Websites, Online Ordering & Marketing for Restaurants

Industries · Restaurants & Food

Diners decide where to eat in minutes, usually from a phone. They want the menu, hours, location and a way to order or book, immediately. Flowmatix builds restaurant websites and marketing that turn those searches into covers and orders, for independent restaurants, small groups, cafés, bakeries, caterers and ghost kitchens.

The problems we solve

Paying high commissions on delivery apps

Delivery apps are useful for reaching new customers, but every order from a regular through an app gives away margin. Commission-free online ordering on your own website lets regulars order direct while the apps keep doing discovery.

Menus that are out of date or hard to read

A PDF menu from two seasons ago means wrong prices, missing dishes and disappointed diners. Fast, mobile-first HTML menu pages that staff can update in minutes, and that Google can read, keep prices and dishes accurate everywhere.

Inconsistent social media

Posting stops when the kitchen gets busy. A monthly content plan, a bank of photos and Instagram ads that reach people nearby keep your restaurant in front of diners.

The phone during service

Calls about hours, parking, reservations and allergies arrive exactly when staff are busiest. An assistant can answer routine questions and take bookings, and pass anything about allergies or large parties to a person.

What we build

• Mobile-first restaurant websites with HTML menus
• Commission-free online ordering for pickup and delivery
• Reservation, private dining and catering enquiry forms
• Google Business Profile management and review requests, part of our local SEO service
• Instagram and Facebook content and ads
• Email and SMS offers for regulars

What a strong restaurant website needs

• The essentials in the first screen. Hours, address, phone, and buttons to order or reserve. Visitors usually want one of those four things.
• A real menu. HTML, not PDF, with prices, dietary labels and photos of signature dishes, marked up with schema so search engines and AI assistants can read it.
• Allergen and dietary information. Clear labels and a note on how to ask about allergies, kept in sync with the kitchen.
• Private dining and catering pages. Capacity, sample menus, minimums described in words and a proper enquiry form. These are often the highest-value enquiries you receive.
• Atmosphere. Photos of the room, the team and the food as it is actually served.
• Integrations. POS, online ordering, reservation platform, Google profile and email, so menu changes and hours update everywhere from one place.

Rules and privacy to get right

Restaurants deal with several rules that now reach online ordering as much as the dining room.

• Calorie labelling for chains. Ontario's Healthy Menu Choices Act, 2015 requires food service businesses with 20 or more locations in Ontario to post calorie information for standard menu items, along with a contextual statement about daily calorie needs. Growing groups should plan their menu data for it, including the menus customers see when ordering online.
• Alcohol with takeout and delivery. The AGCO's Info Bulletin No. 61 sets out how eligible liquor sales licensees can sell alcohol with food for takeout or delivery: in sealed containers, never to anyone under 19 or intoxicated, with third-party couriers acting on the licensee's behalf. Your ordering flow should require food with alcohol and prompt for age checks at handoff. Confirm current conditions with the AGCO.
• All-in prices. The Competition Act treats prices that leave out mandatory fees as misleading. The Competition Bureau's 2025 case against DoorDash concerned exactly this kind of pricing. Mandatory service or packaging fees on your own ordering site should be built into displayed prices.
• Customer data and offers. Order histories and contact details fall under PIPEDA. Email and SMS promotions need CASL consent, so add an unticked opt-in at checkout.
• Accessibility. Restaurant groups with 50 or more Ontario employees must meet AODA website requirements. Image-only menus fail screen readers.

This is general information, not legal advice.

Your first 90 days

1. Days 1 to 30: fix the basics. Replace PDF menus with HTML, correct hours and links everywhere, and optimise your Google profile. Our Google Business Profile guide covers the map pack.
2. Days 31 to 60: launch direct ordering. Set up commission-free ordering connected to your POS, with all-in pricing and opt-in for offers. Promote it to regulars with in-store cards and packaging inserts.
3. Days 61 to 90: build the loop. Start review requests after orders, a monthly offer for regulars and phone automation for peak hours. AI for restaurants in 2026 covers what works for phones, orders and reviews.

Common questions

Can customers order directly from our website?

Yes. Online ordering for pickup and delivery lets you keep more of every order, connected to your POS so tickets reach the kitchen.

Should our menu be a PDF?

No. HTML menus load faster on phones, work with screen readers and can be read by Google, which helps you appear for dish and cuisine searches.

Can you handle multiple locations?

Yes. Each location gets its own page, hours, menu variations and Google profile, managed from one dashboard.

Should we leave the delivery apps?

Usually not entirely. Apps bring in customers who have never heard of you. The aim is to give regulars a better reason to order direct, such as a small loyalty perk or faster pickup, so the apps become a discovery channel instead of your main one. Request a quote to set it up.