A restaurant website, whether you serve dine-in or takeaway, revolves around three questions from your guest: what can I eat here, is it open now, and how do I order or book? If your site answers those three questions quickly, on a phone, it's already doing the most important work.
For takeaway and delivery businesses, there's one big extra question: do you keep selling only through delivery platforms, or do you also build your own ordering site? This article covers what your site needs, what your own online ordering involves and what to look out for.
What should a restaurant or takeaway website include?
- Your menu as plain text, with prices, clearly organised.
- Opening hours that are correct, including around public holidays.
- Address, directions and parking information.
- A button to order or book that's always visible.
- Phone number, tappable on mobile.
- Information about allergens and dietary needs.
- Good photos of your dishes and your premises.
- Delivery area, delivery costs and minimum order if you deliver.
The menu is almost always the most viewed page. So don't put it online as a PDF or photo. A PDF is hard to read on a phone, you have to remake it every time you change a price, and Google struggles to read the content. A menu as text is something you can update yourself in seconds through the CMS.
Your own online ordering or only delivery platforms?
Delivery platforms put you in front of lots of people. You pay a commission per order for that. And the customer belongs to the platform: you often get little data to reach that customer yourself later.
Your own ordering site works differently. The customer orders directly from you, you set the prices, offers and delivery area, and you pay no commission per order to a platform. You do pay for the build, for transaction fees and for maintenance, and you have to make sure people can find your ordering site yourself.
- Advantage of your own ordering site: no platform commission, your own customer relationship, your own look and feel.
- Advantage of a platform: big reach, and there's little you have to arrange yourself.
- Many businesses choose both: staying on a platform for new customers and steering regulars to their own site, for example with a flyer in the bag.
Want to look into the choice further? Read our article on an online ordering system for your restaurant. The same trade-off applies to online shops in general, see your own online shop or a marketplace.
What does a good takeaway ordering site need?
Your own ordering site is really a small web application: a piece of software that runs in the browser. It needs to do a few things really well.
- A menu with categories and clear options, such as sides, sauces and sizes.
- Labels for diet and allergens, such as halal, vegan or gluten-free.
- A basket that shows delivery costs and the minimum order straight away.
- A live status: is the restaurant open or closed right now, and can you order now?
- A choice between collection and delivery, with a time.
- Online payment with the usual payment methods, such as iDEAL.
- A clear overview for the kitchen, on a tablet or as a printed ticket.
- Fast loading on mobile, because that's where most people order.
Think about the busy moments too. On a Friday night the kitchen has to keep up. A good system lets you pause delivery temporarily, increase the waiting time or mark a dish as sold out, without changing the whole site. That prevents angry customers and cold meals.
And make it easy for regulars to come back. A confirmation email with a link to your ordering site, a QR code on the receipt or a card in the bag are simple ways to get people to order directly from you next time. Do ask for permission if you want to email them later, because GDPR (AVG in Dutch) applies to restaurants too.
Getting your restaurant found on Google
People often search for a type of food with 'near me' or with their town name. You want to show up there, and that doesn't even start on your website.
- Fill in your Google Business Profile completely: opening hours, menu, photos, a link to your ordering site.
- Keep your opening hours the same everywhere: site, profile, platforms.
- Ask happy guests for a review.
- Use the words people search for on your site, such as the type of cuisine and your town.
- Make sure your site loads fast. Google measures this with the Core Web Vitals, for example that the main part of the page should be visible within 2.5 seconds.
Read more about this in our article on local SEO.
Common mistakes on restaurant websites
- A menu as a PDF or photo.
- Opening hours that are wrong, so guests find the door closed.
- A large video on the homepage that makes the site slow on mobile.
- No allergen information, even though guests look for it more and more.
- An order button that leads to another site without the guest expecting it.
- No clear delivery costs until the last step, so people drop off.
Example: the ordering platform of Apple Mix Fried Chicken
For Apple Mix Fried Chicken in Den Helder we built their own online ordering platform. The menu is organised into 18 categories, with labels for diet and allergens, such as halal, vegan and gluten-free. The basket shows delivery costs and the minimum order, and a live notice shows whether the restaurant is open right now. You can see the project on our work page.
How much does your own ordering site cost at Violexa?
At Violexa a custom website or web application starts from €1,799 excl. VAT (€2,177 incl. VAT) per project. That includes design, build, a design that works on every screen, basic SEO, Google Analytics, a CMS and training, so you can update your menu and prices yourself. For a larger ordering system you get a fixed price upfront, in writing. On top of that, allow for transaction fees and possibly a maintenance plan.
Read more about how we build systems like this under web applications and software.
Not sure whether your own ordering site is right for your business? Request a free quickscan. In a 30-minute conversation, online or at your restaurant, we look at your situation. Afterwards you get short written advice with a price indication, with no obligation.
Frequently asked questions
What should a restaurant or takeaway website include?
A menu as text with prices, up-to-date opening hours, address, phone number and a clear button to order or book. Information about allergens and delivery costs belongs there too.
Is my own ordering site cheaper than Thuisbezorgd?
That depends on how much you sell. With your own ordering site you pay no commission per order to a platform, but you do pay for the build, transaction fees and maintenance. With lots of regular customers, your own site is often cheaper in the long run.
Can I update my menu on my website myself?
Yes, if your site has a CMS. Then you change dishes and prices yourself, without remaking a PDF. At Violexa a CMS and a walkthrough of how to use it come as standard with a custom website.
How do I get my restaurant to appear on Google Maps?
Create a Google Business Profile and fill it in completely, with opening hours, photos and a link to your site. Guest reviews and correct details help you become more visible.
