Restaurant SEO in Germany: 3 Simple Steps to Success with Foodamigos

SEO - search engine optimization - is how you get your restaurant to the top of local search results.

For example, when someone in Berlin searches for "schnitzel near me," good restaurant SEO helps convince Google to display your website at the top of the search results.

Effective restaurant SEO ensures your website appears first when locals search for restaurants or food nearby. Websites with good SEO get more traffic, leading to increased sales – both online and offline.

If you accept online reservations, this means more bookings. If you offer online ordering, you'll see a surge in direct online sales.

Some restaurants need to prioritize SEO more than others.

Are you a fine dining establishment? While SEO is still important, it might not be your primary focus.

On the other hand, if takeaway and delivery are significant parts of your business, SEO is crucial. Thousands of people in your area are searching for food online every day.

For many restaurants, SEO is the most effective way to acquire new customers.

What about social media platforms like Instagram or Facebook? While they generate buzz, SEO is where the real revenue lies.

Here's an example from a Foodamigos client, showing the source of their new customers.This breakdown is typical for most of our clients.

What's the key difference between Google and Instagram?

The results are undeniable. This is the power of restaurant SEO.

Effective restaurant SEO ensures Google sends you a steady stream of customers.

Here's how to achieve that with 3 big wins.

Great restaurant SEO can help you achieve various goals, whether it's increasing online orders, boosting reservations, or attracting catering clients. It all starts with climbing to the top of the search rankings. These SEO tips will help your restaurant website get there.

The easiest way to get Google to recommend your restaurant more often is to provide as much information as possible in your Google Business Profile (GBP).

Your GBP listing significantly impacts your website traffic and local search ranking. People rely on the information in your GBP to make decisions.

Think about it, which listing would you click on?

A complete and informative GBP listing encourages more clicks, leading to increased traffic to your website. Google loves it when people engage with your listing, so they'll reward you with even more visibility.

Here's what you need to get right:

Ensure your restaurant's name, address, and phone number are accurate in your GBP. Keep this information consistent across all online directories.

This is crucial! Many competitors neglect this detail.

Consistent NAP (Name, Address, Phone Number) across your GBP and other listings enhances your credibility in Google's eyes, signaling a positive customer experience. This leads to increased visibility for your restaurant.

At Foodamigos, we assist all our clients with this crucial step from the moment they join us. It's a simple yet powerful way to drive traffic and online orders.

Add high-quality photos of your restaurant's interior and your most popular dishes to your GBP. You don't need a professional photoshoot unless you're a fine dining establishment.

Clear photos taken with your phone in good lighting are perfectly acceptable.

Do you offer delivery? Do you have parking? Is your entrance wheelchair accessible? Do you have vegetarian options?

Providing detailed attributes in your GBP helps you stand out from local competitors. The more up-to-date information you give Google, the better.

People often search for specific cuisines or dishes they crave. Ensure you appear in local search results by adding your menu items to your GBP. This helps Google recommend your restaurant to people searching for specific dishes or cuisines, boosting your chances of ranking higher.

Encourage your diners to leave reviews on your Google profile instead of Yelp, TripAdvisor, or other platforms. Times have changed, and Google reviews are now paramount.

If you use a direct online ordering system like Foodamigos, you can automate this process by sending automated emails requesting reviews after customers place an order.

After optimizing your GBP, the next big win is to incorporate relevant keywords and phrases on your homepage. These are terms people use on Google when searching for food and restaurants in your area.

This is a big win because it's incredibly easy. We're always thrilled to share this tip with restaurant owners because it's such a straightforward way to attract more local customers.

It's as simple as adding the right keywords to your homepage!

Here's what we mean. Take a look at these examples from our clients. You can see for yourself by doing a Google search for:

• "Best döner in Berlin"

• "Best Italian near Brandenburg Gate"

• "Best pizza near Brandenburg Gate"

You'll quickly find our clients, Döner Delight and Bella Italia, because we helped them integrate these cuisine-specific keywords into their homepages.

You can do the same for your restaurant. Here's how.

Let's say you run an Italian restaurant near the Brandenburg Gate. Add "best pasta near Brandenburg Gate" to your homepage. If you have a Turkish restaurant in Berlin, add "best döner in Berlin."

Choose keywords that are relevant to your cuisine and the dishes you offer.

Important: Add these keywords in two places: your page title (what people see on Google) and your main homepage headline.

