Start your story with someone looking at a restaurant menu.

Posted in Middle School on Nov 1, 2022

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✍️ 80 stories

“One Night At Sally's” by Melinda Madrigal

Submitted to Contest #162

Sally's, where the food is the best in town. Where the menus have the most beautiful designs. I'm looking at Sally's menu deciding what to order. The food is so good I don't know what I want. The Bay looks beautiful from my usual table. I smile at the many memories I have at Sally's. I started going to Sally's when I was six with my grandparents. We shared so many happy moments over a good meal. Sally's has been open since the 1940's and survived so much. There is a lot of history at Sally's. So many first dates, birthdays, marriage prop...

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“Angel Maker” by Michael Jefferson

Submitted to Contest #162

King Richard Rainsbury licks his lips as he scans the menu. “I think I’ll start with the oysters on the half shell with tequila mignonette.” His son, Prince Quentin Rainsbury, a younger version of his father with thick, chestnut brown hair, large, inquisitive black eyes, and a devilish grin, replies, “You always get that. I’ll have the escargot en brioche .” “I like oysters. Why change?” “Change can enlighten, father. So, I’m told.” “More liberal gobbledygook drummed into your head by the Queen.” “She’s just a mother looking out for h...

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“She, He, and the Waiter” by L Boogie

Submitted to Contest #162

Hmmm…the pork knuckle with fries or a salad? She thought to herself. Black and green olives, bell peppers, onions, kale, croutons, and salmon. This salad has a lot going on. “So, I’ve been hitting the gym pretty hard. Trying to get cut up for the summer” he said. This had been a nice spring so far. The air was cool and breezy. It made her hopeful for a summer filled with cocktails on the beach. She wondered what summer cocktails they might have on the menu. “Yeah, I don’t go to the gym to g...

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“Thanksgiving Dinner” by Ric Ottaiano

Submitted to Contest #162

Mike McCall sat alone at the counter of the Denny’s on Sheridan Boulevard, just outside of Boulder, Colorado. He stared at the menu with unfocused eyes. His mind was elsewhere. The drive here had taken almost eight hours in his rented Ford Taurus, even considering two short stops to relieve himself. He now wondered, Should I just eat here, turn back, or keep going? Did I really drive almost 450 miles to spend Thanksgiving Day eating country fried steak and eggs? No, I didn't. He tossed the menu on the counter an...

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“The Bittersweet Reality” by Tímea _

Submitted to Contest #162

You know how people sometimes tend to choose their food based on price? Not me. No. Even though I look at the numbers, I look at those little ones which are usually placed under the name of the food. Yep. The allergens. Do I do it voluntarily? I would rather let Satan drag me down the hell hole. All I'm trying to do here is not to die. And why am I trying so much to hold onto life I don't entirely desire? I am way too stubborn to quit. But who knows? Maybe one day I will make a decision to join The 27 club. I hope they will...

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“Home Cooked Love” by Heather Peace

Submitted to Contest #162

Sofia gulped a little as she took the menu from the waiter. This was torture, but she was determined to go through with it. The menu made a creaking sound as it opened. The restaurant hadn’t been broken in yet, still brand new as a baby. “People do this right?” She murmured to herself. It was not so much that she came to try the new restaurant but of what was here before this place. It was a lot filled with ghosts and memories of ghosts no matter how many times it was torn down and rebuilt. She sighed with a slight disgust at the...

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“The Buffet” by Pam Lonsdale

Submitted to Contest #162

Sally peers over the top of her menu following laughter from the other side of the restaurant. “They’re having fun,” Paulette observes as she, too, watches them. Margie follows their gaze to a table where eight young men, teenagers, are eating, talking, and generally enjoying themselves. Soon, Patty and Karen join their friends in watching this raucous group. ...

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“3 cherries” by SJ Miller

Submitted to Contest #162

The little pictures of food began to swim as Amber stared intently at the oversized menu, coming to grips with the possibility that the worst had happened…her date had stood her up. She refocused her eyes on the familiar options just to maintain the pretense of calm. She had no need to look at the menu. Since her New Year’s resolution to find a spouse by the end of the calendar year, she had eaten nearly everything on it and knew exactly what she planned to order. This hadn’t always been her first date testing ground. At the start of this qu...

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“The Gardener and the Roses” by M.M Parke

Submitted to Contest #162

August pretended reading the Dark Rose cafe’s menu, though she had memorized every sweet and savory pastry down to the bitter espresso when she found this hidden gemstone a year ago. In the downtown sector of a small farming town, the cafe sunbathed on the corner of a four-way street during the afternoon. August sat at a high table by the floor to the ceiling window, with faded remnants of children’s fingerprints. She listened to the soothing jingle of customers gliding in and out of the cafe, the strumming of the harp playing softly through...

