diff --git a/static/js/menu.js b/static/js/menu.js
index 9c747e4..3b08d20 100644
--- a/static/js/menu.js
+++ b/static/js/menu.js
@@ -1,16 +1,46 @@
+/*
+ * Menu builder — q-tree + items panel.
+ *
+ * The server's GET /api/v1/restaurants/{id}/menu returns:
+ *   { restaurant, tree: [<root MenuNode>], items: [<enriched item>] }
+ * `tree` is a hydrated tree (each node has children + items already
+ * attached, plus depth + path). `items` is the flat enriched list
+ * (with modifier groups, modifier options, availability windows
+ * pre-joined) — used here to populate the items panel by node_id.
+ *
+ * Tree mutations (create / rename / move / delete) hit the
+ * /api/v1/menu_nodes/* endpoints. We refetch the whole menu after
+ * each mutation; for ≤50 nodes per restaurant this is trivial and
+ * keeps state simple. SSE/Nostr push refresh is a v2.
+ */
 window.app = Vue.createApp({
   el: '#vue',
   mixins: [windowMixin],
   data() {
     return {
       restaurant: window.RESTAURANT_BOOTSTRAP || {},
-      categories: [],
-      items: [],
-      selectedCategoryId: null,
-      categoryDialog: {
+      tree: [],          // hydrated root nodes
+      flatNodes: [],     // flat list of every node (id + name + depth + path)
+      enrichedItems: [], // flat list of items with modifier groups attached
+      selectedNodeId: null,
+      expandedNodeIds: [],
+      maxDepth: 3, // 0..3 = 4 levels; mirrors models.MAX_MENU_DEPTH
+
+      nodeDialog: {
         show: false,
-        data: {restaurant_id: '', name: '', description: ''}
+        editing: false,
+        parentId: null,
+        parentName: '',
+        data: this._blankNode()
       },
+
+      moveDialog: {
+        show: false,
+        nodeId: null,
+        nodeName: '',
+        newParentId: null
+      },
+
       itemDialog: {
         show: false,
         data: this._blankItem(),
@@ -19,6 +49,7 @@ window.app = Vue.createApp({
         allergensText: '',
         ingredientsText: ''
       },
+
       modifiersDialog: {
         show: false,
         itemId: null,
@@ -27,24 +58,62 @@ window.app = Vue.createApp({
       }
     }
   },
+
   computed: {
-    selectedCategory() {
-      return this.categories.find((c) => c.id === this.selectedCategoryId)
+    selectedNode() {
+      return this._findNode(this.tree, this.selectedNodeId)
     },
     filteredItems() {
-      if (!this.selectedCategoryId) return this.items
-      return this.items.filter((i) => i.node_id === this.selectedCategoryId)
+      if (!this.selectedNodeId) return this.enrichedItems
+      return this.enrichedItems.filter(
+        (i) => i.node_id === this.selectedNodeId
+      )
     },
-    categoryOptions() {
-      return this.categories.map((c) => ({label: c.name, value: c.id}))
+    /** All nodes as a flat indented q-select option list, used for
+     *  the item dialog's node_id picker and the move dialog. */
+    allNodeOptions() {
+      return this.flatNodes.map((n) => ({
+        label: `${'\u2003'.repeat(n.depth)}${n.name}`,
+        value: n.id
+      }))
+    },
+    /** Move-dialog targets exclude the node being moved + its
+     *  descendants (cycle prevention is enforced server-side too,
+     *  but we don't show the user options that would be rejected). */
+    moveTargetOptions() {
+      if (!this.moveDialog.nodeId) return this.allNodeOptions
+      const moving = this.flatNodes.find((n) => n.id === this.moveDialog.nodeId)
+      if (!moving) return this.allNodeOptions
+      const prefix = moving.path
+      return this.flatNodes
+        .filter(
+          (n) =>
+            n.id !== moving.id &&
+            n.path !== prefix &&
+            !n.path.startsWith(prefix + '/') &&
+            n.depth < this.maxDepth // can't add a child to a depth-3 node
+        )
+        .map((n) => ({
+          label: `${'\u2003'.repeat(n.depth)}${n.name}`,
+          value: n.id
+        }))
     },
     adminkey() {
-      // The wallet that owns this restaurant.
