You can make a menu with AI from the paper card or PDF you already print. MenuConverter reads the dishes and prices into a draft. You check the lines, then save. It does not invent a new offering.
This is the practical path on Free: one photo or one-page PDF, a review pass, and a published QR menu. For the translation workflow after import, read AI menu translation. If you are still deciding what the tool is, start with what an AI menu is.
What you can upload
Import accepts a JPEG, PNG, or WebP photo, or a PDF, up to 4MB. Free is a single-page menu, so a multi-page PDF will not import on Free. Photograph or export one page.
How to make the menu
- Create a Free menu in the builder. An empty menu is fine.
- Choose Import from a photo or PDF. Pick a JPEG, PNG, WebP, or PDF up to 4MB.
- Wait for extract. You get a draft of sections, dish names, and prices. Nothing is written to your menu yet.
- Review and edit the draft. Fix names, restore decimals, drop junk lines.
- Click Save. That is the only step that persists. Save replaces the pages you can edit.
- If you Cancel, or if extract or save fails, the existing content stays as it was.
A lunch card worth checking
Suppose the source line is:
Soup of the day 6.50 / BLT 12 / Iced latte 4.80
A draft might read Soup of the day 650, BLT 12, Iced latte 480. The dishes are right; the decimals are not. You restore 6.50 and 4.80 before Save. That is the job: AI drafts, the restaurant checks.
What to check before you save
- File type and size. JPEG, PNG, WebP, or PDF. 4MB cap.
- One page on Free. Crop the photo or export a single PDF page.
- Readable prices. Glare, handwriting, and missing decimal points are the usual misses.
- Dishes you still serve. A sold-out scribble can become a real item or hide one.
- Sections. Starters should not land under drinks.
- Source photos stay import input. They are not displayed dish images. Free has no displayed-image entitlement.
What this is not
Search results for a free AI menu maker often describe a different product. MenuConverter publishes the menu you already decided to serve.
- It does not invent dishes or prices from a prompt. There is no prompt-to-menu generation.
- The source file is not a gallery of displayed item images. Import reads text; it does not put that photo on the published menu.
- Language count is a plan limit, not an open-ended allowance.
What Free includes after import
The pricing page is the source of truth. Today, Free includes:
- 1 venue
- 1 menu
- A single-page menu
- No displayed item images
- Your base language plus 1 extra language
- Unlimited edits
Pro and Multi-location include the base language plus up to 10 extra languages. MenuConverter supports 15 languages in total; a single menu cannot use all 15 at once, because the per-menu cap is base plus 10 extra on paid plans.
After you save
Add the extra language you can review. French menu translation is a common extra in tourist cities; pick the language your floor actually hears. Then publish a link and QR code. See a live page on the demo menu.
For the translation checklist — dish names to keep, allergens, heat glosses — use menu translation and the longer AI menu translation guide.
Import the menu you already serve
Upload a photo or PDF, review the draft, and save on Free. One venue, one single-page menu, and one extra language. Upgrade later if you need more extra languages.