Fix menu-reading and ingredient-import problems
Recover from unreadable menu files, incorrect extracted rows, CSV mapping errors, and duplicate imports.
For: Owners and editors importing restaurant information
In this guide
If a photo or PDF cannot be read
Menu reading extracts names and descriptions for your review. It does not infer ingredients or allergen facts. Imported dish names still need recipe work before service.
- For Upload a photo or PDF, choose JPG, PNG, WebP, or PDF up to 12 MB. Use a sharp, well-lit image or a PDF with selectable text.
- Select Read menu and wait for the reading result. If needed, use Cancel reading rather than starting several uploads.
- If reading fails or produces poor text, return to Paste menu text. Put one dish on each line; section headings and prices can be included.
- Split a long menu into batches of no more than 300 dishes. Use Enter a dish manually instead for a small number of difficult rows.
File-reading availability can vary by environment. A provider or file-processing failure does not make guessed ingredient or allergen data acceptable.
Enlarge screenshotCorrect extracted rows before saving
At review, nothing has been saved yet. Use Edit on a row to correct Dish name, Section, Price (optional), and Description (optional). Every selected row needs a name and section and a valid price if one is entered.
Use Add a missing dish for an omission, uncheck unwanted rows, or choose Remove from import. Matching names are added as separate dishes; they do not update an existing dish. Uncheck duplicates you do not want. Change source lets you return to the input.
Select Add … dishes only after reviewing the selection. Confirm the dish names added result, then use Finish the first dish or See your menu. If saving reported an error, inspect the menu before repeating the whole import.
If an ingredient CSV fails
Ingredient import is a separate workflow: Upload, Map columns, Review, and Complete. Use a CSV smaller than 5 MB with a header row and no more than 300 ingredients.
- Map the ingredient-name column and any Contains, May contain, brand, supplier, or note columns.
- Read the listed row numbers and errors. Fix missing names, overlong names, or unrecognized flags in the source file, then upload it again.
- Choose Skip matching names or Import as separate ingredients. Existing ingredient flags are not overwritten by separate imports.
- Confirm I checked these flags against our recipes and supplier labels only after doing that review.
- Verify the final imported count and inspect representative ingredients in the library.
An account-export CSV is not an ingredient-import template. Use the ingredient CSV guide for supported columns.
Enlarge screenshotReviewed against the current Dishcard app. Screenshots use sample restaurant data.