Guide

What should a restaurant website include? A phone-first list

Updated 2026-11-06 by the White Pine Web Design team

Short answer: A restaurant website should show four things on the first phone screen: today's hours, a phone number that dials when tapped, the address with a map link, and one clear button to order or reserve. Below that, add a text menu with prices and real photos. Leave off autoplay video, popups and PDF-only menus.

The short list above covers the basics. This guide puts the pieces in order, so you know what earns space at the top of a phone screen, what can sit lower on the page, and what you can delete. We plan for the phone first because a small screen forces you to choose.

What should show up before anyone scrolls?

The first screen on a phone holds very little, so rank what goes there. Here is the order we'd use for a restaurant homepage.

1. Show whether you are open today and today's hours, in plain text. If you close early on Mondays, say so right there.
2. Add one main action button, such as Order online, Reserve a table, or Call to order. Pick the one that brings in the business you want, and make it the largest thing on the screen.
3. List a phone number that dials when tapped, written as text and not inside an image.
4. Show your street address with a link that opens directions in a maps app.
5. Add a link to the menu that is easy to spot without scrolling.

Your logo and one good photo can share that space. Keep the photo small enough that the hours still show. A huge banner image that pushes your hours below the fold makes every visitor scroll to find out if you are open.

Speed belongs on this list too. Google's web.dev Core Web Vitals guidance sets a target for the main content of a page to load within 2.5 seconds. Large photos straight from a camera can slow a page down, so ask whoever builds your site to size and compress images for phones.

How should a restaurant menu look online?

The menu is the page that does the selling, so treat it as a real web page and not an attachment.

• Put the menu on the page as text. Text reads on a phone without pinching and zooming, search engines can read it, and you can change a price in a few minutes.
• Keep a PDF only as an extra for anyone who wants to print it. A PDF-only menu means a download and a lot of zooming on a small screen.
• Give each item a name, one short line of description, and a price. Plain words work: "Smoked whitefish dip, crackers, pickled red onion" tells a reader what arrives on the plate.
• Skip recipes and long stories for each dish. Menu copy should help someone decide what to order, and nothing more.
• Group items the way you serve them, such as breakfast, lunch, dinner, kids and drinks. Put the hours for each menu next to its heading.
• Use a small key if you mark dishes as vegetarian, spicy or gluten free, so the symbols mean something.

If you list allergens or make claims like gluten free, ask your local health department what you are required to say and what wording to avoid, and talk to an attorney if you are unsure about liability. Whatever you post, keep it accurate and update it when a recipe changes in the kitchen.

What can a restaurant website leave off?

Cutting things is often the fastest way to make a restaurant site better. These are the items we'd remove or move off the homepage.

• Autoplay video and background music can slow the page and surprise someone sitting in a quiet room.
• Popups asking for an email address on the first visit cover the hours and the menu link.
• Rotating slideshows push the important details down and can be hard to read on a phone.
• Intro animations make a hungry visitor wait for no reason.
• A long history of the restaurant belongs on an About page, not above the menu.
• Expired specials, past events and last year's holiday hours make the whole site look out of date.
• Embedded social media feeds can break or load slowly, so a simple link to your accounts is usually enough.

You may also need fewer pages than you think. If your menu rarely changes and you take orders by phone, a single page with hours, menu, address and a call button may cover it. Our one-page website is $750, and the rest of our options are on the pricing page. If you want a full picture of what sites cost here, our guide to small business website cost in Michigan lays out the choices.

Where do online ordering and reservations fit?

Whatever system you use for orders or tables, the website's job is to send visitors there in one tap.

• Link the order button straight to your own restaurant's page inside the ordering system, not to a general search page where a competitor might show up.
• If you use more than one delivery app, choose one main button and list the others in smaller links below it.
• Test the button after any change to your ordering account, since links can change when a provider updates its system.
• Ask each ordering or reservation provider for its current fees in writing before you choose which one gets the main button.
• If you take orders only by phone, say so clearly, so nobody hunts for a button that does not exist.

What else helps once the basics work?

After the top of the page and the menu are solid, these additions answer common questions before anyone has to call.

• Post holiday hours and seasonal closures ahead of time, and remove them when they pass.
• Make sure the hours on your site match your Google Business Profile, since two different answers cause confusion. Our local SEO checklist covers how to keep those listings in line.
• Add parking details, whether the entrance has steps, and whether you have high chairs or a patio.
• Give catering, private events and gift cards their own short sections or pages if you offer them.
• Use photos of your real dishes and your real dining room, taken in good light.

For more on what we build for food and retail businesses, see our page for restaurants and shops.

How can you test your own site in two minutes?

Grab your phone, turn off Wi-Fi, and run through these steps on your own website.

1. Open your homepage and notice whether today's hours are visible without scrolling.
2. Tap the phone number and check that it starts a call.
3. Tap the address and check that a maps app opens with directions.
4. Tap the order or reservation button and confirm it lands on your restaurant, not a search page.
5. Open the menu and check that you can read it without zooming and that the prices are current.
6. Look for anything expired, such as an old special or last season's hours.

Any step that fails is your first fix. Start with the hours and the main button, since those are the details a hungry visitor needs first.

Common questions

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