Menu symbols and abbreviations: what V, VG and GF mean.

The codes most menus use

You'll also see codes like GFO (gluten-free option), PB (plant-based), H (halal) and K (kosher). Only use halal or kosher if the food is certified, because guests read those as a guarantee.

Every menu needs a key

Letters are only clear if you explain them. On some menus "N" means "contains nuts". On others "NF" means "nut-free". A guest skimming quickly can mix those up, and the mistake matters.

Codes also change between countries. "V" is vegetarian almost everywhere, but vegan can be "VG", "VE" or a small leaf. Tourists and new guests bring their own habits with them.

A few rules keep it simple:

• Put a key on the menu. On paper, add it to every page that uses codes, at the top or bottom. On a phone menu, put it where people will see it before they scroll far.
• Use full words when you can. If only a few dishes carry labels, "Vegan" takes little more space than "VG" and needs no key.
• Use one style. Pick letters or icons and stick with them. Mixing a leaf icon with "VG" on the same menu makes people wonder if they mean different things.

Say what "option" really means

Labels like "GF option" or "can be made vegan" are useful, but they raise questions. Answer them on the menu:

• What changes? "Served on a gluten-free bun" is clearer than "GF option".
• Does it cost more? If the swap is extra, show the price: "Gluten-free bun +$2".
• How is it cooked? If the gluten-free fries go in the same fryer as breaded chicken, say so.

"Ask your server" only works if your staff know the answer. Before you print it, check that everyone on the floor can explain each option.

Some labels are promises

"Vegetarian" is mostly about ingredients. "Gluten-free" and "nut-free" go further. They tell a guest it's safe for them, and for some guests that's a health question.

Gluten-free. In the US, the FDA's gluten-free rule covers packaged food, but the agency recommends that restaurants using "gluten-free" on their menus stay consistent with its definition: less than 20 parts per million of gluten. In the UK, Food Standards Scotland says caterers can only use "gluten-free" if they can show the food has 20 parts per million or less. In both cases, a dish can lose its gluten-free status in a shared fryer or on a shared board, even if the recipe has no gluten in it.

If you can't control that, don't call the dish gluten-free. Describe what you do instead, for example "made without wheat; cooked in a shared fryer", and check what your local rules allow you to say.

Nut-free. A nut-free label is a claim about your whole kitchen, not just the recipe. Many kitchens find it easier to mark what a dish contains ("contains nuts", "contains sesame"), because that's about ingredients they can check. For more on this, read our article on showing allergens on your menu.

Keep labels right when recipes change

Labels go wrong quietly. A supplier switches to a bread made with milk. The chef adds a nut crumb to a dessert. The menu still says DF or NF.

A short routine helps:

1. When a recipe or supplier changes, check that dish's labels the same day.
2. Keep a list of which dishes carry which labels, so the kitchen and the front of house see the same thing.
3. Once a month, read the menu with the kitchen and confirm every label still holds.

If you use Menupresso, each dish can carry the built-in labels (Vegetarian, Vegan, Gluten-Free, Spicy, Nut-Free and Dairy-Free) or your own, such as "Contains sesame". You can show them as full words or as short codes. With codes, the menu adds a key that explains each one, and a custom label never borrows a code guests already know, so "Sprouts" won't show up as "SP". When a recipe changes, you edit the label, save, and the online menu updates.