We do this automatically for Foodamigos clients. Depending on your website builder, you should be able to do this quickly without needing a developer.

Don't move on to Big Win #3 until you've completed this step! We've consistently proven its effectiveness. Our keyword research and data from thousands of Foodamigos clients back this up.

Combine this with an optimized GBP, and you're guaranteed to climb the search rankings, even in competitive markets.

Now that you've perfected your GBP and added relevant keywords to your homepage, let's make it even easier for Google to recommend your restaurant by improving user engagement on your website.

Why is this important? Google tracks user behavior on websites.

If Google sees that people visit your site but leave immediately, it's a negative signal. Google interprets this as a poor user experience and will send less traffic your way.

• "Make reservations"

• "View the menu"

• "Order food"

Adding the following features to your website facilitates these actions, sending positive signals to Google and increasing your traffic.

This is especially important if you have a fine dining or in-person concept. When people can't book a table on your website, they'll get frustrated and leave.

Google hates it when it sees that people go to your website, then leave right away.

Don't force your customers to fill out forms to make reservations. Instead, use tools like Resy or OpenTable to help manage your reservations.

In addition to getting more Google traffic, you'll get more foot traffic, and more customers overall.

Do you offer delivery?

People go on your website to look at your menu, and ideally, a way to order from you directly. If you already do a lot of volume on third party delivery apps, offering OLO could unlock a new revenue stream.

One of the worst SEO mistakes is to send your website visitors to an online ordering system on a different website. More on this later.

Take back control of your margins, customer data, and online reputation.

Discover why our new partners increase online sales by an average of 270% in their first three months.

There you have it: 3 proven, high-impact, and easy ways to enhance your online visibility on Google Search, all without touching any code or hiring a developer.

Here's a checklist to recap:

These steps are precisely what we implement for Foodamigos clients. We know they work, so we ensure every client benefits from these best practices.

By following these 3 Big Wins, we've driven over €100 million in online orders. When restaurants partner with us, we immediately implement these SEO strategies, and their sales soar.

Now, let's take it a step further.

When onboarding new clients, we often encounter SEO mistakes on their existing websites that negatively impact their search rankings.

To maximize your traffic and sales, avoid these critical SEO errors.

Restaurant owners often make these mistakes unintentionally. That's understandable - you're focused on running your restaurant, not studying digital marketing!

This advice is particularly relevant for restaurants with a strong delivery focus, but any restaurant website can benefit from avoiding these pitfalls.

We'll explain why these mistakes are detrimental and show you how to fix them.

Many restaurants make the mistake of directing their website visitors to third-party delivery platforms like Lieferando.de or Uber Eats for online ordering.

Remember how Google tracks online behavior? Put yourself in Google's shoes. Here's what they see when a restaurant sends customers to an OLO on a different domain:

• "People visit the restaurant website."

• "People immediately leave and go to Lieferando.de."

• "People complete their orders on Lieferando.de's website, not the restaurant's."

This signals to Google that your website is less valuable than Lieferando.de.

Instead, strive for this:

• "People visit the restaurant website."

• "People view the menu and place an order."

• "People complete their orders on the restaurant's website."

This approach not only pleases Google but also aligns with customer expectations. Think about Amazon: the entire customer journey takes place on their domain. All leading e-commerce sites operate this way.

This is how we've designed Foodamigos, and it's a major reason why our clients enjoy increased SEO traffic and higher sales conversions compared to the average website.

When your online ordering is integrated into your domain, Google sees that visitors stay longer and make purchases on your site. These are strong positive signals that customers are having a great experience, making it easy for Google to recommend your restaurant to more people.

HOW TO FIX:

To maximize direct online sales from Google Search, use an online ordering system that keeps customers on your domain.

We all know that "people eat with their eyes." However, some restaurant owners go overboard.

While visually appealing, overloading your website with large images and videos can slow down page loading speed.

Slow loading times frustrate visitors and drive them away. This sends a negative signal to Google, resulting in reduced search traffic.

To maximize conversions, your website should load in under 2 seconds.

But losing Google traffic is only one problem. Slow loading times also frustrate customers, especially those browsing on their phones.

If they're looking to order, they might abandon your website and turn to delivery apps instead. You'll still get the order, but you'll lose 30% in commission fees.

HOW TO FIX: Measure your website's loading speed. If it exceeds 2 seconds, reduce image file sizes with a compression tool like TinyPNG and minimize the number of videos.

