>Very modern, possibly posh, certainly arrogant in its branding (really off-putting when used by a coffee joint or pastry shop).

Why? For me, I'd just assume what ever the local currency was is implied. Maybe that's just me being in the US, so there's only $. However, when I've been to other non-european countries, this was also a safe assumption. However, even in Europe, would it not be safe to assume euros, unless in the UK, then assume pounds? Am I just being too simple?

This is less about the practicalities of "what currency are they charging me?", which is rarely if ever a legitimate concern of a customer. This relates more to the presentation of the menu itself, where excluding the dollar sign is something posh restaurants do, and many others imitate. As for why they do so, I don't know of a reason beyond the appeal of minimalism

Even when the currency sign is dropped, you would usually have a notation like 12.—, 12.--, or 12.00 (or with commas instead of periods as decimal separator depending on locale) to signify that it is a price and not just a random number. You could easily guess that from the context, but it is a deliberate circumvention of convention nonetheless. Using just '12' also signals that fractional units of that currency are not something that establishment deals with (which is fine for Japanese Yen or South Korean Won, but comes across as rude for Euro, and most Dollars and Pounds).

> Using just '12' also signals that fractional units of that currency are not something that establishment deals with (which is fine for Japanese Yen or South Korean Won, but comes across as rude for Euro, and most Dollars and Pounds).

Pedantic note: you will routinely see prices specified as “12” on menus in coffeeshops and restaurants in Korea, and it would mean 12000 won.

I personally treat it as just one of the tactics a place employs to set expectations and attract/repel audience according to its preferred vibe.

Yeah if you put just a number, no unities and no decimals my opinion of this restaurant is also going to be just an integer number, below 1.

Like this https://www.brooklynbarmenus.com/

I think it might be actually illegal to not have prices on menus

Used to be there was the "gentlemans" and the "ladies" menu. Difference was the 'ladies' menu didn't have the prices.

That was another time/age, but it was certainly legal.

That actually seems useful. Not dividing by gender, but instead the idea of giving a different menu to the person who's paying and the one(s) who are being treated. It's tough placing an order when you're being taken out to dinner and can see the prices because you're going to avoid something you might really want if it's more expensive than the average of the menu.

I think that would be very hard in practice without prior arrangement. The restaurant has no way of knowing the circumstances of the dinner and the person doing the paying. Getting the most expensive thing on the menu may be a stretch for the host or it may of no consequence. (And the server won't even know if you're splitting the bill.)

If it's a place you're going to on a reservation you can work that out ahead of time. It wouldn't be something that would be the default at restaurants, but it's not impossible.

Yep, I did this for my mom one time. I was treating at a fancy restaurant, and I didn't want her picking based on price, so I had them removed.

I believe it's still common practice at private clubs, though i haven't been to one in a while. Menu with prices for the member, without prices for the guests.

Used to be? Many European restaurants do this.