Blog / Restaurants & cafes
Restaurant website must-haves: the 9 things diners look for
What hungry people actually want from your website, from a menu that loads on a phone to reservations at midnight, and what to leave out.
Most people visit a restaurant website for one of three reasons: to see the menu, to check if you're open, or to book a table. Everything on your site should make those three things effortless, especially on a phone, on a bus, with one bar of signal.
Here's what to include, in order of importance.
Key takeaways
- Put your menu, hours, location and booking button within one tap of your homepage.
- Use a real, readable menu, not a PDF.
- Take reservations directly on your site to avoid per-cover fees and keep the guest relationship.
The 9 must-haves
1. A menu that works on a phone
PDF menus are slow to load, hard to read and impossible for search engines to understand. A proper web menu with categories, prices and dietary tags is better for diners and for Google. Bonus points if you can mark dishes as sold out in seconds.
2. Opening hours, front and center
Nothing frustrates a diner more than turning up to a locked door. Show today's hours on the homepage, and keep holiday hours up to date with an announcement banner.
3. A big "Reserve a table" button
If you take bookings, make it obvious. Online reservations work while you're mid-service and while you sleep. Look for party-size limits, service times and a waitlist for full nights.
4. Address, map and how to get there
Include parking tips, the nearest station, and whether there's step-free access. Make your address tappable so it opens in maps.
5. Photos that look like your food
Real photos of real dishes beat stock images every time. A handful of good ones is plenty.
6. Your story, briefly
A few lines about who you are and what you cook. Diners love knowing the chef learned from their grandmother in Naples. Keep it short.
7. Private dining and events
If you host groups, say so, and give people an easy way to inquire. A simple form with date, party size and budget saves a dozen back-and-forth emails.
8. A way to stay in touch
A QR code on the table ("scan for a free dessert on your next visit") is the easiest way to build a mailing list of real regulars. Then a short newsletter brings them back on quiet nights.
9. Reviews
Show a handful of genuine reviews. Collect them while the meal is fresh: a QR code on the bill or a link in the confirmation email works well.
What to leave out
- Autoplay music and video. Nobody wants it at a bus stop.
- Pop-ups before the menu. Let people see the food first.
- Out-of-date specials. If you can't keep a page updated, don't have it.
How DollarSite handles this
Tell Chip about your restaurant and it builds a site with your menu, hours and location, then suggests Table reservations, a Food menu and QR signups. They're all included in $7 per month. Reservations and appointment bookings can even run on the same site, handy if you also host tastings or classes.
Frequently asked questions
Should I use a third-party booking platform or my own website?
Platforms can bring discovery, but many charge per cover and own the guest relationship. Taking bookings on your own site keeps the data and the margin. Many restaurants do both.
Does my menu really need to be on the website if it's on Google?
Yes. Your website is the source you control, and search engines use it to fill in your listing. Keep both in sync.
How often should I update my restaurant website?
Whenever something changes: menu, hours, events. If updates are quick (a sentence to Chip or a tap on a sold-out toggle), you'll actually do them.
Written by the DollarSite team. We make a website builder for small businesses, so we have a point of view. We've tried to make this guide useful whatever tool you choose.