Someone on your restaurant website is usually hungry, on a phone, and choosing between you and two other places. They are not browsing and they will not dig. The site has ten seconds to answer what they came for, and most of the work is making those seconds count.
The four things they need immediately
- The menu, as a page they can actually read on a phone.
- Opening times, including today, shown as text and not inside an image.
- Where you are, with a map and a word about parking.
- How to book, in one tap.
Everything else, the story, the chef, the gallery, is worth having and belongs below those four.
The menu problem
The classic mistake is the menu as a PDF. It downloads slowly, opens in a separate viewer, is painful to pinch and scroll, and search engines cannot read it usefully. A menu built as a normal page loads instantly, works on every phone, and lets you turn up in searches for the dishes and diets you cater for. It is also far easier to keep current, which matters when prices move.
Direct bookings versus the platforms
Reservation platforms bring people you would not otherwise reach, and there is nothing wrong with using them. The thing to watch is the balance. Every cover booked through a platform carries a commission and the customer stays theirs, not yours. A booking button on your own site costs you nothing after setup, and the people who already know you should never be routed through a platform to reach you.
Photographs that sell the room
Food photography helps, but the shots that actually convert are of the room with people in it. Diners are choosing an evening, not a plate. A warm, honest photograph of the space at service does more than a perfectly lit dish on a white background.
The short version. Menu, times, location and booking, all reachable in seconds on a phone. Kill the PDF menu, keep as many bookings direct as you can, and show the room. That is what fills tables.
More on how we work with restaurants and bars on our page for hospitality.
