# 30 Instagram Post Ideas for Restaurants (and a Method)

> 30 Instagram post ideas for restaurants, grouped by theme, plus a sample week and a method to post without a designer, with the real example of Chez B.

Source: https://muffino.ai/en/blog/restaurant-instagram-post-ideas/ · Published on September 25, 2026 by the Muffino team

## In short

- A restaurant’s Instagram account has to answer four questions: what’s on the plate, how much it costs, what the atmosphere is like and how to book.
- Restaurant post ideas fall into eight families: the menu, behind the scenes, the team, offers, events, the season, customer reviews and practical info.
- There is no official posting frequency: the right pace is the one a restaurant can keep up all year, for example two posts a week prepared in one sitting.
- A cohesive restaurant feed rests on two colors, two fonts and the same markers (logo, handle, town) on every visual.
- Every post should give the price, the address and a way to book, and every photo should show a real dish from the menu.

What should you post on Instagram when you run a restaurant? Whatever your customers look for before they come: what’s on the plate, how much it costs, what the dining room looks like and how to book. Here are 30 post ideas grouped by family, each with its format, followed by a simple method to post every week without a designer.

The common thread is a real case: Chez B, a brasserie-restaurant in Épône, in the Yvelines, west of Paris. A €19.90 set lunch menu, 20 seats on the ground floor, 50 upstairs (available for private hire), a terrace and a midnight-blue and sand identity. Its posts illustrate every step.

## What should a restaurant post on Instagram?

A good restaurant account answers four questions: what’s there to eat, how much it costs, what the atmosphere is like, how to get there. Pick a few ideas from each family below and rotate them.

Four formats are enough:

- **4:5 post**: the vertical image in the feed, for anything that should stay visible on your profile.
- **Carousel**: several images to swipe through, for a full menu, a set menu or a list.
- **9:16 story**: full screen and short-lived, for today’s news.
- **Reel**: a short vertical video, for movement.

## 30 Instagram post ideas for restaurants

### The menu and the dishes

- **1. The signature dish, filling the frame**: one plate, daylight, its name as the headline. 4:5 post.
- **2. The dish card**: the name, the main ingredients and the price on the same visual. 4:5 post.
- **3. The full menu**: one slide for appetizers, one for mains, one for desserts. Carousel.
- **4. Today’s special**: the chalkboard or the plate, posted before service. Story.
- **5. Homemade desserts**: at the end of the week, when people allow themselves a treat. 4:5 post.

### Daily life and behind the scenes

- **6. Mise en place**: the minutes before the doors open. Reel.
- **7. The produce delivery**: the morning crates, with the supplier if they agree. Story.
- **8. Plating a dish**: from the empty plate to the dish heading out to the dining room. Reel.
- **9. The dining room, ready**: the tables set, just before the first guests arrive. 4:5 post.

### The team

- **10. The chef’s portrait**: a photo, a first name, one sentence about their cooking. 4:5 post.
- **11. The front-of-house team**: one person per slide, with their favorite dish on the menu. Carousel.
- **12. A day in the kitchen**: a few moments, from the morning to the last service. Story.

### Offers and the set lunch menu

- **13. The set menu with its price in big type**: what it includes, the days, the conditions. 4:5 post.
- **14. This week’s menu**: one day per slide. Carousel.
- **15. The morning reminder**: “Tables still free for lunch today”. Story.
- **16. The workday lunch**: a photo of a dish and one line for the people who work nearby. 4:5 post.

Chez B posts its set lunch from two angles. A purely informative post on a sand background: €19.90, appetizer + main or main + dessert, Monday to Friday. And a photo post with a line that speaks to people who eat lunch out on weekdays. The first one informs, the second one makes you hungry.

![Chez B Instagram post on a sand background: “Formule du midi” (“Set lunch”), the price “19,90 €” in large type, “Entrée + plat ou plat + dessert” (“Appetizer + main or main + dessert”), Monday to Friday, excluding public holidays and drinks](https://muffino.ai/assets/posts/chezb-formule.webp "The informative post: the price in big type and the conditions. The photo post for the same set lunch is the cover of this article.")

### Events and private hire

- **17. The private-hire announcement**: the space, the number of seats, the contact. 4:5 post.
- **18. Occasions**: birthdays, farewell drinks, team meals, one per slide. Carousel.
- **19. The theme night**: the date, the program, the price. 4:5 post, then a story on the day.
- **20. A tour of the space**: the room filmed in one slow shot. Reel.

