23 Social Media Ideas for Restaurants
Facebook, X, Instagram, and others. You have business accounts for your restaurant on all of them, but how do you keep up with posting fresh content on a consistent basis?
Society Insurance works with restaurants of varying types and sizes. We know how hard it is to come up with creative ideas to set yourself apart from the competition, so we’ve put together a list of social media ideas we’ve seen from our partners and beyond.
Let’s dive in!
Setting Up Your Restaurant’s Social Media Foundation
Before diving into content ideas, let’s ensure your restaurant has a solid social media foundation across all platforms.
Optimizing Your Business Profiles
Facebook Business Profile Setup:
- Use your restaurant’s logo as your profile picture and an appetizing photo of your signature dish or dining room as your cover photo
- Complete all business information including hours, location, phone number, and website
- Add your menu as a PDF or use Facebook’s menu feature
- Enable messaging and set up automated responses for common questions
Instagram Business Account Essentials:
- Switch to a business account to access analytics and promotional tools
- Write a compelling bio that includes your location, cuisine type, and a call-to-action
- Use your restaurant’s branded hashtag in your bio
- Add your address and contact information
- Include a link to your menu or reservation system
X Profile Optimization:
- Use consistent branding across all platforms with the same profile picture and handle
- Write a bio that showcases your personality and includes relevant keywords
- Pin a tweet about your current special or upcoming event
- Add your location and website link
Platform-Specific Posting Guidelines
Optimal Posting Frequency:
- Facebook: 3-5 posts per week, focusing on quality over quantity
- Instagram: 1-2 feed posts per day, plus 3-5 Stories daily. Multiple stories throughout the day help to maintain visibility.
- X: 3-7 tweets per day, including retweets and replies
Best Posting Times for Restaurants:
- Breakfast promotions: 6-9 AM
- Lunch specials: 11 AM-1 PM
- Dinner content: 4-7 PM
- Weekend specials and events: Rollout on Wednesday-Thursday afternoon, remind on Friday afternoon, follow-up with live previews and real-time posts
23 Social Media Ideas for Restaurants
1. Invite a food blogger or “food-tographer” with a social media presence to your restaurant
Yes, there is such a thing as a “food-tographer.” Ask if you can comp their meal in exchange for them taking photos of your restaurant and some of your best menu items.
Share behind-the-scenes photos of them at your restaurant and post something that leaves people wondering and encourages them to interact with the post such as: “Had a special guest in today. Any guesses who?” Share or retweet the posts from the person’s page to your page once posted.
For Instagram, consider using the Repost app. Be sure to ask for digital copies and a photo release for all the photos and/or videos taken and scatter them throughout the year.
2. Share the history of your restaurant
What is your restaurant best known for? As simple or as elaborate as the story may be, social media users love human interest stories.
Was the recipe passed down through the family? Share an old photo of your family. Where did the name come from? Share a photo that relates.
3. Post upcoming events to Facebook
Many people use the events feature of Facebook to make their plans for their nights and weekends, so make sure to utilize this function for your business as well. Don’t just expect a post to suffice. Use the event feature which gives people a chance to find you in their event searches based on popularity, location or date range.
4. Launch a birthday club
At the first of every month, create a post that offers a special to anyone celebrating a birthday that month. Encourage people to interact with the post by accompanying the post with a caption like “Know a special someone celebrating a birthday this month? Tag them below to let them know about this special!” If there is a signup link on your website, share the link.
5. Highlight special holidays
Many restaurants offer specials to select customers on national holidays, but have you thought of offering special promotions on lesser-known holidays? Search for obscure holidays online.
Perhaps on January 13, which is Rubber Ducky Day, you post to your channels a picture of a duck pond (think carnival game) at your restaurant filled with rubber ducks that each have a promotion on the bottom of them (10% off, 25% off, free drink, free dessert, etc). Encourage customers to come to your restaurant with the promise of picking a duck at the end of the meal.
6. Ask people to help design your menu and/or next special
Make it into a contest because there’s not many people that don’t love a good contest.
This could be as simple as “What would you like to see on our menu?” Choose your favorite option or make a random choice. Winner gets a coupon for that entrée once it hits the menu.
Or you could add an extra layer of fun by naming a food item and/or set of items: “We feel like making something with chicken and cheese to serve as a special this month. What should we make?”
Take it to the next level by creating a bracket-style tournament to choose the winner. You could use a poll feature to host the match-ups and keep track of results.
7. Host a GIF drop
Create a simple prompt such as: “How’s your Monday? Explain by posting a GIF in the comments!” or “What would you do if you won a $50 gift card from (insert restaurant name)? Post a GIF of your reaction below!”
8. Showcase a local cause
How does your restaurant give back to the community? Giving back to your community presents an opportunity to positively position your restaurant. Community members want and NEED to know how much you’re doing behind the scenes.
