i have done quite a few menu boards, mostly at theme parks so the style changed up quite a bit and had to stick to a certain format while being guided by marketing and restaurant specific designers (interior, environmental and graphic) I see a lot of help, but not enough questions.. like:
--- What is "cantine style"? Do you mean "bistro"? then what style, yeah I'm thinking French but it if not, it would help to know...
--- In order to pick a "correct" legible typeface, (and there are plenty of them in many styles) I think you should look at the interior, branding/logo, architecture... anything that will compliment the area and identity.
--- I think adding a field color to the copy adds nothing and giving the layout less balance, complicating the layout.
--- I think a menu should add to the branding, and be an extension of the interior architecure.
---Always... I mean always look at the layout with a scale person in place or better yet, placed in a photo rendering to the correct scale to see how the size works, to me the original size sounded large, but not knowing where it was placed, how high, the surrounding environment, a lot of the suggestions may not be of any help without knowing that additional information.
I was bored so i played with it after thinking about it... then the format changed... and the client went with something.