Restaurant owners in the United Kingdom: the rules for your menu, and where Menyu stands

Food law in the UK names 14 allergens: celery, cereals containing gluten, crustaceans, eggs, fish, lupin, milk, molluscs, mustard, peanuts, sesame, soybeans, sulphur dioxide and sulphites, and tree nuts. Guests may react to other ingredients, but only these 14 must be declared.^5,6

In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, the Food Standards Agency asks for allergen information on every non-prepacked item that contains one of them, restaurant meals and takeaways included. You can write it on the menu, a chalkboard or in a pack, or give it verbally, with a clearly visible written notice telling guests how to ask.⁵

The FSA’s best practice prefers written information that guests can find without asking, on a paper or digital menu. Digital is allowed, provided there is another way to reach the information for guests who cannot use it, and a backup if it fails.⁷

In Scotland, Food Standards Scotland applies the same 14: for food that is not prepacked, the information must be available before purchase, on a menu, a chalkboard, a shelf label or from a member of staff, and staff must be trained on allergens.⁶

Food prepacked for direct sale, packed where it is sold and before the guest orders it, must carry a label with its name and a full list of ingredients, the allergens emphasised. Governments across the UK set this rule from 1 October 2021.⁸

Food served unpacked, or packed after the order, is non-prepacked: it needs no such label, but its allergen information must still be given, which can be done orally.⁸

Since 6 April 2022, businesses in England with 250 or more employees must show the calories of the non-prepacked food they sell, in kcal, on every menu where guests choose, electronic and online menus included, with the statement ‘adults need around 2000 kcal a day’.⁹

Dishes on the menu for less than 30 consecutive days, and 30 days in a year, are exempt.⁹

The Employment (Allocation of Tips) Act 2023 makes it mandatory to pass all tips on to workers without deductions. Its statutory code of practice, in force since 1 October 2024 in England, Scotland and Wales, covers tips, gratuities and service charges, and calls for a written tipping policy and accurate records.^10,11

Tips do not count towards the National Minimum Wage. A service charge carries VAT at the standard rate; a tip the guest freely adds on top of the bill carries none.^11,12

The standard rate of VAT is 20%, and most food is zero-rated, but food and drink eaten on the premises are always charged at the standard rate. For a restaurant, the premises include the tables and chairs on the pavement next to it.^12,13

Hot takeaway food is standard-rated; cold takeaway food is zero-rated unless it is of a kind always taxed at the standard rate. The reduced rate for hospitality ended on 31 March 2022.¹²

In England the pavement licence regime has been permanent since 31 March 2024. Councils set their fees within a cap of £500 for a first application and £350 for a renewal; after 14 days of public consultation they have 14 more to decide, or the licence is deemed granted for two years. A-boards fall outside it.¹⁴

That regime applies to England only. In Scotland, tables and chairs outside your premises need your council’s permission, and the council may charge a fee. Under section 59 of the Roads (Scotland) Act 1984, placing anything that obstructs a road without the roads authority’s written consent is an offence.^14,15,16