Checklist · Restaurants and cafés

The restaurant website checklist.

What diners check on their phone before they choose where to eat, and the details that decide whether they book with you or the next venue. General information, not legal advice.

Go to the checklist Restaurant website packages

Written by Rifat Hasan Rafi, founder of SIX9 Design · Last reviewed 10 October 2026

How diners choose

Four questions every visitor is asking

Most visits are a quick check on a phone, often from the street or the car.

Question	What answers it	What goes wrong
What is on the menu?	A text menu on a page, with prices and dietary notes	A PDF that is slow to load, tiny on a phone or out of date
Are you open?	Today’s hours near the top of the home page, public holidays included	Hours that differ between the website and Google
Where are you?	Address, map link, parking or tram and train tips	No map link, or an address buried in an image
Can I book?	A Book button that opens your booking page or dials you	A booking link that is broken or hidden below the fold

The checklist

What a restaurant or café website needs

Work through these before you think about fonts or colours. Each one removes a reason for a guest to choose someone else.

The menu as a web page
Use headings for sections, real text for dish names and prices, and mark vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options. Offer a PDF only as an extra.
Opening hours on every page
Show today’s hours in the header or footer and list special hours for public holidays and events.
A visible Book or Order button
Link to the booking or ordering service you already use, or to a phone number. Keep it in the header on mobile.
Address, map and getting there
Add a map link, nearest tram or train stop, and where to park. Write the address as text so it can be copied.
Allergen and dietary information
Be clear about what contains or can be made without common allergens, and ask guests with severe allergies to talk to staff. See the FSANZ allergen guidance and check your obligations with your council.
Surcharges shown up front
If you charge a public holiday or Sunday surcharge, say so where prices appear. See the ACCC’s pricing and surcharging guidance.
Photos of your own room and food
Real photos set expectations better than stock images. Compress them so the page loads quickly on mobile data.
A functions and groups enquiry form
Capacity, set menus and a short form with date, group size and contact details. Keep it to the fields you need.
Your phone and email as real links
Make the phone number tappable and the email a mailto link so guests do not have to retype them.
Fast and readable on a phone
Google uses the mobile version of your site for indexing, so test on a real phone. See Google’s mobile-first indexing guidance.

Google

Your website and your Google Business Profile

The profile gets you found on the map; the website gives the detail that helps a guest decide.

Keep the same business name, address, phone number and hours on your profile and your website.
Update hours for public holidays on both, on the same day.
Link your profile’s menu and booking buttons to the matching pages, not only the home page.
Follow Google’s tips on local ranking: complete information, accurate hours and genuine reviews.

Nobody can promise a position on Google. Accurate details, clear pages and genuine reviews give you the best chance, and results take time.

Mistakes

Common restaurant website mistakes

We see the same few problems on hospitality sites.

Menu only as a PDF or photo
It is hard to read on a phone and cannot be understood properly by search engines.
Out-of-date menu or prices
Guests who arrive to find different prices lose trust quickly. Keep one source of truth.
Auto-playing music or video
It drains data and annoys people in a quiet cafe or on a train.
Hours missing for public holidays
This is the most common reason for a wasted trip and a bad review.
A third-party booking widget that covers the page
Link out to the booking page, or check the widget works on small screens.

Cost

What a restaurant website costs with SIX9 Design

Prices are fixed, published and paid once. Domain, hosting and your reservation provider are separate.

Package	Price (once)	Pages	Good for
Launch	A$169	Up to 3	Home, menu and visit-us pages for a café or small restaurant
Growth	A$299	Up to 5	Adds a gallery and a functions or private dining page
Advanced	A$449	Up to 8	Adds an editable menu and a connection to your booking provider

Prices as listed on the SIX9 Design pricing page, checked 10 October 2026. Scope and total are confirmed in writing before any work starts.

We build restaurant sites around this checklist. See restaurant website packages.

Sources

ACCC — pricing and surcharging guidance for businesses · checked 10 October 2026
Food Standards Australia New Zealand — allergen labelling · checked 10 October 2026
Google Business Profile Help — tips to improve your local ranking · checked 10 October 2026
Google Search Central — mobile-first indexing best practices · checked 10 October 2026

What should a restaurant website include?

Four things first: your menu as readable text, your opening hours (including public holidays), your address with a map link, and a way to book. Photos of your real room and food, dietary notes, and a functions enquiry form come next.

Is a PDF menu bad?

A PDF menu is slow to open on mobile data, hard to read on a small screen and harder for search engines to understand than a web page. Putting the menu on a page, with a PDF only as an optional download, is easier for guests and for search.

Do I need my own booking system on the website?

Not necessarily. Most venues link a Book button to the reservation provider they already use, or to a phone number. The site's job is to put that button where guests can find it without scrolling.

How do I show allergens on a website?

Say clearly which dishes contain or can be made without common allergens, and tell guests to speak to staff about severe allergies. Your obligations depend on your venue and state, so check the Food Standards Australia New Zealand guidance and your local council.

Can I show a public holiday surcharge?

Yes, and you should show it clearly where guests see prices, before they book or order. The ACCC publishes guidance on surcharges and on showing the full price up front. This is general information, not legal advice.

How do I keep opening hours right on public holidays?

Update your website and your Google Business Profile at the same time, with the same hours. A mismatch between the two sends guests to a closed door and is a common source of bad reviews.

Should a café use a website builder or a custom-designed site?

A builder such as Squarespace or Wix can work well for a single-venue café that updates its own menu and is happy to pay a monthly plan. A custom-designed site suits owners who want a fast, text-based menu, no monthly platform fee and a design built around their venue. Either way, check that the menu is readable text rather than an image, hours match your Google Business Profile, and the booking button is visible on a phone. SIX9 Design websites are A$169, A$299 or A$449 once.

How much does a restaurant website cost with SIX9 Design?

A$169, A$299 or A$449 once for up to 3, 5 or 8 pages. Domain, hosting and your reservation provider's subscription are separate. We confirm the scope and total in writing before any work starts.

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Get started

A menu guests can read,
a booking button they can find.

Tell us about your venue. We confirm the pages, scope and total in writing before any work starts.

See restaurant packages