       const w = this.g.user.wallets.find((w) => w.id === this.restaurant.wallet)
       return (w && w.adminkey) || (this.g.user.wallets[0] && this.g.user.wallets[0].adminkey)
     }
   },
+
   methods: {
+    _blankNode() {
+      return {
+        id: null,
+        name: '',
+        description: '',
+        image_url: '',
+        sort_order: 0
+      }
+    },
     _blankItem() {
       return {
         restaurant_id: '',
@@ -76,41 +145,124 @@ window.app = Vue.createApp({
         .map((x) => x.trim())
         .filter(Boolean)
     },
+    _findNode(nodes, id) {
+      if (!id) return null
+      for (const n of nodes) {
+        if (n.id === id) return n
+        const inChild = this._findNode(n.children || [], id)
+        if (inChild) return inChild
+      }
+      return null
+    },
+    _flatten(nodes, out) {
+      for (const n of nodes) {
+        out.push({id: n.id, name: n.name, depth: n.depth, path: n.path})
+        this._flatten(n.children || [], out)
+      }
+      return out
+    },
 
-    // -------- categories --------
+    // -------- fetch --------
     async fetchMenu() {
       try {
         const {data} = await RestaurantAPI.getMenu(this.restaurant.id)
-        this.categories = data.categories
-        this.items = data.items
-        if (!this.selectedCategoryId && this.categories.length) {
-          this.selectedCategoryId = this.categories[0].id
+        this.tree = data.tree || []
+        this.enrichedItems = data.items || []
+        this.flatNodes = this._flatten(this.tree, [])
+        // Auto-expand all on first load so the operator sees structure.
+        if (!this.expandedNodeIds.length && this.flatNodes.length) {
+          this.expandedNodeIds = this.flatNodes.map((n) => n.id)
         }
       } catch (err) {
         LNbits.utils.notifyApiError(err)
       }
     },
-    openCategoryDialog() {
-      this.categoryDialog.data = {
-        restaurant_id: this.restaurant.id,
-        name: '',
-        description: ''
+
+    // -------- nodes --------
+    openNodeDialog(existing, parent) {
+      if (existing) {
+        this.nodeDialog.editing = true
+        this.nodeDialog.parentId = null
+        this.nodeDialog.parentName = ''
+        this.nodeDialog.data = {
+          id: existing.id,
+          name: existing.name,
+          description: existing.description || '',
+          image_url: existing.image_url || '',
+          sort_order: existing.sort_order || 0
+        }
+      } else {
+        this.nodeDialog.editing = false
+        this.nodeDialog.parentId = parent ? parent.id : null
+        this.nodeDialog.parentName = parent ? parent.name : ''
+        this.nodeDialog.data = this._blankNode()
       }
-      this.categoryDialog.show = true
+      this.nodeDialog.show = true
     },
-    async saveCategory() {
+    async saveNode() {
+      const payload = {
+        restaurant_id: this.restaurant.id,
+        parent_id: this.nodeDialog.parentId,
+        name: this.nodeDialog.data.name,
+        description: this.nodeDialog.data.description || null,
+        image_url: this.nodeDialog.data.image_url || null,
+        sort_order: this.nodeDialog.data.sort_order || 0
+      }
       try {
-        await RestaurantAPI.createCategory(this.adminkey, this.categoryDialog.data)
-        this.categoryDialog.show = false
+        if (this.nodeDialog.editing) {
+          await RestaurantAPI.updateMenuNode(
+            this.adminkey,
+            this.nodeDialog.data.id,
+            payload
+          )
+        } else {
+          await RestaurantAPI.createMenuNode(this.adminkey, payload)
+        }
+        this.nodeDialog.show = false
         await this.fetchMenu()
       } catch (err) {
         LNbits.utils.notifyApiError(err)
       }
     },
-    async deleteCategory(cat) {
-      if (!confirm(`Delete category ${cat.name}?`)) return
+    async deleteNode(node) {
+      const hasChildren = (node.children || []).length > 0
+      const hasItems = (node.items || []).length > 0
+      let cascade = false
+      if (hasChildren || hasItems) {
+        const msg = hasChildren && hasItems
+          ? `${node.name} has child nodes AND items. Delete the whole subtree (items will be detached, not destroyed)?`
+          : hasChildren
+            ? `${node.name} has child nodes. Delete the whole subtree?`
+            : `${node.name} has items. Detach them and delete the node?`
+        if (!confirm(msg)) return
+        cascade = true
+      } else {
+        if (!confirm(`Delete ${node.name}?`)) return
+      }
       try {
-        await RestaurantAPI.deleteCategory(this.adminkey, cat.id)
+        await RestaurantAPI.deleteMenuNode(this.adminkey, node.id, cascade)
+        if (this.selectedNodeId === node.id) this.selectedNodeId = null
+        await this.fetchMenu()
+      } catch (err) {