Quick question: Visit your website on your phone and navigate to your menu. What do you see?

Is it just a picture or a PDF of your menu?

This is a mistake. Here's why.

While a PDF menu might look good on a laptop or monitor, it can be difficult to read on a phone. It might take too long to load, or the text might be too small for a mobile device.

Assume that most people are viewing your website on their phones.

A poorly formatted menu can frustrate visitors and drive them away. Again, Google interprets this as a negative signal and might recommend your restaurant less often.

To make matters worse, those frustrated customers might turn to Uber Eats or Lieferando.de, where menus are clear and easy to read. You'll still get the order, but you'll pay a hefty commission.

When restaurants join Foodamigos, one of the first things we do is integrate their menu into their online ordering system.

This benefits customers browsing your menu and also pleases Google: your menu is now in text format, making it more searchable.

HOW TO FIX: Publish your menu using text or utilize an online ordering system that makes it easy to browse.

In this final section, we'll share advanced SEO tips to supercharge your Google traffic. These best practices will give your restaurant a significant competitive edge.

Don't let the term "advanced" intimidate you. While these tips require more effort, you can implement many of them without involving a developer. We've focused on the highest-ROI tips to ensure maximum impact for your efforts.

A backlink is like a digital vote of confidence from one website to another. Every time another website links to your restaurant's site, they're essentially saying, "Hey, check this place out, it's great!"

Backlinks signal to Google that your restaurant is trustworthy.

The more high-quality backlinks you have, the higher you're likely to rank compared to your local competitors.

For example, if you run a pizzeria in Hamburg and your site has 250 backlinks while a competitor only has 5, Google is more likely to rank you higher.

So, how do you build backlinks?

Every community has online directories, noticeboards, or review sites. These platforms are excellent for connecting with customers and generating valuable backlinks. Many of them are free to list your business.

To attract the attention of local bloggers and food journalists, give them a compelling reason to write about you. Perhaps you've launched a unique new dish, a local celebrity is a fan, or you're opening a new location. Once you have an angle, reach out to them via email or Instagram and pitch your story. If they feature you, they'll likely include a link to your website.

Generate newsworthy stories by collaborating with other businesses or participating in community events. Charity fundraisers, local festivals, or cooking demonstrations are all opportunities to earn features in local media. Local journalists are always seeking stories. Identify the most relevant journalist, find their email address, and send them a pitch.

Alt text (short for alternative text) is a crucial SEO element.

Essentially, alt text provides a textual description of images on your website, helping Google understand their content.

For instance, an image of a schnitzel on your website could have alt text like "delicious Wiener Schnitzel at [Restaurant Name]". This reinforces the association between your website and the food you offer, enhancing your SEO.

Most website builders allow you to add alt text when uploading images, so you don't need to edit any code.

Many restaurant owners opt for single-page websites due to their simplicity and ease of updates.

However, if your goal is to attract more customers from Google, you need more than one page.

A single-page website provides limited information about your restaurant to Google, making it harder for them to recommend you over competitors with more comprehensive websites.

Remember, you're competing with other restaurants that might have dedicated pages for their menu, delivery areas, events, catering services, the owner's story, reviews, and more.

Google has more information about those websites, giving them an advantage in search rankings.

When a restaurant partners with Foodamigos, we help them create these essential pages: A homepage highlighting their specialties, an "About Us" page sharing their unique story, and an online menu listing their dishes in text format.

We also build pages optimized for delivery orders. To learn more, schedule a quick demo.

Strive to expand your website with additional pages. At the very least, add one about your restaurant's history, and make a page with a text version of your menu.

Search engine optimization is the biggest opportunity for most restaurants.

We see restaurant owners constantly getting distracted with social media, but time and time again, we see that SEO is where the customers are.

Here's the full checklist to help get you started.

And as you can see from the tips we gave in this post: restaurant SEO is not complicated. You don't need a developer to dive into the details of technical SEO. You don't need to hire a digital marketing agency.

We've automated a lot of these things at Foodamigos. If you want to see how we do it, book a demo here. But you don't need to use our platform to take action on any of the tips we covered today.

The most important thing with SEO is that you start ASAP. It can take time to kick in, and you don't want your competitors to read this post before you do.

Read more: Restaurant Marketing Guide: Strategies for Growth in 2025