Google Ads for Restaurants: How to Fill More Tables & Grow Your Business
A comprehensive guide to running profitable Google Ads campaigns for restaurants, breweries, and hospitality businesses. Based on real campaigns we've managed for restaurants across Arizona and California.
Ready to Fill More Tables?
What You'll Learn in This Guide
Why Google Ads Work for Restaurants
When someone searches "restaurants near me," "best pizza in Scottsdale," or "brewery with event space Phoenix," they're not casually browsing—they're ready to make a decision. Google Ads puts your restaurant at the top of these high-intent searches, exactly when potential customers are looking for what you offer.
Unlike social media advertising where you're interrupting someone's feed, Google Ads captures demand that already exists. The person searching "Mediterranean restaurant Old Town Scottsdale" wants to eat Mediterranean food in Old Town Scottsdale—right now. Your job is simply to be there when they search.
of all Google searches have local intent
of local searches result in a store visit within 24 hours
of local searches result in a purchase
Performance Max Campaigns for Store Visits
Performance Max (PMax) campaigns are Google's AI-powered campaign type that automatically serves your ads across Search, Display, YouTube, Gmail, and Google Maps. For restaurants, the magic happens when you set "Store Visits" as your conversion goal.
Google uses location data from users who have opted in to track when someone sees your ad and then physically visits your restaurant. This means you can actually measure the ROI of your ad spend in terms of real foot traffic—not just clicks or impressions.
How We Structure PMax for Restaurants
- Asset groups organized by location (for multi-location restaurants)
- High-quality food photography and video assets
- Compelling headlines highlighting unique selling points (cuisine type, ambiance, specials)
- Audience signals targeting foodies, local residents, and competitor customers
- Store visit conversion tracking with appropriate conversion values
- Location extensions linked to Google Business Profiles
Real Example: Multi-Location Pizzeria
For a pizzeria with three locations across the Phoenix metro area (Downtown Phoenix, North Scottsdale, and Phoenix Biltmore), we run separate Performance Max campaigns for each location rather than combining them into one. This gives us direct control over individual budgets, targeting radius, and bid strategies for each location. If the Scottsdale location needs more aggressive spending during tourist season, we can scale that campaign independently without affecting the others. Each location gets its own store visit data and performance metrics, allowing the owner to make location-specific decisions and allocate resources where they drive the best results.
Google Search Campaigns for High-Intent Keywords
While Performance Max handles the broad reach, Google Search campaigns let you capture specific high-intent searches with precision. These are the searches where someone knows exactly what they want.
High-Intent Keywords to Target
- • "[cuisine type] restaurant near me"
- • "best [cuisine] in [city/neighborhood]"
- • "[restaurant name]" (branded searches)
- • "restaurants open now near me"
- • "[city] restaurants with patio"
- • "private dining [city]"
- • "happy hour [neighborhood]"
Keywords to Avoid (Negative Keywords)
- • "recipe" / "how to make"
- • "jobs" / "hiring" / "careers"
- • "cheap" / "free" (unless that's your positioning)
- • Competitor brand names (in most cases)
- • "delivery" (if you don't offer it)
- • "franchise" / "for sale"
Pro Tip: Geo-Targeting Strategy
For most restaurants, we target a 10-15 mile radius around the location, with bid adjustments to increase bids for users within 5 miles. We also layer in targeting for nearby hotels, business districts, and tourist attractions to capture visitors to the area.
Google Business Profile: The Foundation of Restaurant Marketing
POMO Pizzeria's optimized Google Business Profile with 1,500+ reviews and complete information
Your Google Business Profile (GBP) is arguably more important than your website for local discovery. It's what shows up in the "Map Pack" (the three local results with a map), it's linked to your Google Ads, and it's often the first impression potential customers have of your restaurant.
A fully optimized GBP doesn't just help with organic visibility—it supercharges your Google Ads by providing location extensions, review stars in your ads, and enabling store visit tracking.
GBP Optimization Checklist for Restaurants
Building an Automated Review Collection System
Example review management dashboard aggregating reviews across Google, Yelp, and Facebook
Reviews are the lifeblood of restaurant marketing. A restaurant with 4.5 stars and 500 reviews will almost always outperform a competitor with 4.8 stars and 50 reviews. Volume matters, and consistency matters even more.
The challenge is that happy customers rarely leave reviews on their own—you have to ask. The solution is building a systematic, automated approach to review collection that doesn't rely on your staff remembering to ask.
Automated Review Collection Strategies
1. Post-Visit Email/SMS Sequence
If you collect email or phone at reservation, send an automated message 2-4 hours after their visit. Keep it simple: "Thanks for dining with us! If you enjoyed your experience, we'd love a Google review." Include a direct link to your review page.
2. QR Code on Receipts/Table Tents
Place a QR code linking directly to your Google review page on receipts, table tents, or check presenters. The fewer clicks between "I want to leave a review" and actually leaving one, the better.
3. Staff Training & Incentives
Train staff to mention reviews when they sense a table had a great experience: "So glad you enjoyed everything! If you have a moment, we'd really appreciate a Google review." Some restaurants offer small staff incentives for reviews that mention employees by name.
4. Reputation Management Software
Tools like Birdeye, Podium, or Grade.us can automate the entire process—sending review requests, routing negative feedback to you privately first, and aggregating reviews from multiple platforms.
Pro Tip: The Best Review Requests
The most effective review requests are personal and specific. "Hi [Name], it was great seeing you at dinner last night! If you have a moment, we'd really appreciate a Google review. Here's the link: [link]" performs much better than generic "Please leave us a review" messages.
