- Why stand a TV on its end for a dim sum house?
- Because the wall usually decides. A dim sum house tends to sit against a pillar, a narrow strip beside a doorway or a window that is taller than it is wide, and a landscape panel there either overhangs or shrinks to fit. A portrait board reads as one column top to bottom, which suits a list. What it is not is a rotated landscape design: turning a wide layout on its side re-wraps every line, so the board is authored in the shape the screen is mounted in.
- How do I mount a screen in portrait safely?
- Three checks before drilling. The bracket has to allow rotation, which most VESA plates do but some fixed ones do not. The panel itself has to be rated for portrait: many consumer TVs are not, because heat rises differently through a rotated panel and the warranty often says so in a line people skip. And the cables have to leave the set without a tight bend at the new bottom edge. A commercial signage panel is usually rated for both orientations, which is one of the real things the premium buys.
- Should a dim sum board show the piece count?
- Always, and beside the name rather than in a note. Har gow four pieces and har gow three pieces are different prices, and a board that hides the count moves the question to the counter, which is the slowest place to answer it during yum cha. It is also what makes two dishes at different prices look consistent rather than arbitrary.
- Is a light board a mistake for a restaurant?
- Not indoors. A pale board with dark type reads as calm and is easier to hold a lot of small type on, which suits a list where every line carries a count and a price. The two conditions are real contrast, meaning near black on cream rather than grey, and no direct daylight on the panel. In a window, go dark.
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