Does your restaurant donate food to a homeless shelter or food bank? Make sure to take photos and share the good work you’re doing.
Consider hosting a guest server or family night at your restaurant to raise money and share the details on your social accounts. Bonus tip: Make sure to share the photos during the event and the results when it’s over.
Keep track of every time you donate something, and then write a post and/or press release at the end of the year commemorating your efforts. For example, “Did you know in 2020, (insert restaurant name) donated over ($x,xxx) to local causes in the form of food, gift cards and merchandise? We love to give back to our customers and our community.”
People might be surprised to know the amount that some businesses give to others. A good rule of thumb is to make this a quarterly occurrence on social media—too frequent and it could be viewed as too self-promotional.
9. Cross-promote local events & businesses
It’s important to remember that “a candle loses nothing by lighting another candle.” This doesn’t mean you have to start posting your neighboring restaurant’s specials to your Facebook page every week, but maybe next week the coffee shop down the street is donating all their tips to the local fire department. Share that! And then maybe the next time you’re doing something in the community, they will be inclined to share your post. What goes around comes around.
10. Feed local thought leaders and influencers
Bring a new menu item to the local radio/tv station or host a spaghetti dinner for the local sports team making a championship run. Make sure you or the recipient (or both) document to share on social!
11. Share information about restaurant week
Are you participating in an upcoming local restaurant week? There are a variety of simple ways to promote this on your social media channels.
- Add the event created by the hosting organization to your Facebook page.
- Share the link to the restaurant week’s website.
- If available, share the link that goes directly to your restaurant’s menu.
12. Highlight your unique selling proposition
What makes your restaurant different from the rest? Chances are there are many things right in front of you at your restaurant that could tell a great story on social media.
For example, do you have outdoor seating? Do you have art on the walls from local artists? Was your bar crafted from old barn wood? Did a customer gift you something with your business’s name on it?
13. Share your positive reviews
Share your positive reviews and ask for more from satisfied customers. As a restaurant, you likely have many reviews on Google and Yelp (even if you haven’t claimed your pages).
Google makes marketing easy and has a variety of materials ready for you to download. Not only can you download graphics of your 5-star reviews, you can also create graphics advertising your hours and request window stickers.
Yelp has a less robust way for sharing reviews, but you can still highlight what people post about your business there.
14. Employee testimonials
With the labor shortage in the restaurant industry being a recurring hot topic, ask one of your most outgoing employees if they would be willing to do a short video testimonial about working at the restaurant and encouraging people to apply. Testimonials can be used for more than just ramping up business.
15. Monitor and share media mentions
Set up Google Alerts for yourself, your restaurant and any star employees. This way you never miss a beat when you or your restaurant appear in the news, or anywhere else that’s notable enough to be included in a web search. Share anything that positively promotes your restaurant.
Consider a human spotlight series for your restaurant. Who could you highlight? A long-time employee, a loyal customer, one of your suppliers? Everyone has a story to tell and this adds an extra layer of personalization to your business.
16. Share special occasions and milestones on your networks
For your business. Are you celebrating a years-in-business milestone? Have you reached a noteworthy number of followers (1K, 2K, 3K, or more)? Have you been recognized by a prominent organization or individual?
For your customers. Restaurants are a place to celebrate life’s moments including birthdays, anniversaries, graduations, engagements and much more. Why not ask if you can capture these special moments and share them on your business page?
For yourself. Social media is a success because of the first word: social. Consumers like seeing the face behind the brand, so toot your horn occasionally. Highlight something as big as an award or as small as your favorite part of your restaurant.
For your staff. Did your dishwasher just graduate high school? Did your summer waitress get accepted to the school of her dreams? Is your long-time cook retiring?
For your social/professional circles. Did your Kiwanis Club just donate books to an elementary school? Is your daughter getting married? Did you just join an association that you’re excited about? Just stay away from politics and other controversial topics, as they may start a thread of unwanted comments.
17. Create videos
Facebook, X, Tik Tok, and Instagram all have the capability to produce live videos. If you’re hesitant to create these yourself, ask a social media-savvy employee you trust if they would be interested in creating one.
Good things to talk about and show in live videos include weekly/daily specials, what beers you have on tap, and special events/entertainment. Something as simple as stirring a pot or lighting the stove could make a fun video. Pair it with a simple and interactive caption such as: “Stirring up the soup of the day. Any guesses on what kind it is?”
