Hospitality Marketing

Restaurant Local SEO: Maps, Reviews & Menus That Rank

By Harrison Hill· Founder & Chief Strategist
12 min read

Restaurant discovery happens almost entirely through local search. "Restaurants near me" is one of the highest-volume local queries globally, and the businesses appearing in Google's Local Pack and Maps capture the overwhelming majority of walk-ins, reservations, and delivery orders.

At iNDEXHILL, we build local SEO strategies for hospitality businesses. This guide covers what actually moves the needle for restaurant visibility—from Google Business Profile optimisation to menu schema that earns rich results.

How Diners Search for Restaurants

Restaurant search behaviour falls into distinct categories, each requiring different content and optimisation approaches.

Discovery Searches

  • "Near me" queries — "Restaurants near me", "food near me", "takeaway near me"
  • Cuisine-based — "Italian restaurant [city]", "best sushi [area]"
  • Occasion-based — "Birthday dinner [city]", "romantic restaurant [area]"
  • Feature-based — "Restaurant with garden", "dog-friendly restaurant"

Decision Searches

  • Review checks — "[Restaurant name] reviews", "[Restaurant] menu"
  • Practical queries — "[Restaurant] opening times", "[Restaurant] parking"
  • Booking queries — "[Restaurant] reservation", "book table [restaurant]"

Key Insight

80%+ of restaurant discovery searches show the Local Pack (map results) before any organic listings. If you're not visible in Maps, you're not visible at all for most queries.

Restaurant Local Search Funnel

Typical monthly conversion flow for a well-optimised restaurant GBP

Restaurants with complete GBP profiles convert approximately 2.8% of local search impressions into bookings or calls. The largest drop-off occurs between profile views and menu engagement — highlighting why photo quality and menu formatting matter.

View full data table
StageMonthly VolumeConversion
Local Search Impressions10,000
Maps Profile Views3,20032%
Menu/Photo Clicks1,40044%
Direction Requests62044%
Reservations/Calls28045%

Google Business Profile: Your Most Important Asset

For restaurants, your Google Business Profile is more important than your website. More customers will interact with your GBP than ever visit your site.

Profile Completeness

  • Primary category — Choose the most specific: "Italian restaurant" not just "Restaurant"
  • Additional categories — Add all relevant: "Pizza restaurant", "Takeout restaurant", "Catering"
  • Menu link — Direct link to your menu page (not a PDF)
  • Booking link — Direct reservation link (your own system, not third-party if possible)
  • Attributes — Dietary options, ambience, service type, payment methods
  • Opening hours — Including special hours for holidays and events

Photo Strategy

Photos directly influence click-through rates from Maps results:

  • Food photography — Professional shots of signature dishes (upload weekly)
  • Interior shots — Atmosphere, seating areas, private dining spaces
  • Exterior — Entrance, signage, street view for recognition
  • Team — Chef, front-of-house staff, builds personal connection
  • Events — Special occasions, seasonal decorations

GBP Posts

  • Weekly menu specials — Highlight seasonal dishes
  • Events — Wine tastings, live music, themed evenings
  • Offers — Lunch deals, early bird discounts, set menus
  • Updates — New menu launches, awards, chef announcements

Review Strategy for Restaurants

Reviews are the single biggest differentiator in restaurant local search. A restaurant with 800 reviews at 4.5 stars will consistently outrank one with 100 reviews at 4.9 stars for "near me" queries.

Review Generation Tactics

  • Table talkers — QR code cards on tables linking directly to Google reviews
  • Receipt link — Print Google review URL on receipts
  • Post-meal SMS — If you collect phone numbers for reservations
  • Staff ask — Train front-of-house to ask verbally after positive interactions
  • WiFi portal — Request a review after free WiFi login

Response Best Practices

  • Respond to every review — 100% response rate
  • Mention dishes — "Glad you enjoyed the truffle risotto"—natural keyword inclusion
  • Invite return visits — "Try the new spring menu next time"
  • Handle complaints gracefully — Apologise, offer to make it right, take offline

Review Count vs Weekly Covers

Average weekly covers by Google review volume for UK restaurants

Restaurants with 500+ Google reviews average three times more weekly covers than those with under 50. The sharpest uplift occurs between 50 and 150 reviews — the threshold where local pack visibility becomes consistent.