+        LNbits.utils.notifyApiError(err)
+      }
+    },
+
+    // -------- move --------
+    openMoveDialog(node) {
+      this.moveDialog.nodeId = node.id
+      this.moveDialog.nodeName = node.name
+      this.moveDialog.newParentId = null
+      this.moveDialog.show = true
+    },
+    async confirmMove() {
+      try {
+        await RestaurantAPI.moveMenuNode(
+          this.adminkey,
+          this.moveDialog.nodeId,
+          this.moveDialog.newParentId || null
+        )
+        this.moveDialog.show = false
         await this.fetchMenu()
       } catch (err) {
         LNbits.utils.notifyApiError(err)
@@ -122,8 +274,8 @@ window.app = Vue.createApp({
       const item = existing
         ? {...existing}
         : {...this._blankItem(), restaurant_id: this.restaurant.id}
-      if (!item.node_id && this.selectedCategoryId) {
-        item.node_id = this.selectedCategoryId
+      if (!item.node_id && this.selectedNodeId) {
+        item.node_id = this.selectedNodeId
       }
       this.itemDialog.data = item
       this.itemDialog.imagesText = (item.images || []).join(', ')
@@ -140,6 +292,7 @@ window.app = Vue.createApp({
         allergens: this.parseCsv(this.itemDialog.allergensText),
         ingredients: this.parseCsv(this.itemDialog.ingredientsText)
       }
+      // Strip the synthetic UI-only id when creating; the server sets it.
       try {
         if (this.itemDialog.data.id) {
           await RestaurantAPI.updateMenuItem(
@@ -172,7 +325,6 @@ window.app = Vue.createApp({
       this.modifiersDialog.itemName = item.name
       try {
         const {data: groups} = await RestaurantAPI.listModifierGroups(item.id)
-        // Hydrate each group with its modifiers.
         for (const g of groups) {
           const {data: mods} = await RestaurantAPI.listModifiers(g.id)
           g._modifiers = mods
@@ -183,6 +335,16 @@ window.app = Vue.createApp({
         LNbits.utils.notifyApiError(err)
       }
     },
+    async _refreshModifiers() {
+      const {data: groups} = await RestaurantAPI.listModifierGroups(
+        this.modifiersDialog.itemId
+      )
+      for (const g of groups) {
+        const {data: mods} = await RestaurantAPI.listModifiers(g.id)
+        g._modifiers = mods
+      }
+      this.modifiersDialog.groups = groups
+    },
     async addModifierGroup() {
       const name = prompt('Group name (e.g. "Choose your protein")')
       if (!name) return
@@ -199,10 +361,7 @@ window.app = Vue.createApp({
           kind,
           selection
         })
-        await this.openModifiersDialog({
-          id: this.modifiersDialog.itemId,
-          name: this.modifiersDialog.itemName
-        })
+        await this._refreshModifiers()
       } catch (err) {
         LNbits.utils.notifyApiError(err)
       }
@@ -211,10 +370,7 @@ window.app = Vue.createApp({
       if (!confirm(`Delete group ${grp.name}?`)) return
       try {
         await RestaurantAPI.deleteModifierGroup(this.adminkey, grp.id)
-        await this.openModifiersDialog({
-          id: this.modifiersDialog.itemId,
-          name: this.modifiersDialog.itemName
-        })
+        await this._refreshModifiers()
       } catch (err) {
         LNbits.utils.notifyApiError(err)
       }
@@ -231,10 +387,7 @@ window.app = Vue.createApp({
           name,
           price_delta
         })
-        await this.openModifiersDialog({
-          id: this.modifiersDialog.itemId,
-          name: this.modifiersDialog.itemName
-        })
+        await this._refreshModifiers()
       } catch (err) {
         LNbits.utils.notifyApiError(err)
       }
@@ -243,15 +396,13 @@ window.app = Vue.createApp({
       if (!confirm(`Delete ${mod.name}?`)) return
       try {
         await RestaurantAPI.deleteModifier(this.adminkey, mod.id)
-        await this.openModifiersDialog({
-          id: this.modifiersDialog.itemId,
-          name: this.modifiersDialog.itemName
-        })
+        await this._refreshModifiers()
       } catch (err) {
         LNbits.utils.notifyApiError(err)
       }
     }
   },
+
   async created() {
     await this.fetchMenu()
   }
diff --git a/templates/restaurant/menu.html b/templates/restaurant/menu.html
index eb7a476..ab1d605 100644
--- a/templates/restaurant/menu.html
+++ b/templates/restaurant/menu.html
@@ -24,66 +24,127 @@
         </q-item>
       </q-list>
     </q-card>
+  </div>
 
+  <!-- ============================ Tree pane ============================ -->
+  <div class="col-12 col-md-4 q-gutter-y-md">
     <q-card>
-      <q-card-section>
-        <div class="row items-center justify-between q-mb-sm">
-          <span class="text-subtitle2">Categories</span>
-          <q-btn flat dense icon="add" @click="openCategoryDialog"></q-btn>
-        </div>
-        <q-list>
-          <q-item
-            v-for="cat in categories"
-            :key="cat.id"
