Menu anxiety is a type of stress caused by anxiety when choosing a menu at a restaurant. Based on the survey mentioned earlier, menu anxiety is most commonly experienced by the age group between 18 to 24 years old with a percentage of 34%. 

When this anxiety arises, people ask other people at the same table to talk to the waitress. The reason is because they feel nervous to communicate. On the other hand, 38% of Gen Z and Millennials would not go to a certain restaurant if they could not see the menu before deciding to go there. 

Menu anxiety occurs when a person feels anxious when choosing a menu in a restaurant.

Triggers

Some of the triggers for menu anxiety include the cost of the food, fear of not being able to find the food you like, regretting what you have ordered, too many menu options available, the menu is too complex, and fear of being judged by others regarding what you ordered. In addition to these triggers, there are many young people who are influenced by social media to order food.

What does this mean? About a third of 25 to 34 year olds tend to choose menus that will look good for social media posting. This is because they are very concerned about how they will look or appear in public. In fact, it often triggers stress, anxiety, and loneliness. 

Check it out, are you one of them?

Let's review, would Ladies scroll through social media first to choose a food menu or a place to eat before deciding later? In fact, based on Google's internal data, almost 40% of Gen Z prefer to search for menu or restaurant information through Instagram or TikTok rather than Google or Google Maps. 

If this is the case, then the decision of "what to eat" is only determined based on the restaurant promoted by the influencer or the food looks "Instagrammable". No one is blaming these actions, but it seems like we shouldn't just stick to the trend now should we? If the food is good, then good luck to us, but if it's not? Ladies, would you agree?

There are people who choose certain menus just because they want to look Instagrammable.

Tips for Overcoming Menu Anxiety

1. Take it easy, there's no need to rush.
2. You have time to consider your decision, and it's not limited by a deadline.
3. Cut-off menu choices by choosing what category or type of food you like.
4. Try asking the waiter for the best seller menu when you have the menu.
5. Prioritize from the specials to the regular menu.
6. Remind yourself that this is just an option to eat a meal, not a major life decision.
7. It doesn't matter if you don't end up eating the delicious food you were expecting, you can try something else next time.
8. Not only the food, but you need to go out to eat with people you enjoy too.

Ladies might agree that we are often faced with the difficulty of choosing a menu at a restaurant, aka menu anxiety. Maybe it's because of the price, fear of not being tasty, fear of regret, too many choices, too complex menu composition, or fear of being judged by others. Well, if Ladies usually include which one? So how do you overcome it? Let's share with each other!

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