The Restaurant Growth Checklist

The website is the one place you control completely. Everything else should point here.

• Branded website that looks like the restaurantYour colors, your photos, your voice — not a generic template with stock food images.
• Readable mobile menuReal webpage text where possible, accurate prices, dietary notes, no pinching a PDF.
• Current hours, including holidays and closuresUpdate the website the same day you change hours anywhere else.
• Location, directions, and parking guidanceTap-to-map link, parking notes, entrance details, accessibility information.
• Clear reservation or ordering actionOne obvious button per action, in the header and near the menu.
• Catering informationWhat you cater, order minimums, lead time, service radius, and how to request a quote.
• Private-event informationRooms, capacity ranges, buyout options, minimum spend, included staffing, and photos of the actual space.
• Working contact pathsPhone, email, and a form that reaches a monitored inbox. Test each one yourself this week.
• Check the site on a phoneLoad it on cellular data, tap every button, and confirm nothing important is hidden behind a slow image.

A recommended starting routine — not a platform requirement and not a guarantee of reach.

• Tuesday — food-preparation or signature-dish ReelCapture: 15–30 seconds of hands working — searing, plating, pouring, slicing. Include: dish name, one honest detail (how it's made, where it's from), and whether it's always available. Invite: "Reserve a table" with the booking link in bio.
• Thursday — carousel for an event, catering, private dining, or weekend plansCapture: 4–6 photos of the space, table setting, or a past event. Include: date, price or starting price, capacity, and what's included. Invite: "Seats are limited — book on our site."
• Friday — atmosphere ReelCapture: the room filling up, the bar, the patio at golden hour, music, plates landing. Include: tonight's hours and whether walk-ins are realistic. Invite: "Walk in tonight or reserve now."
• Sunday — brunch, dessert, staff, family meal, or next week's reason to visitCapture: one warm, human moment. Include: what's coming this week and any event dates. Invite: "Tap the link to see this week."
• Stories on four to six open days when manageableSpecials, prep, a full room, a staff introduction, a countdown to an event. Add a link sticker to the matching page.
• Busy-week option: two postsKeep Tuesday (signature dish) and Thursday (offer). Skip the rest without guilt.
• Keep the bio link pointing somewhere usefulMenu, reservations, and current events — updated whenever an offer changes.

Four posts a week is a starting routine. Two good posts done consistently beat four rushed ones.

• Publish on the restaurant's Page firstThe Page is the original. Everything else points back to it.
• Share selectively from the owner's personal profileAdd a sentence of personal context. A few meaningful shares beat resharing everything.
• Share in local groups under their current rulesRead the rules first. Many allow business posts only on specific days or in specific threads.
• Ask willing local partners to shareNeighboring shops, venues, hotels, breweries, chambers — ask, then reciprocate.
• Remember other businesses' Pages are not open advertising spaceDo not drop promotions in their comments. Build the relationship and let them share by choice.

Turn Your Mobile Menu Into a Reason to Return. Set this up correctly or not at all.

• Add an optional invitation on the mobile menuA small line near the menu: "Get Event & Special Offer Texts."
• "Join by Text" opens the guest's messaging appThe restaurant's number and a short prepared message are filled in automatically.
• The guest must tap Send themselvesNothing happens until they do. That send is the consent.
• A configured messaging platform records the signupIt sends the confirmation, stores the consent record, and handles STOP and HELP replies.
• No silent phone-number extractionA website cannot read a phone number from a visitor's device, and you should never imply otherwise.
• Keep marketing permission separate from reservation updatesAgreeing to a booking confirmation is not agreement to receive offers.
• Test on iPhone and Android, and provide a fallbackSome browsers and devices block the messaging handoff — keep a simple signup form as the backup.
• Keep the menu fully usable without subscribingNo popup wall, no gate, no required signup to read the food.

Nothing on this page collects numbers or sends messages. The full explanation of how this journey works is in the Playbook.

Thirty focused minutes, same day each week.

• Check current informationHours, menu, prices, event dates, and holiday closures on the website and every profile.
• Prepare the week's contentCapture or select the clips and photos for the planned posts. Batch it in one sitting.
• Test offer links and buttonsClick every reservation, ticket, catering, and ordering link from a phone.
• Answer inquiriesClear the form inbox, messages, comments, and voicemails.
• Review useful resultsInquiries received, seats sold, catering quotes sent, reservations booked — not vanity metrics.
• Choose one improvement for next weekOne page, one photo set, one process. One at a time actually gets done.