Before anyone walks into your restaurant, they check it online. They want to see your menu, your hours, your location and a few appetising photos, all within seconds and on a phone. This guide shows you how to build a restaurant website with AI, even if you’ve never built a site before.
What matters most to hungry diners
- The menu, visible and readable. Put the menu on the page as real text, not a PDF or image, so it loads fast on a phone and search engines can read it.
- Hours and location up front. Most visitors only want to know if you are open now and where you are, so show both above the fold with a map link.
- Easy reservations or ordering. Offer one clear action, such as Book a Table or Order Online, and make it the most prominent button.
- Appetising photography. Real photos of your dishes and dining room sell the meal better than any copy.
- Dietary and allergy information. Mark vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free dishes so diners can decide before they arrive.
Pages and sections to include
- Home. A striking food photo, your cuisine in one line, hours, location and buttons for Reserve and View Menu.
- Menu. Sections for starters, mains, desserts and drinks, with prices and dietary labels such as vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free.
- About. Your story, chef, ingredients and values.
- Gallery. Food, interior and team photos.
- Reservations or Order Online. A booking form or a link to your booking or delivery partner.
- Events and Private Dining (if offered).
- Contact. Address, phone, email, map, parking and accessibility details.
Collect your assets
- Your logo and brand colours
- Your full menu with prices and descriptions
- Good photos (natural light, close-ups of signature dishes)
- Opening hours, address and phone
- Press mentions or reviews you can quote
Domain and hosting
Choose a domain that matches your restaurant name. Set up WordPress on a reliable host. New to WordPress? Start with our beginner’s guide to creating a WordPress website.
Set up your restaurant website with Tuli Builder
- Install the Tuli theme. On a WordPress site with hosting and a domain, install and activate Tuli Builder. New to WordPress? Start with the beginner guide.
- Open the AI Assistant. In your dashboard go to Tuli, then AI Assistant, and pick Tuli AI, which is included with your licence and needs no API key. Prefer your own account? Add an API key from Anthropic, OpenAI, Gemini or OpenRouter instead.
- Paste the prompt below. Swap in your real business name, city and services. The assistant lays out the page, drafts the copy and writes clean HTML and CSS.
- Refine visually or by asking. Click any element to restyle it in the style panel, or describe the change to the AI.
- Add your inner pages, then publish. Repeat the process for each page in the list above, replace placeholder text and photos with real ones, and publish.
The best prompt for a restaurant website
Copy this prompt, then change the name, city and details to match your business.
Build a home page for Olive and Ember, an Italian restaurant in Chicago, Illinois. Hero with a full-width dining-room photo, the line Wood-Fired Italian, Made Fresh Daily, and two buttons: Book a Table and View Menu. Add a today-open-hours strip with the address and a map link, a featured dishes grid with photos and prices, a short story section about the chef, a private events block, three guest reviews, an Instagram-style photo gallery and a footer with opening hours and phone. Use warm cream, charcoal and a terracotta accent, with an elegant serif for headings.
Follow-up prompts to refine it
- Create a full menu page grouped by starters, pasta, mains and desserts, with dietary icons for vegetarian and gluten-free.
- Add a private dining and events page with a capacity table and an enquiry form.
- Add a sticky Book a Table button that follows visitors on mobile.
Then refine: “add a gallery of six images”, “make the hero text bigger”, “add a gluten-free label to this dish”.
Present your menu well
- Use real text, not just an image or PDF. Text is easier to read on a phone and can be found by search engines.
- Group dishes into clear sections.
- Add short, tasty descriptions and mark dietary options.
- Keep prices current. Update the menu as it changes.
Make reserving easy
Place a Reserve button in the header and on the home page. You can link to a booking service or add a simple enquiry form (name, date, time, party size). Tuli’s built-in form builder emails submissions to you.
Local SEO for restaurants
- Claim and complete your Google Business Profile with photos, menu and hours.
- Include your cuisine and neighbourhood in headings, like “Italian restaurant in Soho”.
- Keep your name, address and phone number identical everywhere.
- Encourage reviews and reply to them.
- Write posts about seasonal menus, events and your suppliers.
Launch checklist
- Check the menu on a phone.
- Click the address and confirm the map opens.
- Tap the phone number.
- Test the reservation form.
- Check that photos load quickly.
- Add your site link to your social profiles and Google listing.
Common mistakes on your restaurant website
- A menu that is only a PDF download.
- Auto-playing music or video.
- Very large uncompressed photos that slow the page.
- Outdated hours or prices.
Restaurant website FAQ
Do I need online ordering?
Only if you offer takeaway or delivery. For example, many restaurants simply link to a delivery partner or booking tool.
How many photos should I use?
Quality beats quantity. Eight to twelve great photos are better than fifty average ones.
How much does it cost?
A domain, hosting and your builder. Tuli Builder is a one-time payment from $49, with no monthly fee.