Example of restaurant social media post

Maintaining an engaging social media presence is more important than ever for growing restaurants to attract new diners and drive orders on your preferred channels. In fact, 39% of diners use social media to help determine if they want to order from a restaurant. Managing these platforms can feel overwhelming, especially when you’re busy running day-to-day operations. But with a strategic approach on platforms like Instagram, you can turn likes into sales. To help you get started, we’ve pulled together a few restaurant social media ideas to guide your content creation.

From chef interviews and diner reviews to showcasing your most popular dishes, you’ll have fresh ideas every day. Use these examples to kick off your social media plan, and turn Instagram into an effective marketing channel.

5 Engaging Restaurant Social Media Ideas:

Feature your staff:

Feature a member of your staff—front-of-house, back-of-house, or management—and highlight their role or story. This is a great type of content to use for recurring posts with different team members—you can also do a “Favorite Recipe” series where staff share their favorite dishes from the menu. Here’s an example:

“Meet Greg, our outstanding chef. He has been cooking for over 17 years and has been the backbone of our kitchen since 2016. His favorite dish on our menu is the shrimp scampi with lemon butter sauce. Order tonight to try it out for yourself!”

Promote your preferred ordering platform:

Make sure diners know how to best support your business. Add your direct ordering link to your profile, and educate diners on the benefits of ordering direct.

“Skip the apps and order directly from our website, to keep more profits in our kitchen. ❤️ Thank you for helping us serve you better—click the link in our bio and get 10% off your first direct order!”

Share a look behind-the-scenes:

Give diners a sneak peek of the action behind the counter, showing chefs preparing dishes or a pre-shift team meeting. Here’s an example:

“It’s no secret—all of our dishes are crafted with care. Check out Chef Mike and his team at work prepping for a busy Friday night. #YesChef

Share User-Generated Content

Sharing reviews or posts from customers who have tagged your restaurant is a great way to encourage engagement and celebrate your diners. For example, if a diner shares how much they enjoyed their experience or a particular dish, reshare the post and thank them for the love. Here’s an example of what to say when sharing diner content:

“Thanks for joining us! No dinner is complete without dessert—that double fudge cake looks 🤤!”

Promote a new menu item:

Instagram is the perfect place to share exciting menu updates. Maybe you’ve added a weekday happy hour, or put a new spin to a fan-favorite. This is also a great way to promote seasonal or limited-time dishes. Be sure to feature a well-lit photo of the dish to get mouths watering. Here’s an example:

“🍂Fall flavors are here, and we put a new twist on a classic breakfast favorite. Check out our pumpkin waffles topped with cinnamon whipped cream—available for a limited time.”

Sample Social Media Posting Schedule

See how these example posts, and more, can come to life with this 1-month posting schedule:

Week 1: 

  • Tuesday: Feature a member of your staff
  • Thursday: Showcase a delicious food photo

Week 2:

  • Tuesday: Share a diner review
  • Thursday: Remind diners of your preferred ordering platform

Week 3:

  • Tuesday: Try out a trend
  • Wednesday: Reshare a post or tag
  • Thursday: Highlight your favorite or most popular menu item

Week 4:

  • Tuesday: Show off your restaurant’s space
  • Thursday: Share a behind-the-scene video

Use these restaurant social media ideas and schedule to get started on Instagram—don’t forget to be creative and celebrate what makes your restaurant special.