Which Is The Best Restaurant Website Builder?

Whether you’ve been running a restaurant for a few years or you’re just starting your business, you need a website. Even if you’re not planning to accept online orders, a site can help you build awareness and educate people on your food philosophy. So, which is the best restaurant website builder?

There are several tools you can use, and the choice will depend on your preferences and budget. However, you’ll want to make sure that the website builder has all the features you need to grow your business. 

In this article, we’ll discuss the main features to consider when choosing a website builder. We’ll then look at some of the top website builders for restaurants, and show you how to get started. Let’s dive right in! 

What Makes a Good Restaurant Website Builder?

A good restaurant website isn’t just about mouthwatering food photos. It should also be functional and easy to navigate. 

So, the right website builder for restaurant owners should offer the following features.

1. Ease of use

Since you’re busy designing your menu, sourcing ingredients, and handling all other aspects of running a restaurant, you’ll likely want a website builder that’s super easy to use. 

Plus, if you have a small budget, you’d want to avoid hiring a web designer.

Look for a platform that offers drag-and-drop functionality, pre-built templates, and intuitive design tools. These features will help you create a professional-looking website without needing to learn code or hire an expert. 

Some website builders even use AI web design. This technology can design a website that’s tailored to your needs and preferences. 

2. Restaurant-Specific Templates

While there are some wonderful website builders out there, not all of them are suitable for restaurants. Some tools might not have enough templates for food businesses like yours. 

Therefore, try to choose a website builder that offers templates specifically designed for the food and beverage industry.

These templates should feature layouts that enable you to showcase your menu, dishes, restaurant location, and other essential details, while also making it easy for visitors to place orders or make reservations.

While pre-built templates are great for getting started, your website builder should allow customization. Your restaurant has a unique brand, and your website must reflect that. 

So, choose a builder that offers flexibility in color schemes, fonts, layout changes, and other design elements.

3. Online Ordering and Reservations

If you want to take online orders and reservations, you’ll need a website builder that offers this functionality.

Even if it’s not available out of the box, you should at least be able to use third-party tools and integrations to process orders and bookings. 

Make sure that it’s easy for customers to make a reservation on your site. They should be able to provide their preferred date and time, number of diners, any food allergies, and other details.

If they’re placing an online order, they might need to request changes to a dish or mention dietary requirements. The tool you use should enable them to leave a note for the kitchen staff. 

4. Social Media Integration

Social media is a great platform for sharing offers and creating buzz around new dishes or outlets. So, you’ll want a website builder that offers integrations with your preferred social channels. 

For example, you can embed Instagram feeds on your website and display customer reviews posted on Facebook. You’ll also want to embed social media buttons in the header and other prominent areas on your site. This will help you grow your following on these channels.

Top Restaurant Website Builders

Now, let’s look at the best website builders for restaurant owners.

1. HeroBuilder

HeroBuilder is a product by NameHero. It uses AI technology to create an attractive website tailored to your needs.

After providing some information about your restaurant site, HeroBuilder will present you with a selection of suitable templates:

You’ll be able to customize the design in the WordPress dashboard, where you can also install plugins, organize your online menu, and manage other areas of your site. 

HeroBuilder even installs WooCommerce for you. This is the leading ecommerce plugin for WordPress sites, and you can use it to list your menu items with pictures and prices. 

It also installs WPForms on your site, enabling you to create custom reservation forms. 

Plans start at $9.95 per month and enable you to use a custom domain name. You’ll also have access to backups, custom email accounts, and essential security features like SSL certificates.

2. Wix

Wix is a widely known website builder with a drag-and-drop interface and a library of pre-designed sites. It caters to different businesses, including restaurants:

Besides customizable restaurant templates, Wix offers an online ordering system that you can manage from a user-friendly dashboard. You can integrate your site with DoorDash to provide food delivery services. Customers will even get an SMS with a link to a tracking page and delivery ETA.

Meanwhile, the Dine by Wix app allows customers to make reservations on your website. The website builder enables you to create a loyalty program so you can grow your customer base.

Premium plans start at $17 per month and include a free domain for one year. 

3. Squarespace

Squarespace is another popular website builder known for its professionally designed templates and user-friendly editor:

It helps you create a sleek menu with pre-built restaurant layouts. You can also take reservations with the Tock app, and you have the choice to automate table management or handle everything yourself.

Squarespace also offers online food orders, powered by ChowNow. This supports both pickups and deliveries. 

Plans start at $16 a month.

So, Which Is the Best Restaurant Website Builder?

All of the website builders reviewed above make it super easy to create your website. However, HeroBuilder goes one step further and gives you complete control over your site.

This is because it creates your site in WordPress, which is a popular content management system that powers over 40 percent of websites. With this platform, you can choose from thousands of plugins to enhance your site. 

These include social media integrations, photo galleries (for showcasing your dishes), SEO tools for increasing your restaurant’s online presence, and a lot more.

To get started, create a free account with HeroBuilder. Then, enter your restaurant name and provide some details about the business and your site. 

For example, you can tell HeroBuilder what cuisine you specialize in, and what functionality you want for your site (like online reservations and orders):

Then, select your goals for the site. In this case, you likely want to promote your physical business (the restaurant):

HeroBuilder will ask you to choose between a multi-page and one-page site structure. Both work well for restaurants:

The builder will then give a selection of unique templates, based on your answers:

Pick your favorite design, then select the pages you want to include on your website:

HeroBuilder will now build your website in WordPress. Once it’s done, you’ll be able to customize your pages using the WordPress Block Editor:

Here, you can select any block on the page and make changes to it. You can even rearrange blocks, add new ones, and delete any element you don’t want. 

If you navigate to the WordPress dashboard, you can view your menu items on the Products page:

Of course, these are just placeholders. You can edit a product with your own dish name, details, and photos. From the WooCommerce settings, you’ll also be able to set up online payments using your preferred gateways.

After four days, you’ll need to upgrade to a paid plan. This will unlock full access to WordPress. For example, you’ll be able to integrate your site with a food delivery service, add social media and SEO plugins for online visibility, and more. 

Conclusion

A good restaurant website builder should provide features like table reservation forms, online order management, customizable templates, and more. While there are many tools to choose from, we recommend using a WordPress website builder, like HeroBuilder.

This way, you’ll have full customization control over your own restaurant website. You’ll also be able to install plugins to add functionality to your site and integrate it with third-party food delivery services. Plus, HeroBuilder will automatically design your site for you, based on your preferences. 

Are you ready to create a new restaurant website? Sign up for HeroBuilder today!