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“What's Eating You?” by Debra Porter

Submitted to Contest #162

What’s Eating You? “Can I take your order?” “Definitely, not too hungry today. Just the ribeye steak, medium with baked potato, lobster tail, chicken a la king and…the veal parmesan, just the sandwich, I don’t need the full meal.” The server looked at me, her eyebrows raised so high, they disappeared into the 50’s beehive she was still sporting. “What, no appetizers?” I was almost positive she was being sarcastic. “No, not today, gotta watch my figure, you know,” I responded patting the paunch which people insisted gave me a “dad bod.” I was...

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“If It's Not on the Menu...” by George Georgerfrost@gmail.com

Submitted to Contest #162

Most places you learn if it’s not on the menu, then it’s probably not available. It makes sense, because if it was available then it would be on the menu, right? Even when I was just a kid, I learned that if it wasn’t there then I wasn’t going to order it. If you go to a fish place, you are not going to order a pizza, right? Sure, sure, common sense one would think. But that was before Togals opened its doors a few months ago. And all the rules changed after that to the point, I’m not sure about anything anymore. My ...

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“Another Paradise ” by Ian T. Smyth

Submitted to Contest #162

Clarence poured over the restaurant menu, his brown fingers running down the list of choices, unable to decide. He was to meet his good friend Lawrence for brunch, which happened to be Clarence’s favourite type of meal. Lawrence was running late, as usual, so Clarence went ahead and perused the menu. As he was perusing, and waiting for his friend to arrive, he was suddenly overcome with an appalling sense of disgust at the very nature of his situation. “Why am I sitting here, waiting like a fool?” he asked himself. “Nobody din...

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“Turkey Burger” by Kathryn Bryant

Submitted to Contest #162

C/W: ProfanityHamburger Cheeseburger California Burger California Cheeseburger Turkey CheeseburgerVeggie BurgerThere should be a Turkey Burger and a Veggie Cheeseburger. “Why don’t you think they listed a regular Turkey Burger?” Eddie doesn’t look up from his menu. “I don’t know, man. I’m sure they could make you a turkey burger without cheese.”“That’s not the point. Why are they listing California Burger and California Cheeseburger but not Turkey Burger and Turkey Cheeseburger? It’s inconsistent.” “Ju...

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“Cheese is an Ally” by J.J Park

Submitted to Contest #162

I am going to do it. Dear God, I made the reservations at Maria’s for this very moment. Why do my palms already have to start sweating while I readjust the menu in my hands? I lick my lips and take a slow deep breath through my nose. My eyes are boring a hole through the pasta section, and my stomach almost collapses with thunderous growls when reading the cheesy descriptions. I know what I want. I really do. Dancing into place, our waitress arrives with a ‘click’ of her pen. “Welcome to Maria’s- so glad you both could join us. I’m Danielle...

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“Makes a change from popsicles” by Sharon Williams

Submitted to Contest #162

Thirty-four-year-old Danielle yanked open the kitchen drawer and began rooting around amongst the motley collection of batteries, utensils, creased envelopes, and sandwich bags, until at the bottom, below the crumbs, paper clips, and tweezers she found what she was looking for. Triumphantly, she pulled out the Chinese takeaway menu. Twenty-four minutes earlier, she had tumbled in her front door. Laptop bag in one hand, keys in the other, handbag over her shoulder. As she did so, her fourteen-year-old son, Matt, slunk downstairs. ‘What’s f...

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Start your story with someone looking at a restaurant menu.

Submissions are closed

✍️ 80 stories

“One Night At Sally's” by Melinda Madrigal

“Angel Maker” by Michael Jefferson

“She, He, and the Waiter” by L Boogie

“Thanksgiving Dinner” by Ric Ottaiano

“The Bittersweet Reality” by Tímea _

“Home Cooked Love” by Heather Peace

“The Buffet” by Pam Lonsdale

“3 cherries” by SJ Miller

“The Gardener and the Roses” by M.M Parke

“What's Eating You?” by Debra Porter

“If It's Not on the Menu...” by George Georgerfrost@gmail.com

“Another Paradise ” by Ian T. Smyth

“Turkey Burger” by Kathryn Bryant

“Cheese is an Ally” by J.J Park

“Makes a change from popsicles” by Sharon Williams

🌟 Similar prompts

Write about a character whose love language is making food for others.

Write a story where a character’s life completely changes over the course of a meal.

Write a story in which too many cooks spoil the broth — literally or metaphorically.

Start your story with one character trying to convince another that they make the best grilled cheese in the world.

Contest #162

Enter our weekly contest!

$250

Prize money

234

Contest entries

97

Stories

Win $250 in our short story competition 🏆

Explore more writing prompt ideas: