Reading a menu price range
Dollar-sign price ranges summarize what a meal costs, but each guide defines them differently. Learn what the signs mean and what they leave out.
Updated
Reading a menu price range
Most directories mark restaurants with dollar signs from $ to $$$$. The signs give a quick sense of cost, but they hide as much as they show. No single rule defines them. Each guide sets its own bands, and a $$ dinner in one city can cost more than a $$$ dinner in another.
What the signs usually mean
The signs rank restaurants against each other rather than against fixed prices. As a rough guide:
- $ means a cheap meal: counter service, food trucks and casual spots.
- $$ means a mid-range meal: a standard sit-down restaurant.
- $$$ means an expensive meal: polished service and higher-cost ingredients.
- $$$$ means a luxury meal: tasting menus and fine dining.
These bands shift with the city. Rent and wages set menu prices, so a $$$$ room in a small city can cost less than a $$$ room in New York or San Francisco. Compare signs only within one city. This directory lists restaurants by city, which makes that comparison fair.
What the signs leave out
A price sign usually reflects the cost of food for one person, often anchored on a main course. It rarely includes drinks, and drinks move the total more than anything else. A round of cocktails can cost more than an entree. Wine by the glass at a fine-dining room can match the price of a whole dinner at a casual spot.
Tax and tip also sit outside the sign. In the United States, sales tax and a standard tip add roughly a quarter to a third on top of menu prices. In Canada, goods and services tax plus a provincial tax and tip do the same. A $$ menu can therefore produce a $$$ check once drinks, tax and tip land.
Set menus and supplements break the scale too. Some tasting-menu rooms quote one fixed price that covers the whole dinner. Others quote a base price and charge extra for pairings, supplements and service. Read the fine print on the menu page before you judge the value.
How to estimate your own total
Start with the average entree price when a listing shows one. Add a starter or dessert if you usually order one. Then add your drinks: count each glass at menu price rather than guessing. Finally add tax and the tip you plan to leave. That sum is your real per-person cost.
For a group, multiply the per-person figure by the headcount and add a margin for shared plates. Groups order more starters and desserts than the sum of individual habits suggests. A ten percent margin covers most surprises.
Signs are a starting point
Use the dollar signs to sort a long list into cheap, mid-range and expensive. Then open the menu of each finalist and price your own meal. Two restaurants with the same sign can still differ by the cost of a cocktail. The menu, not the sign, sets your budget.