Do I need a website if I am on DoorDash and Uber Eats?

Yes. Apps show your menu inside their own brand and charge a commission on each order. Your own site gives regulars a direct way to order, book and find your hours.

Is a PDF menu bad for SEO?

It is weaker than a text menu. Google can read some PDFs, but text on the page is faster, easier to read on phones and simpler to keep up to date.

Do I have to post calories on my menu?

The federal calorie rule applies to chains with 20 or more locations under the same name. Some cities and states have their own rules, so check locally.

What reservation tool should a small restaurant use?

Common choices include OpenTable, Resy, Tock or a booking tool built into your site. Choose one that shows live availability and sends reminders.

How much do delivery apps charge restaurants?

Commissions often run from about 15% to 30% per delivery order, depending on the plan. Pickup orders through the apps usually cost less.

Can my staff update the menu themselves?

Yes, if the site has an admin panel. Staff can change dishes, prices and hours without calling a developer.

Websites by Industry

Website for Restaurants: What Diners Look For and What to Build First

By ITCM Team · Updated November 2026

Most diners check a restaurant online before they come in. They want the menu, the prices, the hours and a way to book or order, and they want it in a few seconds on a phone. This guide covers what a restaurant website needs, how to take orders without giving away a big cut to delivery apps, and the allergen and menu rules worth knowing.

Key takeaways

Put your menu on the page as real text, not only a PDF.
Delivery apps often take 15-30% per order; a direct ordering link keeps more of each sale.
Show hours, holiday hours, address, parking and a tap-to-call button on every page.
Add allergen notes and a clear 'tell your server' message for the nine major allergens.
Give private events and catering their own page with an inquiry form.
Keep your Google Business Profile menu, hours and website link in sync with the site.

What do diners look for on a restaurant website?

Diners usually arrive with one question: is this the place for tonight? They scan the menu and prices, check if you are open, look at photos of the food and the room, and then either call, book or order. If any of that takes more than a couple of taps, many will go back to Google and pick the next result.

People also look for things the menu does not say: is there parking, can I bring kids, is there a patio, do you take walk-ins, is there a vegan or gluten-free option. Answer these on the site and you cut down on phone calls during the dinner rush.

Menu with prices, readable on a phone
Open now? Today's hours and holiday hours
Reserve, order or call in one tap
Real photos of dishes and the dining room
Address, map, parking and accessibility notes
Dietary and allergen information

Which pages does a restaurant website need?

A small restaurant does not need dozens of pages. It needs the right ones, each with a clear job.

Page	What it does	Must include
Home	Answers 'open? where? what?'	Hours, address, order and book buttons
Menu	Main reason people visit	HTML text, prices, dietary tags
Reservations	Fills tables	Booking widget or call button
Order online	Pickup and delivery	Direct ordering link
Private events	Bigger checks	Capacity, packages, inquiry form
Catering	Off-site orders	Menu, minimums, lead time
About	Story and chef	Real photos, short story
Contact	Find and reach you	Map, parking, phone, hours

Reservations and online ordering: delivery apps or your own?

For reservations, most restaurants use a booking tool such as OpenTable, Resy, Tock or a booking system built into the site. Pick one that shows real table availability, sends confirmations and reminders, and lets you set party size limits. Put a 'Reserve' button at the top of every page. See our guide on online booking systems for what to compare.

For ordering, delivery apps bring new customers, but they charge for it. DoorDash lists marketplace plans at 15%, 25% and 30% of each delivery order, and Uber Eats lists 20% to 30%, with lower rates for pickup orders. So commissions often land between 15% and 30% before card fees and promotions.

Many restaurants keep the apps for discovery and add a direct ordering link on their own site for regulars. Toast, Square and ChowNow are common choices for direct online ordering. The direct order usually costs you a payment fee and a software fee instead of a large commission. Put the direct link first on your website and on your Google profile so your loyal customers use it.

A PDF menu is hard to read on a phone. People have to pinch and zoom, it can load slowly, and it is easy to forget to update. A menu written as normal text on the page loads fast, reads well on any screen, works with screen readers and can be read by Google and AI search tools when someone asks for 'best tacos near me'.

You can still offer a printable PDF as a second option. Just make the HTML menu the main one. Group dishes the way your printed menu does, show prices, and use short tags like V, VG and GF for dietary options. When prices change, update them in one place. An admin panel lets your staff do that without calling a developer.

Federal calorie labeling under the FDA menu labeling rule applies to restaurants that are part of a chain with 20 or more locations doing business under the same name with substantially the same menu. Those chains must show calories on menus and menu boards and offer more nutrition details on request. Most independent restaurants are not covered, though some cities and states have their own rules.

Allergens matter for every restaurant. The FDA lists nine major food allergens: milk, eggs, fish, crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, soybeans and sesame (added January 1, 2023). The 2022 FDA Food Code, a model many state and local health departments adopt, calls for telling customers in writing about major allergens in unpackaged food. Your local health department decides what applies to you, so check with them. This is general information, not legal advice.