-            clickable
-            :active="selectedCategoryId === cat.id"
-            @click="selectedCategoryId = cat.id"
-          >
-            <q-item-section v-text="cat.name"></q-item-section>
-            <q-item-section side>
-              <q-btn
-                flat
-                dense
-                icon="delete"
-                size="sm"
-                @click.stop="deleteCategory(cat)"
-              ></q-btn>
-            </q-item-section>
-          </q-item>
-          <q-item v-if="categories.length === 0">
-            <q-item-section class="text-grey-6 text-italic">
-              No categories
-            </q-item-section>
-          </q-item>
-        </q-list>
+      <q-card-section class="row items-center justify-between">
+        <span class="text-h6">Menu tree</span>
+        <q-btn
+          unelevated
+          dense
+          color="primary"
+          icon="add"
+          label="Top-level"
+          @click="openNodeDialog(null, null)"
+        ></q-btn>
+      </q-card-section>
+      <q-separator></q-separator>
+      <q-card-section v-if="tree.length === 0" class="text-grey-6 text-italic">
+        No nodes yet. Click "Top-level" to add a root category.
+      </q-card-section>
+      <q-card-section v-else>
+        <q-tree
+          :nodes="tree"
+          node-key="id"
+          label-key="name"
+          children-key="children"
+          v-model:selected="selectedNodeId"
+          v-model:expanded="expandedNodeIds"
+          default-expand-all
+        >
+          <template v-slot:default-header="prop">
+            <div class="row items-center full-width no-wrap">
+              <div class="col">
+                <span v-text="prop.node.name"></span>
+                <q-badge
+                  v-if="(prop.node.items || []).length"
+                  color="primary"
+                  class="q-ml-sm"
+                  :label="prop.node.items.length"
+                ></q-badge>
+                <q-badge
+                  v-if="(prop.node.children || []).length"
+                  color="grey"
+                  outline
+                  class="q-ml-xs"
+                  :label="`+${prop.node.children.length}`"
+                  title="child nodes"
+                ></q-badge>
+              </div>
+              <div class="col-auto" @click.stop>
+                <q-btn
+                  flat
+                  dense
+                  size="sm"
+                  icon="add"
+                  :disable="prop.node.depth >= maxDepth"
+                  title="Add child"
+                  @click="openNodeDialog(null, prop.node)"
+                ></q-btn>
+                <q-btn
+                  flat
+                  dense
+                  size="sm"
+                  icon="edit"
+                  title="Edit"
+                  @click="openNodeDialog(prop.node, null)"
+                ></q-btn>
+                <q-btn
+                  flat
+                  dense
+                  size="sm"
+                  icon="drive_file_move"
+                  title="Move"
+                  @click="openMoveDialog(prop.node)"
+                ></q-btn>
+                <q-btn
+                  flat
+                  dense
+                  size="sm"
+                  icon="delete"
+                  color="negative"
+                  title="Delete"
+                  @click="deleteNode(prop.node)"
+                ></q-btn>
+              </div>
+            </div>
+          </template>
+        </q-tree>
       </q-card-section>
     </q-card>
   </div>
 
-  <!-- ============================ Items ============================ -->
-  <div class="col-12 col-md-9 q-gutter-y-md">
+  <!-- ============================ Items pane ============================ -->
+  <div class="col-12 col-md-5 q-gutter-y-md">
     <q-card>
       <q-card-section class="row items-center justify-between">
         <div>
           <span class="text-h6">Items</span>
-          <q-badge v-if="selectedCategory" class="q-ml-sm" color="primary">
-            <span v-text="selectedCategory.name"></span>
+          <q-badge v-if="selectedNode" color="primary" class="q-ml-sm">
+            <span v-text="selectedNode.name"></span>
           </q-badge>
+          <q-badge v-else color="grey" class="q-ml-sm" label="all"></q-badge>
         </div>
         <q-btn
           unelevated
           color="primary"
           icon="add"
           label="New item"
-          :disable="!categories.length"
-          @click="openItemDialog()"
+          :disable="!selectedNode"
+          @click="openItemDialog(null)"
         ></q-btn>
       </q-card-section>
 
       <q-separator></q-separator>
 
       <q-card-section v-if="filteredItems.length === 0" class="text-grey-6 text-italic">
-        No items in this category yet.
