diff --git a/frontend/src/desktop/index.ts b/frontend/src/desktop/index.ts
index 458ab23c..f17ac00c 100644
--- a/frontend/src/desktop/index.ts
+++ b/frontend/src/desktop/index.ts
@@ -22,6 +22,8 @@ import { DesktopWelcomePage } from './DesktopWelcomePage';
 import { Esp32QemuPrompt } from './Esp32QemuPrompt';
 import { GraceBanner } from './GraceBanner';
 import { invoke, isTauri, type ValidationResult } from './tauriBridge';
+import { installDesktopMenuListener } from './menu';
+import { dlog } from './log';
 import './desktop.css';
 
 let mounted = false;
@@ -101,8 +103,12 @@ async function checkInitialLicense(): Promise<void> {
 export const mountDesktop = (): void => {
   if (mounted) return;
   mounted = true;
-  // eslint-disable-next-line no-console
-  console.info('[desktop] mountDesktop() — Tauri shell active');
+  dlog('mountDesktop — Tauri shell active');
+
+  // Native menubar (Velxio / File / Edit / View / Help) sends events
+  // here. Hook the listener before any UI is mounted so the first
+  // user click is never dropped.
+  void installDesktopMenuListener();
 
   mountSidePanels();
   void checkInitialLicense();
diff --git a/frontend/src/desktop/log.ts b/frontend/src/desktop/log.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..57d9528a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/frontend/src/desktop/log.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,39 @@
+/**
+ * Best-effort file logger for Tauri desktop builds.
+ *
+ * Packaged Tauri apps have no devtools and no stdout capture, so
+ * `console.log` vanishes. This helper round-trips messages to a Rust
+ * command (`write_debug_log`) that appends them to
+ * `<app_data_dir>/desktop-debug.log` — on Windows that's
+ * `%APPDATA%\dev.velxio.desktop\desktop-debug.log`. The user (or
+ * support) can open the file to see what the webview was doing.
+ *
+ * The Rust command lives in the velxio-prod overlay, not upstream
+ * — the OSS Tauri shell wires it through `pro/desktop/src-tauri/src/
+ * lib.rs::write_debug_log`. If the command isn't registered (running
+ * an older shell), the log call silently no-ops; we still print to
+ * console so devtools / `tauri dev` keep working.
+ */
+
+import { invoke, isTauri } from './tauriBridge';
+
+const PREFIX = '[velxio-desktop]';
+
+export function dlog(message: string, extra?: unknown): void {
+  // Always echo to console — `tauri dev` (or browser-loaded dev mode)
+  // can see this even without the Rust-side file.
+  // eslint-disable-next-line no-console
+  console.log(PREFIX, message, extra ?? '');
+  if (!isTauri()) return;
+  let line = message;
+  if (extra !== undefined) {
+    try {
+      line += ' ' + JSON.stringify(extra);
+    } catch {
+      line += ' ' + String(extra);
+    }
+  }
+  invoke<void>('write_debug_log', { message: line }).catch(() => {
+    /* logging must never break the app */
+  });
+}
diff --git a/frontend/src/desktop/menu.ts b/frontend/src/desktop/menu.ts
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..3586737e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/frontend/src/desktop/menu.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,117 @@
+/**
+ * Native menubar event bridge.
+ *
+ * The Tauri shell (pro/desktop/src-tauri/src/menu.rs in velxio-prod)
+ * builds a Velxio / File / Edit / View / Help menubar. Internal items
+ * (Save .vlx, Open .vlx, Toggle Serial Monitor, Find, …) emit a
+ * `velxio://menu` event with `{ action: '<id>' }`. URL items (Docs,
+ * Examples, Discord, GitHub) are opened directly from Rust and don't
+ * reach this listener.
+ *
+ * Actions handled directly here (no further plumbing needed):
+ *   - save-vlx, open-vlx     → triggerDownloadVlx / file picker
+ *   - toggle-serial-monitor  → useSimulatorStore.toggleSerialMonitor()
+ *   - check-for-updates      → tauri-plugin-updater check()
+ *
+ * Actions forwarded to whoever's listening as a window CustomEvent
+ * `velxio:menu:<action>`:
+ *   - new-project, find-in-editor, toggle-file-explorer
+ *
+ * No-op outside Tauri (e.g. running the bundle in a regular browser
+ * for debugging) — listen() returns a no-op when the global event
+ * API isn't present.
+ */
+
+import { listen } from './tauriBridge';
+import { dlog } from './log';
+import { triggerDownloadVlx, importVlxFile } from '../utils/vlxFile';
+import { useSimulatorStore } from '../store/useSimulatorStore';
+
+type MenuAction =
+  | 'new-project'
+  | 'save-vlx'
+  | 'open-vlx'
+  | 'find-in-editor'
+  | 'toggle-file-explorer'
+  | 'toggle-serial-monitor'
+  | 'check-for-updates';
+
+interface MenuEventPayload {
+  action: MenuAction;
+}
+
+let installed = false;
+
+export async function installDesktopMenuListener(): Promise<void> {
+  if (installed) return;
+  installed = true;
+  await listen<MenuEventPayload>('velxio://menu', (event) => {
+    dlog('menu event', event.payload);
+    void handle(event.payload.action);
+  });
+}
+
+async function handle(action: MenuAction): Promise<void> {
+  switch (action) {
+    case 'save-vlx':
+      triggerDownloadVlx();
+      return;
+    case 'open-vlx':
+      pickAndImportVlx();
+      return;
+    case 'toggle-serial-monitor':
+      useSimulatorStore.getState().toggleSerialMonitor();
+      return;
+    case 'new-project':
+    case 'find-in-editor':
+    case 'toggle-file-explorer':
+      window.dispatchEvent(new CustomEvent(`velxio:menu:${action}`));
+      return;
+    case 'check-for-updates':
+      await checkForUpdates();
+      return;
+  }
+}
+
+function pickAndImportVlx(): void {
+  const input = document.createElement('input');
+  input.type = 'file';
+  input.accept = '.vlx,application/json';
+  input.style.display = 'none';
+  document.body.appendChild(input);
+  input.addEventListener('change', async () => {
+    const file = input.files?.[0];
+    if (file) {
+      try {
+        await importVlxFile(file);
+      } catch (err) {
+        // eslint-disable-next-line no-alert
+        alert(`Failed to open .vlx: ${(err as Error).message}`);
+      }
+    }
+    document.body.removeChild(input);
+  });
+  input.click();
+}
+
+async function checkForUpdates(): Promise<void> {
+  try {
+    // eslint-disable-next-line @typescript-eslint/no-explicit-any
+    const updater = (window as any).__TAURI__?.updater;
+    if (!updater?.check) {
+      // eslint-disable-next-line no-alert
+      alert('Update plugin not available in this build.');
+      return;
+    }
+    const update = await updater.check();
+    if (update) {
+      await update.downloadAndInstall();
+    } else {
+      // eslint-disable-next-line no-alert
+      alert('Velxio Desktop is up to date.');
+    }
+  } catch (err) {
+    // eslint-disable-next-line no-alert
+    alert(`Update check failed: ${(err as Error).message}`);
+  }
+}