Websites for cafés
A website that tells people you’re open, shows the whole menu and helps them find you. From £39 a month, ordered online.
A sample design for a made-up café in Ruthin, and what each part is for
- Opening hours at the very top of every page. It’s the first thing people check.
- What and where, in the words people search with.
- Food hygiene rating, dogs welcome and a pointer to the menu, all in the first screen.
- Breakfast, lunch and cake, each with a photo that makes people hungry.
- The whole menu typed out, not a photo of a printed one. It loads fast and Google can read it.
- Serving times next to each part of the menu.
- Opening hours, kept up to date.
- Where to find the café and the nearest car park.
What a café’s website needs
Most people looking up a café want three things: is it open, what’s on the menu and where is it. A good site answers them on the first screen.
Opening hours, kept up to date
On the home page, not hidden in the footer. Updated when you close for holidays or open late.
The menu as text
Typed out, not a photo of a menu. It loads faster on a phone and Google can read it.
Allergens
A clear line asking people to tell you about allergies, plus what you can offer, like gluten-free bread.
Your food hygiene rating
In Wales you have to show your rating sticker at the premises. Showing it on the site too reassures people before they visit.
Where you are and where to park
A map, the nearest car park and whether you’re step free.
Photos that make people hungry
Your own food, your counter and the inside of the café, taken in daylight.
Dogs, children and booking
Say whether dogs are welcome, if you’ve got high chairs and when it’s worth booking.
Ratings and rules worth knowing
Cafés get checked more than most businesses and in Wales some of it is law. These are the ratings and rules worth knowing about and how we handle each one on your site.
Food Hygiene Rating Scheme
Run by the Food Standards Agency with local councils. In Wales the law says you must display your rating sticker at your premises and tell customers your rating if they ask.
The FSA's public ratings search lets anyone look you up by name or postcode. We show your current rating and link to your entry, so the two always match.
Takeaway menus and leaflets (Wales)
If you do takeaway, any printed menu or leaflet in Wales that shows food, prices and a way to order has to carry a bilingual statement pointing people to the food hygiene ratings website.
That rule is for printed materials, not your website, but we keep the site's menu in line with your printed one.
Food business registration
Every food business has to register with its council at least 28 days before it starts trading. It's how the council knows to come and inspect you.
Nothing to show on the site. If you're new and still waiting for your first inspection, we leave the rating off until you have one.
Allergen information
Food businesses have to tell customers about the 14 main allergens in what they serve. The FSA's guidance includes allergy signs in English and Welsh.
We add a clear line on the menu page asking people to tell you about allergies and mark the dishes you can adapt, if you want.
How people choose a café
Café searches happen close to the moment. Someone has parked up in town, is out with the dog or has the kids in the back and types “café near me” or “breakfast” plus the town. Then they check if you're open, what's on and whether there's room, all on one phone screen.
Visitors and locals want different things. In summer and the school holidays, walkers and tourists look for dogs welcome, parking and seats outside. Locals look for a breakfast deal or a Sunday lunch. If you get both, the site speaks to both.
Keeping the site in step with your week
Opening hours are what goes wrong most. Bank holidays, winter hours and private events all change them. Every plan includes some changes each month, so a new set of hours is quick to sort.
Your Google Business Profile shows your hours too and people often see it before your site. Every plan includes setting it up. On Growth we also post on it once a month for you, which suits a new seasonal menu or a change to your opening times.
Bilingual from the start
If your menus and signs are already in Welsh and English, the site can match them. A Welsh version is £150 from your Welsh text. If you need it translating, we arrange that at cost.
How the costs compare
A café website costs from about £110 a year on a website builder, or £39 a month plus £199 setup on our Starter plan. Most cafés need three or four pages. The most important things are your opening hours and a menu people can read on a phone.
What it costs
Same price for every café, nothing added on later. Pick a plan to see what's in it.
Rather pay once? £695 for the website (£995 for bigger sites), then £20 a month for hosting, your domain and support.
Plus £199 setup. 12 months minimum, then cancel any time with 30 days' notice.
Order the Standard planWhat we need from you
- Your café name and town
- Your menu and prices
- Your opening hours
- Your food hygiene rating
- Photos of your food and café, or a link to your Instagram or Facebook
No photos to hand? Send us your Facebook or Instagram and we'll use what's there.
Questions cafés ask
My menu changes every week. Can the site keep up?
Put weekly specials on your Facebook or Instagram and we link to them. For the main menu, send us changes. On Standard and Growth that comes out of your monthly changes. On Starter, a quick update like this counts as your one small change for the month. Anything bigger is £45 an hour.
Can people book a table on the site?
Yes. If you use a booking system we link to it. If not, we add a Call button and a simple contact form.
Is The Pantry a real café?
No. It’s a sample design we made to show what a café’s site could look like. The photos are generated, not real.
Do you only build sites for cafés?
No. We build them for tradespeople and local businesses of all kinds. This page is about what a café needs.
Can you put my menu prices on?
Yes. The menu goes on as text with prices, so people know what to expect before they arrive. When prices change, send us the new ones.
We do takeaway too. Can people order on the site?
If you already use an ordering or delivery service, we link to it from every page, the same way we link to a table booking system.
I haven't had my first inspection yet. What goes on the site?
We leave the rating off until you have one, then add it. We only ever show your current rating.
Ready when you are. It takes about ten minutes to order.
From £39 a month, plus £199 setup.
Order a website