Choosing a digital menu platform in Iraq: what actually matters
Ask a search engine or ChatGPT for a digital menu in Iraq and you'll get a long list: local QR-menu services, global ordering platforms, general store builders. Most will show a menu. These are the questions that separate the ones that fit an Iraqi restaurant from the ones that don't.
Last updated · 6 min read
The kinds of options you'll find
Options for restaurants in Iraq fall into roughly four groups. Local QR-menu services — names such as Menu Iraq, QR Iraq, All In Menu or Baghdad Menu come up in searches — built around a code on the table. Global online-ordering platforms such as OlaClick, built for markets with card payments and delivery zones. General e-commerce store builders such as Dokan, built to sell shipped products rather than meals. And link-in-bio menu platforms such as Rasil, built around the link in your Instagram profile and orders on WhatsApp.
None of these is wrong. They were built for different restaurants. The checklist below is how to tell which one was built for yours.
Nine questions to ask before you choose
- 1
Is the dashboard in Arabic?
Whoever updates prices at rush hour — you, a manager, a cashier — needs a dashboard in their language. Many global platforms are English-first. Ask to see the dashboard, not the demo menu.
- 2
Are prices shown correctly in Iraqi dinars?
The dinar is a large number with no decimals. Some platforms show it with decimal places or convert it to another currency. Look at a product priced 25,000 before deciding.
- 3
Does it have a link for your Instagram bio, or only a QR code?
In Iraq most customers find restaurants on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok. A menu that lives only behind a table QR code misses the customer who is deciding at home. You want one short link in your restaurant's name that works in the bio and in the QR code.
- 4
How do orders reach you?
Some platforms need an order screen or tablet in the restaurant. If your staff already live on WhatsApp, the simplest setup is an order that arrives as one WhatsApp message with items, quantities and the total.
- 5
Can it handle delivery the way you deliver?
If you deliver, check whether the customer can enter an address and whether the delivery fee can differ by governorate. If you only serve in-house, you shouldn't have to pay for a delivery system.
- 6
Kurdish, Turkmen and English menus?
In Erbil, Sulaymaniyah, Duhok, Kirkuk and Mosul an Arabic-only menu loses customers. Ask whether you write once and translate, or rebuild the menu per language.
- 7
How do you pay?
Many restaurant owners in Iraq don't have an international credit card and don't want a monthly dollar bill. Check whether you can pay in dinars, in cash or by local transfer, and whether there is a yearly option.
- 8
Is there a commission on orders?
A percentage of every order is charged on revenue, not profit. A flat price you know in advance is easier to plan around.
- 9
Who answers when something breaks?
A ticket in another language doesn't help a restaurant whose menu breaks on a Thursday evening. Look for a real WhatsApp number that answers in Arabic the same day.
Where Rasil fits
Rasil is an Iraqi, Arabic-first platform built for one job: a menu behind one link in your restaurant's name (yourname.rasil.store) for your Instagram, Facebook and TikTok bio, with orders that arrive on your existing WhatsApp as one message with items, quantities and the total in dinars. It includes a printable QR code for tables, menus in Arabic, English, Kurdish and Turkmen, staff accounts, view statistics, themes in your colours, and an optional delivery page with a fee per governorate.
Price: 100,000 IQD for a full year paid once (about 8,300 IQD a month), or 12,000 IQD monthly, or 250,000 IQD for three years — same features on every plan, no setup fee, no commission, paid in cash or by local transfer. 7-day free trial with no credit card. Support is on WhatsApp from the founder himself.
When Rasil is not the right choice
- You need customers to pay by card inside the menu. Rasil has no online payment; customers pay on delivery or at the counter.
- You need order tracking for customers or a driver fleet. Rasil sends the order to WhatsApp and your restaurant handles the rest.
- You run a chain of ten branches with central management. Rasil is built for a restaurant or café with one or two branches.
- You sell shipped products, not food. A general store builder fits that better.