# Create and update a menu item

For the manager or menu lead. **Console: Menu → Items.** The business catalogue
is shared across locations. A saved catalogue item still needs to be included in
the relevant location's menu before it can be ordered there.

## Find or create the item

Search by name and check the **Status**, **Category**, and **Order types**
filters. The list initially shows active items; clear that filter to find an
inactive one. Open the existing item rather than creating a duplicate because a
filtered result is empty. Select **Add item** for a genuinely new product.

The editor has five tabs:

| Tab            | Use it for                                                                          |
| -------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Basic          | Name, display name, description, identifiers, price, category, and item type        |
| Configuration  | Option groups, order types, age restriction, staff-only settings, units and amounts |
| Properties     | Photos, nutrition, allergens, dietary preferences, and flavour information          |
| Stock and cost | Ingredient or recipe links and costing                                              |
| Translations   | Customer-facing translated wording                                                  |

## Set the selling information

1. In **Basic**, enter a clear item name, display name if different,
   description, and selling price in the business currency. Check the amount
   before saving.
2. Choose its **Category**. An uncategorised item warns that it will not print
   to prep stations. Check the corresponding station routing before service.
3. Choose a normal **Single** item for a standalone product, or a **Choice** for
   a pick used inside another item's options, such as extra cheese or a size.
   Build new meal deals with a Single item and Bundle-type option groups for the
   meal's slots; the older Bundle item type is marked **Legacy**.
4. In **Configuration**, attach the required
   [option groups](/menu/option-groups). Drag them into the order staff and
   guests should encounter them.
5. In **Configuration**, check **Order types** and any staff-only restrictions.
   A location menu and its section must also allow the intended order type.
6. For a weighed product, check its units and **Price basis** (for example,
   **Per kg** or **Per 100 g**). Quantity increments and minimum/maximum amounts
   must match the way staff actually sell it.
7. Add verified photos and product information in **Properties**. Link stock or
   a recipe in **Stock and cost** where inventory tracking is required.
8. Use **Save** for a new item or **Update** for an existing one. Wait for the
   success message, then reopen the item and verify the saved price and
   settings.

A production cost is used for reports; it is not the selling price. Recipe
nutrition can be shown as **Synced from recipe**. **Enter nutrition by hand**
uses your own figures instead; review their accuracy with the menu lead.

## Record product information carefully

Allergens use **Contains**, **Free from**, or **Not specified**. The interface
records your restaurant's information; choosing Free from is not a
certification. Use checked kitchen information and leave uncertainty explicit.
Dietary and flavour controls also offer positive, negative, and unspecified
states; they are not simply a list of ticked claims.

Changes to shared choices or recipes can affect more than this item. Review
linked records before editing them. See
[Wine sizes and stock](/guides/wine-stock-links) for links specific to each wine
size.

## Verify at the selling location

Open [Location menus](/menu/menu-configuration), confirm the item belongs to the
correct section, and inspect the intended staff or customer ordering flow. Check
price, choices, image, order type, schedule, and availability. A catalogue save
is not proof that the item is visible in every ordering channel.

For short-term availability use the location's **Sold out / In stock** control
or [Menu countdowns](/guides/item-countdowns-auto-86). The Items list currently
offers **Change order types** for selected items; it does not provide the old
generic bulk sold-out, category, or deletion workflow.

## If an edit will not save

Keep the editor open, check highlighted validation and the error message, and
resolve the connection. **Unsaved changes** means the current edit still needs
saving. **Discard** drops unsaved edits; it does not undo changes already saved
in a separate option-group or stock panel. After an uncertain save, reopen the
same item and compare before creating or submitting another edit.

Escalate with item, affected location and channel, intended change, current
saved value, and the exact error. Use synthetic examples in support screenshots.