Show the actual price online when you know it and can keep it current through checkout. If you cannot, label the item clearly as market price and give guests a way to ask for the current amount. Do not let an old dollar amount remain in the ordering flow just because the menu description says “market price.”
The right setup depends on when your restaurant knows the price, whether a guest can order the item online, and who can update every place it appears. A lobster special priced before dinner needs a different process from fish sold by weight after it is prepared.
First, identify when the price is known
Start with the way you actually sell the dish. Is it a single portion at one price for the whole service? Is the price based on weight, size, or a guest’s selection? Can the kitchen confirm the final amount before the guest agrees to buy?
Then identify the people who provide the inputs. A supplier may give the chef a new cost; the chef or manager sets the selling price; and an assigned staff member publishes it. If the final price depends on the weight of a particular fish, someone also has to weigh it and communicate the resulting amount. Those are separate jobs, even when one person handles all of them.
Use this decision tree before choosing a label:
- Is the final selling price known before the guest orders? If yes, publish that amount and make it available to order only while the amount remains current.
- Is a reliable total available only after the guest makes contact or the item is weighed? Show “market price” on the informational menu, explain how to get a quote, and agree on the total before completing the order.
- Can neither the current amount nor a workable quote process be provided? Remove or pause the item from ordering until staff can confirm it. Keep an informational listing only if it accurately describes availability.
For an item sold by weight, a price per pound alone may not tell a diner what they will pay. Explain the unit and how the final weight is determined. If the exact portion is not selected until later, give the guest an opportunity to accept the final amount rather than treating an estimate as a completed sale.
Check the distinction between your informational menu and your order menu. A dish can be visible for browsing without being available for online purchase. Ask your website and ordering providers whether you can control those states separately.
Choose a label and an owner for updates
A useful label tells guests what they can do next. “Market price — call for today’s price” is more actionable than “MP” on its own. Include the phone number or other contact method where a guest can find it easily, and make sure staff answering it have the current information.
If the price is known for the service, show the amount with the dish and, where useful, state when it applies. For example, “Today’s whole fish: $32” tells the guest more than a market-price label. It also creates a responsibility: when today ends, someone must update or remove the amount.
These are hypothetical publishing choices, not claims about a particular software product. The table shows how the timing of the price changes the appropriate guest-facing message and order handoff.
| Price situation | Menu display | Ordering handoff |
|---|---|---|
| One portion price is set before service | Show the current amount and the period it applies to | Accept orders at that amount while it remains current |
| Final amount depends on a portion weighed later | Show “market price” and explain how to obtain a quote | Confirm the actual total with the guest before completing the order |
| No current price or quote is available | Mark the dish unavailable or remove it | Pause ordering until staff can price it |
Assign a primary updater and a backup. At the start of each service, the updater should confirm the price with the person who set it, publish it in each relevant place, and check the guest view. At the end of its valid period, the backup needs authority to remove or pause the item if no new price has been supplied.
Keep a simple record: item, current price or quote method, effective period, approver, and time published. This is particularly useful when lunch and dinner teams change over. A shared note can work if staff know which version is current and where the published menu lives.
List every place a guest might encounter the dish: your restaurant website, the ordering menu, and any other menu pages you control. Do not assume an edit to one automatically updates another. Ask the provider which displays share data, how quickly changes appear, and who can make them.
Prevent an old amount from looking like a promise
A correct description is not enough if the item card, cart, or checkout still shows yesterday’s price. Look at the full path a guest would take, from the menu listing through any confirmation screen. Check mobile as well as desktop, and look for a fixed amount attached to an option or size.
Suppose, in a separate hypothetical example, a restaurant lists a whole fish at $28 for one evening. The next service, its price is $34. Changing the descriptive text to “market price” while leaving a $28 purchase button active creates conflicting information. The safer choice is to update the purchasable amount to $34 before accepting orders, or pause online purchasing and direct guests to request the current price.
The $34 is the hypothetical item price only. It excludes any applicable payment processing, delivery, tax, and other order charges; it is not an all-in operating cost. The example assumes a fixed price for that service, not a price calculated later by weight.
Also check whether a guest can select an old variation, add the item from a saved menu view, or leave it in a cart while you change the price. Ask the provider what happens in each case. If the system cannot make the current amount clear before an order is submitted, use a non-orderable listing or take the item off the online menu until you have a workable process.
Run practice checks in a simulation or training environment that cannot create a real payment, guest message, or courier dispatch. If that environment does not exist, review the display and cart without submitting an order, and ask the provider to demonstrate the remaining steps safely. A live service pilot is different: it involves actual guests and orders, so only use it after the price and handoff process are ready and staff know how to handle discrepancies.
Confirm the total and handoff before service
Walk through the decision tree with the person who takes orders. For a known, fixed service price, the guest should see the same current item amount in the menu and cart before committing. For a quote-based item, staff need a clear way to give the amount, record the guest’s agreement, and tell the kitchen what was accepted.
Consider a hypothetical fish sold at $18 per pound, with a selected weight of 1.5 pounds. The item total is $27: $18 multiplied by 1.5. That includes the fish only, with no fixed add-on, variable delivery or processing charge, tax, or exception cost included. It assumes the weight is known before the guest agrees. If the actual fish weighs a different amount, staff must calculate and communicate the new total rather than presenting $27 as final.
Before service, settle these operational questions:
- Who confirms the day’s price, and what happens if that person is unavailable?
- Can staff pause the item independently on the website and in online ordering?
- Where does the guest see the item price and any separate order charges before committing?
- How will staff record an agreed quote and pass it to the kitchen?
- What will staff do if a guest sees an outdated amount or the available portion differs from the quote?
For the last question, give the team a contact and an escalation path. Resolve the difference with the guest before proceeding; do not quietly substitute a new amount. If orders also appear in another system, ask how the agreed price reaches that system and whether a staff member must enter it.
When comparing software, request a demonstration using your own item and update schedule. Ask to see the informational listing, the purchasable item, the cart, and the staff handoff. Also ask what happens to an item already in a cart when its price changes. Review current Fleksa plans and request a written quote for your setup; plan information was checked in November 2026. A quote for software and processing should be considered separately from the food price shown to guests.
Next step: Use the questions above to review one changing-price item in your current setup, then ask Fleksa about online ordering and whether the relevant setup is available in the US.
Frequently asked questions
Can I put “market price” on an online menu?
Yes. Make the label understandable and tell guests how to obtain the current price. If the item is also orderable online, make sure the purchase flow does not show a conflicting old amount.
Should a market-price item have a price per pound?
A current price per pound can help guests understand the basis for a quote, but it is not necessarily the final item total. Explain when the portion is weighed and confirm the resulting amount before completing the order.
How often should I update the price?
Update it whenever the published amount is no longer valid under your restaurant’s pricing process. Assign a backup to pause or remove the item if a current price cannot be confirmed.