Instagram Stories and Instagram Live Best Practices:
Instagram Stories offer unique opportunities for restaurant engagement:
- Behind-the-scenes content: Show your prep work, cooking process and daily operations
- Polls and questions: Ask followers to vote on tomorrow’s special or guess the mystery ingredient
- Recipe reveals: Use the multi-slide format to show step-by-step cooking processes
- Staff takeovers: Let different team members share their perspective for a day
- Limited-time offers: Use the 24-hour format to create urgency around daily specials
Instagram Live Engagement Strategies:
- Cooking demonstrations: Show how signature dishes are prepared in real-time
- Q&A sessions: Answer questions about ingredients, dietary accommodations or restaurant history
- Virtual tours: Give followers a behind-the-scenes look at your kitchen or dining room
- Collaborative lives: Partner with local food bloggers or neighboring businesses
- Event coverage: Stream live from special events, wine tastings, or chef appearances
- Have fun with pop culture
Get creative and use pop culture to your advantage. While franchises have a higher marketing budget, local restaurateurs can always look for ways to act quickly and play into trends.
Popular movies, sporting events, trending stories and viral videos are all opportunities to put your creative hat on and build social content.
19. FAQs
What are common questions you get at your restaurants? What are your hours? What sides do you have? Do you only accept certain methods of payment? Share the questions and answers on social!
20. Merchandise for sale
If your restaurant sells any items that guests can take with them after enjoying a meal at your restaurant, promote that on your social media. This could include t-shirts, homemade pies, gift cards, your house dressing, etc.
21. Third-party delivery
Are there alternative ways to enjoy your restaurant other than dining in? Do you offer delivery or use a third-party option like UberEats or DoorDash?
If so, promote this service on social media. Also look for marketing materials already available to you on third-party apps; then, plug and play on your social channels.
22. Pop-up restaurants
Are you serving your food at a local festival or another off-site location? If it’s something that’s open to the public, it should be shared through your networks before, during and after. If it’s not public, share it later and thank the customers after the fact.
23. Green policies & local sourcing
The availability of an environmentally friendly dining experience or knowing where food was sourced may make some customers more likely to choose one restaurant over another.
Is your restaurant implementing practices that are environmentally friendly? Paper straws, zero waste cooking, and chemical-free cleaning are all things that you could highlight on social.
Do you have a farm-to-table concept? Do you locally source food items? You could create a video at the farm or garden. You could take a photo of the food producer and do some Q&A to share with your audience.
User-Generated Content and Branded Hashtags
Creating a strong user-generated content strategy can significantly amplify your restaurant’s social media presence while building community engagement.
Creating Your Branded Hashtag:
- Keep it short and memorable: Use your restaurant name or a clever play on words
- Make it unique: Search existing hashtags to ensure yours stands out
- Include it everywhere: Add it to your bio, menu, table tents, and receipts
- Example hashtags: #EatAt[RestaurantName], #[RestaurantName]Eats, #Taste[RestaurantName]
Encouraging Guest Photo Sharing:
- Photo contests: “Share a photo of your meal with #[YourHashtag] for a chance to win a $50 gift card”
- Feature customer photos: Repost guest photos to your Stories and feed (with permission)
- Create Instagram-worthy moments: Design photogenic wall murals, neon signs, or unique plating
- Table tent prompts: Place cards on tables encouraging social sharing with specific hashtags
- Staff training: Train your team to suggest photo opportunities and mention your hashtag
Implementation Steps:
- Launch your hashtag with a contest or special promotion
- Display it prominently in your restaurant and on all marketing materials
- Monitor the hashtag daily and engage with posts
- Feature user-generated content in your Stories and feed
- Track hashtag performance using social media analytics tools
Interactive Engagement Techniques
Polls and Questions for Maximum Engagement:
Instagram Stories Polls:
- “Which appetizer should we feature tomorrow? Calamari vs. Wings”
- “Rate our new cocktail: 🔥 or 😍”
- “What’s your go-to coffee order? ☕ vs 🧊”
Facebook and Instagram Question Stickers:
- “What’s one dish you’d love to see on our menu?”
- “Tell us about your most memorable dining experience with us”
- “What’s your favorite way to spend a weekend? We’ll suggest the perfect brunch!”
X Engagement:
- Use X polls for quick decision-making: “Help us choose our soup of the day!”
- Create conversation starters: “Finish this sentence: The best part of dining out is…”
- Respond to food trends: “What’s your take on the latest food trend everyone’s talking about?”
Advanced Engagement Strategies:
- This or That Series: Regular posts comparing menu items, asking followers to choose
- Caption This: Post a funny photo from your restaurant and ask followers to write captions
- Trivia Nights: Weekly social media trivia about food, your restaurant, or local area
- Recipe Guessing Games: Share ingredients and let followers guess the dish
Failing to Plan is Planning to Fail
Coming up with new post ideas is only half the battle when it comes to a good social media strategy. To get organized and make sure your plan is well-executed, create a content calendar. This may be as simple as creating a planning calendar in Google Sheets so that multiple people can access it and add updates.
Interested in learning more on restaurant related topics? Read our blog for helpful tips or contact your local Society agent for specific questions about restaurant insurance coverage.
