wmx (a small,
quirky but
elegant window manager) has a
configurable menu to
launch programs from! (If this sounds unremarkable to you, you'd best read about wmx).
Like all things wmx, it's done in the simplest possible way. You create a directory ~/.wmx/. When you press the middle mouse button, wmx offers you to choose which of the files in the directory you wish to execute. So you generally place symbolic links or simple shell script wrappers in the directory. You probably think that any subdirectory will show up as a submenu. You're wrong. Submenus are another example of the decadent bloat that wmx tries to avoid.
The entry for options is special. It must be a symbolic link, and is not displayed in the menu. Instead, it gives a list of dynamically-configured options (so you no longer have to recompile wmx to change a few options). This means you can install wmx in one central location, and force it on your (l)users from there!