+        <span v-if="selectedNode">
+          No items at this node. Use "New item" to add one — items can
+          live on any node, not just leaves.
+        </span>
+        <span v-else>Select a node on the left to see its items.</span>
       </q-card-section>
 
       <q-list separator v-else>
@@ -146,29 +207,75 @@
   </div>
 </div>
 
-<!-- ===================== Category dialog ===================== -->
-<q-dialog v-model="categoryDialog.show" persistent>
-  <q-card class="q-pa-md" style="width: 400px; max-width: 95vw">
-    <h6 class="q-my-none">New category</h6>
-    <q-form @submit="saveCategory" class="q-gutter-md q-mt-sm">
+<!-- ===================== Node dialog (create / edit) ===================== -->
+<q-dialog v-model="nodeDialog.show" persistent>
+  <q-card class="q-pa-md" style="width: 500px; max-width: 95vw">
+    <h6 class="q-my-none">
+      <span v-if="nodeDialog.editing">Edit node</span>
+      <span v-else>New node</span>
+    </h6>
+    <q-form @submit="saveNode" class="q-gutter-md q-mt-sm">
       <q-input
         filled
         dense
-        v-model.trim="categoryDialog.data.name"
+        v-model.trim="nodeDialog.data.name"
         label="Name"
         :rules="[v => !!v || 'Required']"
+        autofocus
       ></q-input>
       <q-input
         filled
         dense
-        v-model="categoryDialog.data.description"
+        v-model="nodeDialog.data.description"
         label="Description"
         type="textarea"
         rows="2"
       ></q-input>
+      <q-input
+        filled
+        dense
+        v-model.trim="nodeDialog.data.image_url"
+        label="Image URL"
+      ></q-input>
+      <q-input
+        filled
+        dense
+        type="number"
+        v-model.number="nodeDialog.data.sort_order"
+        label="Sort order"
+      ></q-input>
+      <div v-if="!nodeDialog.editing && nodeDialog.parentName" class="text-caption text-grey-6">
+        Adding under: <strong v-text="nodeDialog.parentName"></strong>
+      </div>
       <div class="row justify-end q-gutter-sm">
-        <q-btn flat label="Cancel" @click="categoryDialog.show = false"></q-btn>
-        <q-btn unelevated color="primary" type="submit" label="Create"></q-btn>
+        <q-btn flat label="Cancel" @click="nodeDialog.show = false"></q-btn>
+        <q-btn unelevated color="primary" type="submit" label="Save"></q-btn>
+      </div>
+    </q-form>
+  </q-card>
+</q-dialog>
+
+<!-- ===================== Move dialog ===================== -->
+<q-dialog v-model="moveDialog.show" persistent>
+  <q-card class="q-pa-md" style="width: 500px; max-width: 95vw">
+    <h6 class="q-my-none">
+      Move <span v-text="moveDialog.nodeName"></span>
+    </h6>
+    <q-form @submit="confirmMove" class="q-gutter-md q-mt-sm">
+      <q-select
+        filled
+        dense
+        v-model="moveDialog.newParentId"
+        :options="moveTargetOptions"
+        emit-value
+        map-options
+        label="New parent"
+        hint="Pick a parent node, or leave blank to make this a top-level node."
+        clearable
+      ></q-select>
+      <div class="row justify-end q-gutter-sm">
+        <q-btn flat label="Cancel" @click="moveDialog.show = false"></q-btn>
+        <q-btn unelevated color="primary" type="submit" label="Move"></q-btn>
       </div>
     </q-form>
   </q-card>
@@ -177,16 +284,20 @@
 <!-- ===================== Item dialog ===================== -->
 <q-dialog v-model="itemDialog.show" persistent>
   <q-card class="q-pa-md" style="width: 600px; max-width: 95vw">
-    <h6 class="q-my-none">{{ '{{ itemDialog.data.id ? "Edit" : "New" }}' }} item</h6>
+    <h6 class="q-my-none">
+      <span v-if="itemDialog.data.id">Edit item</span>
+      <span v-else>New item</span>
+    </h6>
     <q-form @submit="saveItem" class="q-gutter-md q-mt-sm">
       <q-select
         filled
         dense
         v-model="itemDialog.data.node_id"
-        :options="categoryOptions"
+        :options="allNodeOptions"
         emit-value
         map-options
-        label="Category"
+        label="Menu node"
+        :rules="[v => !!v || 'Required']"
       ></q-select>
       <q-input
         filled