Restaurant Websites in Singapore: Menus, Licences and Local SEO

What a restaurant website needs (and what it does not)

Most restaurant visitors arrive from Google Maps, Instagram or a friend's link, on a phone, often standing outside. They want four answers: what is on the menu and roughly what it costs, are you open now, where exactly are you, and how do I book or order.

What you can skip: a long About page, autoplay video, a newsletter pop-up on the first visit, and slideshows. Each one slows the page down or hides the menu.

Put your menu online as text, not only a PDF

A scanned PDF menu is the most common restaurant website mistake. It is slow to open on mobile data, hard to zoom, often out of date, and awkward for screen readers. Google can read many PDFs, but a normal web page is easier for both people and search engines to understand and link to.

• Write each dish as text: name, a one-line description, price, and dietary tags such as vegetarian or contains nuts.
• Group by section (starters, mains, drinks) so people can jump around.
• Keep prices current. If they change often, say "prices as of" with a date, or show prices per outlet.
• State whether prices include service charge and GST. If you are GST-registered, follow IRAS's rules: outlets that charge a service charge may show prices before service charge and GST, but must say so clearly (see IRAS F&B guidance).
• Keep a downloadable PDF as an extra for set menus or event packages.

If you change your menu monthly, a simple content editor is worth more than a fancy design. Whoever runs the kitchen should be able to update a price from a phone in two minutes.

Halal, allergen and dietary wording

Wording on a menu page is a claim made by your business, so it needs to be accurate.

• Halal: only show the MUIS Halal mark or say halal-certified for outlets holding a valid MUIS certificate. Using the mark without approval is an offence. Our guide to halal claims on websites covers the wording for certified and non-certified outlets.
• Allergens: list common allergens per dish where you can (nuts, shellfish, gluten, dairy, egg) and add a line asking customers with allergies to tell staff. SFA's labelling requirements apply to prepacked food, so check them if you also sell bottled sauces or packed cakes.
• Alcohol and pork: say so clearly on the dish, even when the restaurant is not marketed to Muslim diners.
• Vegetarian and vegan: define what you mean (for example, no meat but may contain egg or dairy).

SFA licence basics and what to show online

Restaurants, cafes, caterers and takeaway kiosks need an SFA Food Shop Licence, and stalls inside food courts and coffeeshops need a Food Stall Licence, per SFA's list of food retail businesses that need a licence. Applications go through GoBusiness, and you need in-principle approval before renovation works start.

SFA requires licensees to print and display the licence at the licensed premises, and says displaying the inspection grade decal is not mandatory (SFA print licence page). There is no rule that the licence must appear on your website, but each outlet page should use the same business name and address as the licence, which also helps Google match your listings.

If you sell food online for delivery from a different kitchen (a central kitchen or a home-based business), the licensing rules differ. Our guide on which licences you need to sell online explains the cases.

Bookings, ordering and delivery links

Your website should send people to the booking and ordering channels that cost you least, while still listing the apps customers already use.

For the move from Chope, read what Chope's move into Grab Dine Out means for restaurants. For own ordering versus app commission, see our restaurant online ordering vs delivery apps comparison. Our restaurant reservation system guide compares booking tools, deposits and no-show fees.

Google Business Profile and restaurant structured data

For a restaurant, the Google Business Profile often gets more views than the website. The two must agree: same name, address, phone, hours and menu link. If you have not set it up properly, start with our Google Business Profile setup guide.

1. 1

   Add the menu in your Business Profile

   Food and drink businesses can list menu items with descriptions and prices in the profile's menu editor. Google says changes can take 24 to 48 hours to show on Maps and Search (Google help).

2. 2

   Link to your website's menu page

   Add the menu URL in the profile so people who want the full menu land on your text menu, not a stale PDF.

3. 3

   Add Restaurant structured data to each outlet page

   Use schema.org Restaurant markup with name, address, telephone, servesCuisine, priceRange, openingHoursSpecification and menu, following Google's local business structured data guide.

4. 4

   Test the markup

   Paste the page URL into Google's Rich Results Test and fix any errors before you publish.

5. 5

   Update hours everywhere for holidays

   Change special hours in the Business Profile and on the website at the same time before Chinese New Year, Hari Raya and Christmas.

Structured data does not guarantee any special display in search, but it removes guesswork about your hours, cuisine and menu.

Do it yourself or get help?

A single-outlet cafe can run a good site on a website builder if someone keeps the menu and hours current. The work that most often needs help is the technical layer: per-outlet pages, structured data, fast image loading and the booking integration.

Our Business Website package (S$1,490) includes a text menu you can edit, outlet pages and Google-ready markup. Add an Online Booking System (S$390) for direct table bookings, or a Speed & SEO Fix (S$390) if you already have a site that loads slowly or does not show up for your name.