View full data table
Review CountAvg Weekly Covers
Under 50 reviews180
50–150 reviews260
150–300 reviews380
300–500 reviews460
500+ reviews540

Website & Menu SEO

Your website supports GBP rankings and captures traffic that Maps results don't satisfy. The most important element: your menu.

Menu Page Best Practices

  • HTML, not PDF — Crawlable text, not embedded images or PDFs
  • Structured content — Clear sections: starters, mains, desserts, drinks
  • Descriptions — Brief, appetising descriptions with key ingredients
  • Dietary markers — Clear labelling: V, VG, GF, DF with filter options
  • Prices visible — Transparency builds trust (and helps schema)

Schema Markup for Restaurants

  • Restaurant schema — Name, cuisine, price range, address, hours
  • Menu schema — Individual menu items with names, descriptions, prices
  • LocalBusiness — NAP details, accepts reservations, serves cuisine
  • AggregateRating — If displaying reviews on your site

Location-Specific Pages

For multi-location restaurants or those targeting area searches:

  • Individual location pages — Unique content per branch, not duplicated templates
  • Area guides — "Best restaurants in [neighbourhood]" featuring yourself
  • Occasion pages — "Private dining [city]", "Corporate events [area]"

Content & Social Strategy

Content builds topical authority and captures research-phase traffic. For restaurants, the best content is visual, seasonal, and story-driven.

Blog Content That Ranks

  • "Best of" lists — "Best brunch spots in [city]" (include yourself naturally)
  • Recipe sharing — Signature recipes build authority and earn links
  • Sourcing stories — Farm-to-table, supplier features, ingredient provenance
  • Event guides — "Where to eat on Valentine's Day in [city]"
  • Neighbourhood guides — Position yourself as local authority

Social Media's SEO Impact

Social doesn't directly influence rankings but supports local SEO through:

  • Brand searches — Social activity drives branded search volume
  • User-generated content — Customer tags and mentions build citations
  • Review generation — Social engagement often leads to Google reviews
  • Link earning — Food bloggers and local press discover restaurants through social

Measuring Restaurant SEO Success

Restaurant SEO success is measured in covers and revenue, not just rankings. Track metrics that connect directly to the bottom line.

Primary KPIs

  • GBP actions — Calls, direction requests, website clicks, booking clicks
  • Reservation volume — Online bookings from organic traffic
  • Walk-in attribution — "How did you find us?" tracking
  • Review velocity — New reviews per week/month

Secondary KPIs

  • Local pack position — Ranking for top 10-20 target queries
  • GBP impressions — Search and Maps discovery visibility
  • Website organic traffic — Growth in menu and location page views
  • Photo views — GBP photo engagement metrics

Restaurant SEO Growth Timeline

Typical 12-month performance trajectory for a restaurant investing in local SEO

  • Organic Traffic
  • GBP Actions
  • Reservations

GBP improvements show results within weeks, while organic traffic growth compounds from month 3 onwards. By month 12, a consistent local SEO programme typically delivers 10× the monthly reservations compared to baseline.

View full data table
MonthGBP ActionsOrganic TrafficReservations
M18020015
M212024022
M320032035
M428045050
M642070085
M96001,100130
M127801,600180

How we do this at iNDEXHILL

Our Local SEO services are built around this exact framework, designed for businesses that need predictable growth.

See how we applied this approach in our client case studies.

Frequently Asked Questions

Google Business Profile improvements can show results within 2-4 weeks. Review velocity improvements affect rankings within 1-2 months. Website content and local link building take 3-6 months for meaningful organic traffic growth.

Both, but build your own presence first. Third-party platforms (Deliveroo, OpenTable) charge per transaction. Your own local SEO drives free traffic. Use platforms for volume but invest in organic to reduce long-term customer acquisition costs.

Extremely. GBP listings with regular photo uploads receive 42% more direction requests and 35% more website clicks. Food photography is particularly impactful—upload at least 2-3 new dish photos weekly to keep your profile fresh.

Not necessarily a traditional blog, but regular content updates help. Seasonal menu announcements, event pages, recipe features, and neighbourhood guides all build topical authority without requiring a formal blog structure.

Want help implementing this?

If you're looking to scale organic growth, we offer a free SEO audit to identify quick wins and growth opportunities.

Request a free SEO audit

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