Use case
Create restaurant and food imagery with AI
Food sells on sight, yet most small restaurants run on dim phone photos and a menu without pictures. Professional food shoots are hard to schedule around service. With image models you can start from a quick phone shot of the real plate and turn it into a clean menu image, a delivery-app photo or a moody social post, without closing the kitchen.
Why this approach works
- Editing a real plate photo keeps the dish honest: portions, garnish and colours stay what the kitchen actually serves.
- Light and styling are what separate amateur from professional food photos, and both can be changed after the fact without re-plating.
- Seasonal and special dishes need pictures fast; generation turns a new dish into a menu image the same day it is created.
Step-by-step workflow
- 1
Photograph the real plate
Shoot from above or at 45 degrees near a window, plate on a clean surface. No filters. The edit model needs to see the real dish, because it will keep its structure while improving everything around it.
- 2
Clean up the background and light
Ask for a neutral table, soft directional light and no clutter. Good food images are mostly about what is removed: the stray napkin, the neighbouring glass, the harsh flash reflection.
- 3
Style for the channel
Delivery apps want bright, centred, clean images. Instagram rewards moody light and context such as hands, steam and a half-eaten plate. Make one version of each, not a compromise.
- 4
Add the room and the people
Generate ambience images for the booking page: the terrace at golden hour, the bar at night. Base them on a real photo of your space so the layout and decor match what guests will find.
- 5
Animate a short loop
Turn the hero dish into a 5 second clip: steam rising, sauce being poured, a fork lifting a bite. Short food loops are among the most reliable video generations and perform well on stories.
Recommended models
| Model | Role | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Nano Banana 2 Edit | Quick restyling of a phone photo into a clean menu or delivery image. | 3 / image |
| Gemini 3 Pro | Text-to-image for dishes you have not photographed yet, with rich texture. | 5 / image |
| SeedDream v4.5 | Warm, appetising colour for ambience and drink shots. | 1 / image |
| Seedance 2.0 Fast I2V | Steam, pour and bite loops from the finished still. | 37 / clip |
Example prompts
Keep the dish exactly as plated: same ingredients, portions and garnish. Replace the table with a clean light stone surface, remove any clutter, soft window light from the left, slight steam, 45-degree angle, restaurant menu photography.
A bowl of slow-cooked beef ragù over fresh pappardelle on a dark ceramic plate, grated parmesan falling, dark wooden table, single warm candle light, deep shadows, a hand holding a fork at the edge, shallow depth of field, editorial food photography.
Steam rises slowly from the plate, a fork lifts a forkful of pasta and the sauce stretches. Static camera with a very slow push-in, warm candlelight flickers, soft kitchen ambience in the background.
What a full menu refresh costs
A small menu of ten dishes with a few ambience images and two short loops for social. Scale the dish count to your own menu.
| Item | Model | Qty | Credits each | Subtotal |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dish photos from phone shots | Nano Banana 2 Edit | 10 | 3 | 30 |
| Ambience and hero images | Gemini 3 Pro | 3 | 5 | 15 |
| Social loops | Seedance 2.0 Fast I2V (5 s) | 2 | 37 | 74 |
| Total per menu refresh | 119 credits |
| Plan | Allowance | Per menu refresh | Of monthly credits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starter (€15) | 100 credits | €17.85 | 119% |
| Pro (€35) | 300 credits | €13.88 | 40% |
| Business (€89) | 900 credits | €11.77 | 13% |
Plan for a retry on dishes with sauces or many small ingredients, which are the hardest to keep faithful. Never present a dish that looks better than what the kitchen serves. Price your own mix with the video cost calculator.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use AI images on a delivery app?
- Most apps accept any image you own, but they expect it to represent the real dish. Edit from your own photo and keep portions and ingredients accurate, and check each app’s image policy.
How do I make the food look appetising and not plastic?
- Ask for natural window light, visible texture, slight imperfection and a shallow depth of field. Words like glossy, perfect or hyper-detailed push models toward an artificial look.
Can the model render my menu text?
- Long text is unreliable. Generate the images clean and set the dish names and prices in your menu design tool or website, where you can edit them in seconds.
Which dishes are hardest?
- Dishes with many small ingredients, transparent drinks with ice and anything with visible text on packaging. Simple plated dishes and baked goods are the most reliable.
Related use cases
- E-commerce product photosTurn one plain product shot into a full catalogue of lifestyle and studio images.
- A week of social media contentPlan and generate seven days of posts, stories and short clips for a brand in a single sitting.
Start your Restaurant and food imagery workflow
Subscribe, open the studio and run the first step of this workflow with the recommended model.
Start creatingA subscription is required before generating. Plans from €15/month, cancel anytime.