Add allergen tags or an allergen chart to your online menu
Add a line asking guests with allergies to tell their server
Do not promise 'allergen-free' unless your kitchen can truly guarantee it
Keep your health inspection grade or permit details current if your city requires posting

How do private events and catering pages bring in bigger orders?

A private dinner or a catered office lunch can be worth many regular tables. Yet many restaurant sites hide this behind a phone number. Give each its own page.

On the private events page, list room capacity (seated and standing), sample menus or packages, minimum spend if you have one, and photos of the space set up for a party. On the catering page, show the catering menu, order minimums, lead time and pickup or delivery options. End both with a short inquiry form: date, guest count, budget and contact details. Send those leads to one inbox or a simple lead list so nothing gets lost. If you also run a truck, link to our guide on food truck websites.

Which restaurant website features matter most?

Feature	Priority	Why
HTML menu with prices	Must	Top reason for visits
Hours and tap-to-call	Must	Stops wasted trips
Reservations button	Must	Fills tables
Direct online ordering	High	Cuts commissions
Allergen tags	High	Safety and trust
Events and catering form	High	Bigger checks
Gift cards	Optional	Holiday revenue
Email or text list	Optional	Brings regulars back

How do restaurants show up in 'near me' searches?

Searches like 'restaurants near me', 'italian restaurant open now' or 'brunch near me' are mostly answered by Google Maps. Your Google Business Profile does a lot of the work. Pick the most specific primary category (for example 'Italian restaurant' rather than just 'Restaurant'), add your menu link, your reservation and order links, accurate hours and holiday hours, and fresh photos.

Reviews matter a lot for restaurants. Ask happy guests for a review with a QR code on the check or table tent. Do not offer discounts or free items in exchange for reviews, and do not ask only happy guests (review gating). Both break Google's rules, and the FTC rule on fake reviews has been in force since October 2024.

On the website, add Restaurant schema with your cuisine, address, hours, menu link and whether you take reservations. Our local business schema generator can create it for you. Keep the name, address and phone the same everywhere.

What photos and content work best for a restaurant?

Use real photos of your own dishes, shot in daylight or good light, plus the dining room, bar and patio. Diners want to know what the plate will look like and how the room feels. Stock photos of food make people trust you less. Our tips on website photos cover lighting and phone settings.

Short text helps too: a few lines about the chef, the kind of food you cook and where ingredients come from. Post seasonal menus, wine nights or live music on an events list that you can update yourself. If you have a sister concept, like a bakery or café, link to it and see our guide on café and bakery websites.

What mistakes do restaurant websites make?

PDF-only menu that is hard to read on a phone
Old prices or dishes that are no longer served
Hours on the site that do not match Google
No link to order direct, so every order goes through an app
Autoplay music or video that slows the page
Big pop-ups that cover the menu
Event and catering requests sent to an inbox nobody checks

Restaurant platform or custom website, and how does ITCM handle it?

If you already use Toast, Square or another POS, its built-in website or ordering page can be a fine choice, especially for a small counter-service spot that mainly needs online ordering. A platform is the better pick when you want everything in one bill and do not need much beyond menu and ordering.

A custom site makes sense when you want your own design, events and catering pages, lead tracking, and an admin panel you control, while still linking to your POS ordering and booking tools. Our process is demo first: we build the real site, you click through real pages, not a mockup, and then decide. We have also recovered hacked WordPress sites for small businesses, so we keep security and updates simple. For more, see WordPress vs custom websites.

Get your restaurant website built free, pay only if you like it

ITCM builds your restaurant website and an installable app for free. You see it finished, and you pay $150 one time only if you are happy. The $150 includes the website, the installable app, 24/7 online booking, lead management, an admin panel and 3 design options. Anything else gets a fixed quote before any work begins, and an optional care plan starts from $100/month.

See how the free build works and request yours.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a website if I am on DoorDash and Uber Eats?: Yes. Apps show your menu inside their own brand and charge a commission on each order. Your own site gives regulars a direct way to order, book and find your hours.
Is a PDF menu bad for SEO?: It is weaker than a text menu. Google can read some PDFs, but text on the page is faster, easier to read on phones and simpler to keep up to date.
Do I have to post calories on my menu?: The federal calorie rule applies to chains with 20 or more locations under the same name. Some cities and states have their own rules, so check locally.
Which allergens should my menu mention?: The nine major food allergens in the US are milk, eggs, fish, crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, soybeans and sesame. Your health department sets what you must disclose.
What reservation tool should a small restaurant use?: Common choices include OpenTable, Resy, Tock or a booking tool built into your site. Choose one that shows live availability and sends reminders.
How much do delivery apps charge restaurants?: Commissions often run from about 15% to 30% per delivery order, depending on the plan. Pickup orders through the apps usually cost less.
Can my staff update the menu themselves?: Yes, if the site has an admin panel. Staff can change dishes, prices and hours without calling a developer.

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We build your website and mobile app first, and you see it finished. If you’re happy, you pay $150 one-time. If you’re not, you pay nothing.

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