1 Best Dark Restaurant Website Example
I found the best dark restaurant websites to share for inspiration. Only 0.1% of reviewed website designs make it onto this list! Each website example includes a tall screenshot, a link to the live site, and the platform it was built on.
Hack alert! Start with a restaurant template:
Best restaurant websites for inspiration
You’re building a restaurant website and need to see what actually works. Not just pretty food photos, but sites that turn hungry browsers into customers coming through your door.
These restaurant website examples prove what’s possible when you nail the essentials. You’ll discover how great restaurant websites balance stunning visuals with functionality, how they make reservations frictionless, and how they showcase menu items without burying critical contact info three clicks deep.
The best restaurant websites share a common thread… they remove every possible barrier between “I’m hungry” and “I’m booking a table.” You’ll see how top restaurants handle online ordering, display their online menu for easy browsing, and use high quality images that make you taste the food through the screen.
What makes restaurant websites convert
- Mobile-first menu design: Your online menu needs to load fast and stay readable on any device. Search engines prioritize mobile-friendly sites, and most customers are literally standing outside deciding if they should eat at your restaurant or walk next door.
- One-click reservations and ordering: The moment someone decides they want your food, make it dead simple. Integrated reservation systems and order online buttons should be visible on every page, especially your home page.
- Strategic use of customer data: Great restaurant websites use loyalty programs and email capture to turn first-time visitors into regular customers, building a direct relationship that doesn’t rely on third-party platforms eating into your profits.
Common restaurant website mistakes to avoid
Don’t hide your menu behind a PDF or image file. It kills your SEO, frustrates mobile visitors, and makes updating menu items a nightmare. Don’t bury essential information like hours, location, and contact info in footer text. And please, show your prices. Hiding them signals insecurity and sends new customers running to competitors who are transparent about cost.
Restaurant website design that drives business
The dining experience starts the second someone lands on your site. Your website design sets expectations for everything from your casual vibe to your elegant design aesthetic. I’ve seen too many restaurants nail the food but lose customers because their site feels outdated or confusing.
Visual hierarchy matters more than you think. Your visitor’s attention span is maybe three seconds. Use that time to communicate your brand through strong branding, show your best dishes with professional photos, and make your primary CTA impossible to miss. Whether that’s “Reserve Your Table” or “Order Takeout,” it should grab focus immediately.
Visual storytelling separates good restaurant sites from great ones. Show your food in context. Show your space filled with happy people. Show your chef, your ingredients, your neighborhood. An Instagram feed integration can work, but only if it complements your site rather than replacing actual content. Many restaurants make the mistake of letting social media do all the heavy lifting when your own site should be the main thing showcasing what makes you special.
The layout needs to serve your business goals. A fine dining spot in San Francisco might focus on ambiance and tasting menu details. A neighborhood spot might emphasize takeout and delivery. A bar might lead with events and happy hour specials. Your homepage layout should reflect what actually drives revenue for your specific restaurant.
Strong imagery isn’t optional. I’m talking about photos that make people hungry, that communicate the vibe of your space, that show the actual food you serve. Stock images scream “we don’t care,” and customers can sense it immediately. Even iPhone photos of your real dishes beat generic stock photography every time.
Think about functionality beyond the basics. Can customers browse your menu and filter by dietary restrictions? Can they see what’s available for takeout versus dine-in? Can they buy gift cards or book private events? Each feature should solve a real customer need, not just exist because other restaurant websites have it.
Your site needs to attract the right customers and engage them immediately. Use your essential information strategically. Hours of operation, location with embedded map, click-to-call phone number… these aren’t afterthoughts. They’re conversion tools. Make them easy to navigate to from anywhere on your site.
Quick win you can implement today
Add schema markup for your restaurant to help search engines display your hours, location, price range, and menu directly in search results.
Start building your restaurant’s online presence with these examples as your inspiration. Each one offers ideas you can adapt, whether you’re launching a new site or refreshing an existing one.
About this collection
This is a collection of websites organized by the platform they are built on, category, and sometimes tags and the creator. They're here for inspiration. Most websites made it into this collection because they have beautiful designs, while others showcase exceptional copywriting or information architecture.
What this page contains
This page showcases 1 website example in the Restaurant category tagged as "Dark". Each website includes a tall screenshot, a link to the live site, the platform it was built on, and a description (generated with AI).
Quality may vary by category or platform
Some sites aren't an absolute 10/10, but they shine relative to their categorization. For example, categories like Notary or HOA don't reach the same design heights as Designer or SaaS sites. They're still included so people in those industries have relevant references when building their website.
How these websites are picked
While I won't reveal the exact details of my curation process (so competitors can't copy), I can share that:
- They are all organically sourced (i.e., I don't copy other inspiration galleries)
- It's an arduous process to find these gems. I typically review 10,000 sites to discover just 10 worthy additions.
The purpose of this collection
There are two primary reasons people view these website examples:
- To find design, copy, or general website inspiration from similar businesses in their industry
- To explore the capabilities of website platforms before making a decision
Oh yes, and affiliate marketing. I'm part of affiliate programs for some of the platforms, so if you purchase after clicking a link, I may earn a commission.
Want to suggest a site?
Reach out to me on LinkedIn.