Hi,

I have found a nifty little utility that works great. It is kind of old but works in Win 7 and Win 8.

I included a link to the file, and instructions here...they are hard to find.

http://aumha.org/downloads/shutdown.zip

Shutdown & Restart Shortcuts for Windows XP & Windows 2000
 
SHUTDOWN /?

For a shortcut to RESTART Windows XP:SHUTDOWN -r -t 01 
For a shortcut to SHUT DOWN Windows XP: SHUTDOWN -s -t 01

You can create desktop shortcuts to shutdown or restart Windows, or go into standy or hibernate mode, with a single click.
You can put these shortcuts anyplace you like — on the desktop itself, the Quick Launch bar, your Start Menu — wherever.
 
To make a new shortcut, right-click on an empty part of the desktop (or inside a folder).
Select New, then Shortcut. A “wizard” will pop up to guide you through the rest of the process.
You will have to provide a command line, and then a name. The name can be anything you want.
 
 
The freeware utility Shutdown.exe (not to be confused with the Windows utility by the same name) by MS-MVP Andrej Budja.

After you place this utility in the root folder of C:,
the commands for a shutdown, restart, or hibernate (respectively),

each without a time delay, would be...

shutdown -u -t 0 for shutdown, shutdown -r -t 0 for restart, and shutdown -h -t 0 for hibernate.

(the -t is for a time delay, and the number is how long.)

There  are other ways to access Restart in Win 8 but I like this one...

Another option is hitting Alt+ F4 from the desktop. This brings up a Win 7 type shutdown window. 

Go to the Charms | Settings | Power and there you can restart.  They just hid everything to make people think Windows was different this time.

steve

Didn't look like this got answered and I found the answer on "Toms laptop guide" that works best for me today...

Look all the way below if difficulties are encounterd...

Navigate to the desktop.

Right click on the desktop and select New -> Shortcut. A shortcut menu appears.
 

Enter shutdown /s /t 0 (that’s a zero) in the location box and hit Next. 

Enter a name for the shortcut and click Finish. A new shortcut will appear on your desktop.
 

Click Change Icon under the Shortcut tab then Click Ok in warning box that says shutdown.exe contains no icons.

Select an Icon from the list of available images Click Ok twice (once to close the Change Icon window and once to close Properties window). Your shortcut will now have an icon.
 

Right click the shortcut and select Pin to Start. The shutdown icon will now appear on your Start screen.
 

Right click the icon and select Pin to Taskbar if you want the shortcut to live on your desktop’s taskbar as well.