Sentinel Plate IndexMENU PRICES · INDEPENDENT RESTAURANTS
VERSION 2026-11-11-DRAFT

Terms of use

These terms cover sentinelplateindex.com and the Sentinel Plate Index: its editions, web pages, printed and PDF versions, CSV files and emails (together, "the index"). The index is published by SentinelBrain LLC, a Texas limited liability company ("we", "us"). By using the site or signing up for the email, you agree to these terms. If you do not agree, please do not use the site.

1. What the index is

A monthly report on menu prices at independent restaurants, read from prices restaurants publish on their own public websites. This report describes listed menu prices. It is not a rating of any restaurant and not advice on what anyone should charge or pay. It is not legal, financial or investment advice. Figures are summaries across many restaurants and can contain errors. Fixes are listed in our corrections log.

2. Who owns it

SentinelBrain LLC owns the index: the editions, text, charts, tables, the figures as we compile and present them, the CSV files, the methodology, the archive of past editions, and the data and methods behind them. "Sentinel Plate Index" and "SentinelBrain" are our trademarks. Using the site gives you the permissions in section 3 and nothing more. It does not give you ownership of anything.

3. What you may do, free

  • Read the editions, and print or download them for your own use.
  • Share links to any page, and forward an edition email without changing it.
  • Quote figures, a chart or short passages in news, research, teaching, a talk, or your own business decisions, with credit, for example: Source: Sentinel Plate Index (sentinelplateindex.com), DFW Indian, October 2026 edition.
  • If you run or work at a restaurant, use the figures to inform your own prices and share them inside your business.

4. What needs a license

The following need our written permission (a license), which may be paid:

  • Selling, licensing or redistributing editions, CSV files or figures, alone or inside a product, database, report, newsletter or service that you charge for or provide to clients.
  • Collecting editions, CSV files or figures in bulk or over time to build a dataset, archive or time series, beyond occasional quotes.
  • Loading them into commercial software, dashboards, data feeds or analytics tools.
  • Using them to train, fine-tune, test or ground an AI model, or to feed an AI product or service.
  • Presenting our figures as your own, removing the credit, or suggesting that we endorse you.

To ask about a license, write to optout@sentinelplateindex.com.

5. Paid products

We may offer paid reports, data, licenses and services alongside the free editions. They can contain more detail than the free editions, and they have their own terms.

6. The free edition

The monthly edition is free to read. What it covers (metros, cuisines, level of detail) and when it comes out are our decisions and may change. Signing up for the email does not create a paid or contractual service.

7. Automated access

Do not use scrapers, crawlers, bots or scripts to copy the site, the editions or the CSV files, except search engines indexing pages to show them in search results. Do not get around rate limits or security, and do not try to find out which restaurants are in the index.

8. Restaurants

We read prices that restaurants publish on their own public websites. We publish only summaries across many restaurants, and we never name a restaurant or say which ones are included. If you prefer your restaurant's public menu not be counted, email optout@sentinelplateindex.com and we will leave it out of future editions. Published by SentinelBrain LLC.

9. Your submissions

If you send us feedback, suggestions or a metro request, we may use them without owing you anything. How we handle your personal details is set out in our privacy policy.

10. No warranty

The index is provided "as is" and "as available". We work to make it accurate, but we do not promise that it is complete, current or free of errors, or that the site will always be available. You are responsible for the decisions you make with it.

11. Limit of liability

To the fullest extent the law allows, SentinelBrain LLC is not liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential or punitive damages, or for lost profits or revenue, arising from your use of the index. Our total liability for any claim about the index is limited to $100. Some places do not allow some of these limits, so they may not all apply to you.

12. If you break these terms

We may block or end your access. If your use of the index in breach of these terms leads to a claim against us, you agree to cover our reasonable costs of that claim. Sections 2, 4, 7 and 10 to 13 continue to apply after your access ends.

13. Law

These terms are governed by the laws of the State of Texas. Any dispute will be handled by the state or federal courts located in Texas.

14. Changes

We may update these terms. We will post the new version here with a new version label. Using the site after that means you accept the new version.

15. Contact

Questions about these terms, licenses or permissions: optout@sentinelplateindex.com.