 1,000 items and be up to 2 MB.

The columns

Column names don’t need to match exactly: “Item name”, “Dish” or “Product” work for Name, “Category” or “Course” for Section, and “Price (£)” for Price.

Allergens, two ways

Name the specific cereal (wheat, rye, barley or oats) and nut (almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts, cashews, pecans, Brazil nuts, pistachios or macadamia nuts). “Gluten” or “nuts” on their own aren’t accepted, because customers need to know which. Common words work too: dairy for milk, prawns for crustaceans, soy for soya.

Either list them in the Contains and May contain columns:

Name,Price,Contains,May contain
Fish and chips,16.50,fish; wheat; barley,milk
Elderflower pressé,3.50,none,

Or use an allergen chart, the way many kitchens already keep one: a column for each allergen, with Y (or ✓ or x) for contains, M for may contain, and N for doesn’t contain. For a “Cereals containing gluten” or “Nuts” column, write which ones in the cell, such as “wheat, barley”.

Name,Price,Milk,Eggs,Cereals containing gluten,Peanuts
Pancakes,7.00,Y,Y,wheat,M
Toast,3.00,N,N,wheat,N

Tip: A row whose allergen cells are all blank counts as “not checked yet”, so the site says “please ask us”. Write N, or none, when you’ve checked and it has none.

Add or replace

• Add to my menu: new items are added, and items already on your menu are updated from the file.
• Replace my menu: the same, and anything on your menu that isn’t in the file is hidden from your site. Nothing is deleted, so you can show it again any time.

An item in the file matches one on your menu by its ID (from an export), otherwise by the same menu, section and name, otherwise by a name that’s only used once on your menu. A column that isn’t in the file leaves that detail as it is.

Checking and importing

1. In HQ, open Menu and select Import.
2. Choose Add or Replace, then choose your file.
3. HQ shows what will happen: how many items are new, updated, unchanged or hidden, any new menus and sections, and every problem with its row number.
4. If there are problems, fix those rows in your file, save it, and choose it again. Nothing is imported until every row is right.
5. If the file has allergen information, tick the box to confirm it’s correct.
6. Select Import (or “Replace my menu”).

Undoing an import

After an import, the Menu page shows what you imported with an “Undo import” button. Undo puts your whole menu back exactly as it was just before, including anything a replace hid.

• Only your latest import can be undone, within 30 days.
• Any changes you made to the menu after importing are lost when you undo, so undo straight away if something looks wrong.

Editing your menu in a spreadsheet

1. On the Menu page, select Export and choose Excel or CSV.
2. Edit the file. Keep the ID column as it is.
3. Import it with “Add to my menu”. Matching items are updated, and new rows are added.