MENU-PAAN: Menu Translator

The trip you had been waiting for. The restaurant you had been looking forward to. And then the menu arrives, and you cannot read a word of it.

So you point at something vaguely familiar, and the plate is not what you pictured. You are asked how you would like your meat cooked and cannot answer. You want your drink without ice, but cannot say so.

MENU-PAAN exists so that evening stops happening. Photograph the menu, and it explains every dish in plain language and turns your choice into an order the staff can read, in 105 countries and regions. Not just a menu you can read, but one you can order from.

SNAP, CHECK, SHOW
1. Snap: printed menus or handwritten boards, up to five photos in a row
2. Check: see what each dish is, with a caution mark where it is likely to contain foods you avoid
3. Show: tap + on the dishes you want, and the order screen is ready for the staff

WHAT THE DISH ACTUALLY IS
"Oyakodon" word for word is "parent-and-child rice bowl": accurate, and useless. MENU-PAAN tells you what goes into a dish, how it is cooked and how it is eaten locally, compares it with something familiar and shows a reference photo. Scrawled handwriting and unfamiliar names are fine too.

KNOW WHAT TO ORDER
Local specialities and signature dishes are marked, as are dishes likely to suit your taste. Give the number of people and a budget, and it suggests a combination.

A CARD FOR FOODS YOU AVOID
Register foods you would rather not eat and show the staff a card in the local language, which can also be read aloud. The caution marks and the card are there to help you check. Always confirm ingredients and allergies with the staff.

ORDER BY SHOWING THE SCREEN
Your choices become an order screen in the local language alongside yours, with large quantities and the total number of items. How your meat is cooked, ice or no ice, how you take your spirits, sharing plates and water: choose them and they are passed on. Everyday travel phrases come with pronunciation.

THE BILL AND TIPPING
Prices appear as an approximate figure in your own currency, with exchange rates refreshed daily. At the end you get a guide to tax, service charges and usual tipping.

NO SIGNAL, OR A FULL TABLE
Menus you have read stay in the app and work offline. Keep the dishes you loved with a photo and a note. Share a translated menu with your table by QR code or link: no app needed, just a browser. Your preferences are never passed on.

INVITE A FRIEND
Send a QR code or link from "Recommend MENU-PAAN to a friend" in Settings.
•A friend who signs up through your invitation receives 3 Pro translations
•When they finish their first Pro translation, you receive 3 as well
•Referral rewards are limited to 30 translations per person per month, and the offer may change or end without notice

WHO MADE IT
Someone who once stood defeated by a menu in London and ordered fish and chips again. Today he is the fourth generation of a restaurant business founded 75 years ago, and knows both the guest's frustration and the restaurant's side.

FREE TO TRY
•Try Lite (free) three times a day without an account
•Sign up and Lite is yours every day, plus 3 translations of Pro (paid), with ordering, the bill and alerts for foods you avoid
•No monthly charge: pay only when you use it
•Packs never expire, so keep them for your next trip

Translations, explanations and caution marks are reference information and we cannot guarantee their accuracy. Always check ingredients and allergies with the restaurant staff.

May no one miss a wonderful dish just because of a language.