Marketing Your Restaurant's Event Space
If your restaurant has a private dining room, patio that can be reserved, or dedicated event space, you're sitting on a high-margin revenue stream that many restaurants undermarket. Event bookings often generate $2,000-$20,000+ per event, making the cost per lead from Google Ads extremely efficient.
The approach for event space marketing is different from general restaurant advertising. Instead of optimizing for store visits, we focus on lead generation—getting qualified inquiries from people planning events.
Event Space Keywords to Target
- • "private dining room [city]"
- • "event venue [neighborhood]"
- • "corporate event space [city]"
- • "rehearsal dinner venue [city]"
- • "birthday party venue [city]"
- • "private party restaurant [city]"
- • "restaurant with private room near me"
Landing Page Must-Haves
- • High-quality photos of the space
- • Capacity information (seated vs. standing)
- • Sample menus or pricing tiers
- • A/V capabilities and amenities
- • Simple inquiry form (not too many fields)
- • Phone number for immediate inquiries
- • Testimonials from past events
Real Example: Brewery Event Space
For a brewery in the Phoenix metro area with a dedicated event space, we run separate campaigns for brewery store visits (Performance Max) and event space leads (Search campaign with lead form extensions). The event space campaign targets corporate event planners, wedding parties, and private celebration searches. A single event booking can generate $5,000-$15,000 in revenue, making even expensive keywords highly profitable.
Hundred Mile Brewing: From Launch to 21% YoY Growth
How we helped a Tempe craft brewery drive 18,000+ store visits and 100+ event leads through strategic Google Ads campaigns since their 2022 launch.
Hundred Mile Brewing • Tempe, AZ
Partner since August 2022
Campaign Breakdown
What Made This Work
- 1Multi-campaign strategy (PMax + Search) targeting different goals
- 2Separate campaigns for store visits vs. event lead generation
- 3Lunch-specific campaigns to fill slower dayparts
- 4Holiday party campaigns during Q4
- 5Consistent optimization since December 2022
Restaurant Clients We've Worked With
We've had the privilege of working with a variety of restaurant concepts across Arizona and California. Here's a look at the types of campaigns we've run and the strategies that work for different restaurant models.
Multi-Location Italian Restaurant
Phoenix Metro Area • 3 Locations
For this established Italian restaurant with locations in Downtown Phoenix, North Scottsdale, and the Biltmore area, we run Performance Max campaigns optimized for store visits. Each location has its own asset group with location-specific imagery and messaging. The campaign drives consistent foot traffic to all three locations while allowing us to see which areas are performing best.
Craft Brewery with Event Space
Tempe, Arizona
This brewery needed two distinct strategies: driving taproom visits and booking their event space. We run parallel campaigns—Performance Max for store visits to the taproom, and a dedicated Search campaign for event space lead generation. The event space campaign captures high-value leads for corporate events, birthday parties, and private gatherings, with each booking worth thousands in revenue.
Mediterranean Restaurant
Old Town Scottsdale, Arizona
Located in the heart of Old Town Scottsdale's dining and entertainment district, this Mediterranean restaurant competes in a dense market. Our strategy focuses on cuisine-specific keywords, targeting searches for Mediterranean, Greek, and Middle Eastern food in the Scottsdale area. We also geo-target nearby hotels and resorts to capture tourists looking for dinner options.
Speakeasy Cocktail Bar
North Scottsdale, Arizona
This upscale speakeasy-themed cocktail lounge focuses exclusively on private event bookings—they don't need general foot traffic. Our campaign is 100% lead generation, targeting searches for private party venues, corporate event spaces, and special occasion dining in the North Scottsdale area. Every lead is a potential high-value booking for birthdays, corporate events, or private celebrations.
Fast-Casual Restaurant
Thousand Oaks, California
For this fast-casual concept in the Thousand Oaks area, speed and convenience are key selling points. Our campaigns emphasize quick service, online ordering, and catering options. We target lunch-hour searches from nearby office parks and dinner searches from residential areas, with different ad copy and offers for each daypart.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much should a restaurant spend on Google Ads?
Most restaurants see meaningful results with $1,500-$5,000/month in ad spend. The ideal budget depends on your location, competition, number of locations, and goals. Single-location restaurants can start at $1,500/month, while multi-location brands typically invest $3,000-$10,000/month.
What types of Google Ads work best for restaurants?
Performance Max campaigns with store visit goals work exceptionally well for restaurants with physical locations. Google Search campaigns targeting high-intent keywords like 'restaurants near me' and 'best [cuisine] in [city]' also drive strong results. For event spaces, lead generation campaigns with form fills work best.
How quickly will I see more customers from Google Ads?
Most restaurant clients see increased calls, reservations, and foot traffic within the first 2-4 weeks. Performance Max campaigns typically need 2-3 weeks to optimize their machine learning. Full optimization with refined targeting usually takes 2-3 months.
Do I need a Google Business Profile to run restaurant ads?
Yes, a verified and optimized Google Business Profile is essential for restaurant advertising. It enables local search ads, Google Maps placement, store visit tracking, and displays your reviews, hours, and menu directly in search results.
Can Google Ads help market my restaurant's event space?
Absolutely. We run dedicated lead generation campaigns for event spaces, targeting searches like 'private dining [city]', 'event venue near me', and 'corporate event space'. These campaigns use form fills rather than store visits to capture high-quality leads.
Ready to Fill More Tables?
Get a free Google Ads strategy customized for your restaurant. We'll analyze your market, competition, and opportunities to create a plan that drives real customers through your doors.
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