Websites
What’s Trending in Restaurant Website Design
March 15, 2017
The BentoBox design team’s tips for staying on top of your restaurant website game
When it comes to creating or revamping a restaurant’s website, our design team often gets the request for something that looks ‘modern.' For the Bento design team, that means it’s important to stay on top of new website trends and strategize what will be the right fit for each restaurant’s brand.
What started as a burst in popularity of restaurant websites switching over to responsive and mobile-friendly web designs has now turned into “restaurants wanting to keep up with the competition,” says BentoBox Senior Designer, AJ Camara. The restaurant website design space certainly has become more ambitious in recent years, offering restaurants a way to transform and extend their business online.
With the help of the Bento design team, we looked at a few restaurant website design trends worth paying attention to so that your business can make the most out of its online presence.
Clear Call To Action
When the design team sets out to produce a BentoBox website, Camara says that what distinguishes a restaurant’s site from other kinds of sites is the way a user interacts with it. “People go to most general websites to browse, read articles, or look at social media, but visitors come to restaurant websites looking for a specific thing. Whether they are looking to make a reservation or to see the menu, they have a goal in mind,” Camara explains.
All the important information visitors are searching for on Alma's website is easy to find.
Identify what your visitors’ goals are and determine how they will get there. Have all of your restaurant’s important information—like reservations, phone number, and address—front and center to enable a better user experience.
Clean Typography
The font on Flora Bar's website is easy to read, while also unique.
“Typography is very important,” says BentoBox designer Marcus Washington Jr. “It’s a lot more considered now than it used to be, possibly because there’s more access to web fonts now.” What that means is that Times New Roman doesn’t have to be the font you default to—there are a lot of free and paid web fonts available online that compliment your restaurant's brand.
From size and color to type, there’s a lot of room to add that extra element to your website. But, Camara recommends keeping the typography simple and avoiding anything too abstract. “There’s been a movement toward clean, bold typography because it makes the important information easier to find,” he explains. Distinguish your restaurant and brand with the font you select, but make sure it’s clear and easy for your visitors to read.
Photo-Centric Design
The photos and videos on Souvla's website are stunning, intriguing, and inviting.
Washington finds that both the web visitor and web designer benefit from the images they’re presented with. “Photos play a big role in the site’s look and inspire the direction I’ll go for overall,” he says. Showing your visitors what your restaurant offers with high-quality images has become essential for restaurant web design.
“The website can give visitors a taste of what to expect at the restaurant,” Camara explains. Show off the beautiful dishes your restaurant serves, the interior, and anything else that adds to your restaurant’s brand. “Photography highlights the aesthetic of the restaurant,” says Washington, “And now that most restaurant websites have high-quality photos, it ruins the user experience when the photos don’t look nice.” Beautiful, relevant imagery can elevate your website and help visitors get a feel for your restaurant before stepping foot in the door.
The internet keeps evolving, meaning that the trends won’t last forever, but if you focus on bringing your visitors the best possible experience online ensures you’re staying on top of the game. After all, the hospitality experience starts before guests even step through the door—so it’s important to show them a true hospitality experience online, too.
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