Paper or Plastic Menus: Do Your Menus Pass the Tear Test?

Paper or plastic? That's the age old question, right? But we're not talking about bags here, we're discussing menus! Menus receive heavy and frequent handling and they are exposed to food and drinks often. In order for them to last, you need to invest in a good quality material that can withstand these elements. Plastic menus are the perfect solution! The synthetic material is not only waterproof, it's also tear-proof.

Paper Menus = Easy Tearing

Unfortunately, if your menus are made from paper, they are not going to pass a tear test. Regular paper - even a heavy stock - is not going to hold up to abuse. Paper rips...that's all there is to it!

We conducted tear tests at five different restaurants for the video above. Check it out by pressing the play button or clicking here! Every paper menu failed; we were able to rip them easily. Sure, we know that most of your customers aren’t deliberately tearing your menus like we did for our video. We did it to make the point that paper menus are a bad idea because they are flimsy. Even if you put them in a menu cover or booklet, the paper will still wear out and develop tears over time.

Plastic Menus = Tear-proof and Waterproof

Waterproof menus are made from synthetic paper. The plastic doesn’t tear, even when you really try! And we definitely tried: see how hard we were on the plastic menu at the :20 mark?! That thing would not rip!

The plastic waterproof material also means that these menus can tolerate spills and grease. You can wash the plastic with water or wipe it with a mild cleansing agent. This is also a great feature because it allows you to disinfect your menus. The ability to clean the material eliminates the need to reprint. Unlike paper menus, if your plastic menus get soiled, it doesn't mean you need new ones, which saves you time, money and hassle!

Speaking of printing, don't assume that the plastic material means that you can't print your own. On the contrary, it's super easy to print these menus with your dry toner laser printer. You can still make changes and updates to your menu whenever you want to!

Plastic menu options are available in a variety of sizes, thicknesses and colors on our REVLAR waterproof material. Click here or on the button below to learn more about waterproof menus with our free guide!