Before restaurants started treating their menus like dynamic revenue engines, most operators saw them as something static. A board on the wall. A PDF online. A list of items that changed only when absolutely necessary.

But Brett Spiegel sees the menu very differently.

“The menu is the most important thing,” Spiegel said. “If it’s not on the menu, it’s hard to sell.”

As Vice President of Direct Ordering at Checkmate, Spiegel works with some of the largest restaurant brands in the world to rethink how menus function across every channel. Checkmate sits between the point of sale and the entire digital ecosystem, helping restaurants sync menus, manage changes in real time, and ensure that every ordering channel, from delivery apps to kiosks to drive-thru screens, is accurate and optimized.

Because in today’s environment, the menu is no longer a document. It is a system.

For decades, restaurant menus were built for one place: inside the four walls. But that reality has changed. Today, menus live everywhere. Delivery marketplaces. Mobile apps. Kiosks. Digital menu boards. Drive-thru screens. First-party websites.

And they are not static.

“They’re changing multiple times a day,” Spiegel said.

Some changes are big, like limited-time offers and new product launches. Others are constant and invisible, like price updates, inventory changes, or items going out of stock. Multiply that across hundreds or thousands of locations, and what used to be a simple update becomes a constant operational challenge.

Most systems were never built for that level of complexity.

How Checkmate Helps Restaurants

That is where Checkmate plays a critical role. By extracting menu data from the POS and managing it centrally, the platform allows operators to push updates everywhere at once while tailoring how menus appear across each channel. The result is consistency for the brand and flexibility for the operator.

The biggest shift, however, is not just where menus live. It is how they function.

The most forward-thinking brands are no longer treating digital menu boards like static screens. They are treating them like websites.

That means testing, iterating, and learning.

Instead of choosing one image for a new product, they rotate multiple versions. Different photos. Different copy. Different placements. Then they look at the data. Which version sells more? What performs better at lunch versus dinner? What actually increases average order size?

“It’s just e-commerce 101,” Spiegel said.

Dynamic Menus

But for restaurants, this level of experimentation is still new. And it is creating a major opportunity. Because when menus become dynamic, they stop being passive. They start driving behavior.

Nowhere is that more powerful than in the drive-thru.

Instead of showing the same menu to every guest, brands can begin to adapt what is shown in real time. Highlighting the right items. Surfacing the right upgrades. Guiding the customer toward a higher-value order.

In one example, Spiegel’s team identified that a significant percentage of customers were ordering single items instead of combos. So they tested a simple change. When a guest selected an item, the screen showed that same item as part of a full meal, complete with a drink and side.

The result was clear. Average order size increased.

Not because prices changed, but because the menu told a better story.

“It’s about influencing behavior in a way that actually improves the experience,” Spiegel said.

The Menu Mindset Shift

One of the biggest mindset shifts Spiegel emphasizes is removing opinion from the equation. In the past, menu decisions were often based on instinct. What looks best. What feels right. What leadership prefers.

Now, the best brands test everything.

Images. Layouts. Pricing. Placement. Even combinations that might not seem intuitive.

Sometimes the data confirms expectations. Other times, it challenges them.

“We don’t draw lines,” Spiegel said. “We let the data play out.”

That approach allows restaurant brands to move faster, learn faster, and continuously improve how their menus perform. Because in a digital environment, there is no reason to guess.

For Spiegel, all of this ties back to a bigger idea: digital hospitality.

Not as a buzzword, but as a practical way to serve guests better.

Imagine pulling up to a drive-thru and seeing your favorite items ready to reorder. Or being reminded of a reward you forgot to use. Or interacting with a menu that adapts to how and when you order.

That is not just technology. That is hospitality.

Giving Operators Control

And it is exactly what Checkmate is building toward. By giving operators control, visibility, and the ability to optimize every menu across every channel, the company is helping restaurants remove friction and create more consistent, personalized guest experiences.

“It’s not just about driving more revenue,” Spiegel said. “It’s about creating a better guest experience.”

As restaurants continue to evolve, the menu will play a bigger role than ever. Not as a static list, but as a living, breathing part of the business.

One that is always on. Always learning. And always selling.

Checkmate’s Digital Menu Boards

Checkmate’s digital menu boards help restaurants increase average check size by surfacing the right add-ons and offers at the right moment. In a recent 30-day test with a national QSR brand, average check size increased by nearly $1 per order, about a 6% lift, with no extra labor and no slower lines. 

Learn more at https://www.itsacheckmate.com