Chez B’s private-hire post comes down to three elements. The headline plays on the upstairs room (“Votre fête prend de la hauteur”, “Your party reaches new heights”), the button says what to do (“Privatisez l’étage”, “Book the upstairs room”), and the bottom line gives the capacity and the way to book.

![Chez B Instagram post: two wine glasses clinking, headline “Votre fête prend de la hauteur” (“Your party reaches new heights”), a sand button “Privatisez l’étage” (“Book the upstairs room”) and “50 places” (“50 seats”) with the booking number](https://muffino.ai/assets/posts/chezb-privatisez.webp "A headline, an action, a capacity: everything people need to ask for a quote.")

### The season

- **21. The new menu**: the announcement before it launches, then the new dishes one by one. Story, then 4:5 posts.
- **22. The terrace**: the first sunny days, then the last warm evenings. 4:5 post.
- **23. The seasonal ingredient**: the one arriving on your menu this month. 4:5 post.
- **24. Holidays**: the year-end menu, Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day. Carousel.

### Customer reviews

- **25. A real review, copied word for word**: never rewritten or polished. 4:5 post.
- **26. The question that keeps coming up**: the terrace, a vegetarian dish, access, with the answer. 4:5 post.
- **27. A customer’s photo**: reshared with their permission, when they’ve tagged you. Story.

### Practical info

- **28. Opening hours and closing days**: updated every time they change. Story Highlight.
- **29. How to get here**: address, access, parking. Carousel.
- **30. How to book**: phone, link, the days when it’s best to call. 4:5 post.

Story Highlights stay on your profile until you remove them ([Instagram](https://about.instagram.com/blog/announcements/introducing-stories-highlights-and-stories-archive)). That’s the right place for ideas 28 to 30 and for your menu.

## How many posts a week should a restaurant publish?

There is no official number. The right pace is the one you’ll keep up in your busiest weeks, not the one you’d manage in a quiet one. A customer who checks your account before coming should find recent posts and up-to-date information.

If you’re starting from scratch, start small:

- two posts a week, prepared in one sitting;
- a story on the days when there’s something to say (today’s special, the terrace, a reminder);
- a Reel when you have a video that’s worth it, not out of obligation.

Only post more once this pace feels easy. Block out a fixed slot every week, outside service hours, to prepare everything at once: photos, captions, scheduling.

### A sample week for your content calendar

| Day | Content | Format | Chez B post |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | This week’s set lunch | 4:5 post | “19,90 € — Entrée + plat ou plat + dessert” (“€19.90, appetizer + main or main + dessert”) |
| Tuesday | Today’s special | Story | — |
| Wednesday | A dish or behind the scenes | 4:5 post or Reel | “La planche, ça rapproche” (“A sharing board brings people together”) |
| Thursday | An event or private hire | 4:5 post | “Votre fête prend de la hauteur” (“Your party reaches new heights”) |
| Friday | The end of the week: dessert, sharing board, drinks | 4:5 post | “On finit la semaine en gourmandise” (“Ending the week on a sweet note”) |
| Saturday | Atmosphere, terrace, booking reminder | Story | A call-to-book story |
| Sunday | Rest, or a customer review | Story | — |

If you only have time for three rows, keep Monday, Thursday and Friday: the offer, the event, the craving.

## How do you keep a cohesive Instagram feed without a designer?

A cohesive feed is a profile where people recognize the restaurant at a glance, before they even read its name. Four rules are enough.

1. **Two colors, two fonts.** Chez B sticks to midnight blue (#21338A) and sand (#FADCB3), with headlines in Didot, body text in Jost and a calligraphic accent.
2. **The same markers on every visual.** Chez B signs its posts with its logo, often alongside @chezb_78 and “Épône (78)”, the town and its department number. At the top, a small tag often announces the topic: “Formule midi · 19,90 €” (“Set lunch · €19.90”), “Privatisation” (“Private hire”), “Entre amis & collègues” (“With friends & colleagues”).
3. **Alternate photos and text.** A photo of a dish, then an informative visual, then an atmosphere shot. The feed has room to breathe.
4. **Keep the essentials in the center.** Since January 2025, the profile grid has shown thumbnails in a vertical 3:4 format ([Clubic](https://www.clubic.com/actualite-616051-instagram-generalise-la-reorganisation-de-la-grille-du-profil-attendue-depuis-un-an.html)). A 4:5 post therefore loses a thin strip on the left and on the right: don’t push prices or headlines against the edges. The same source says you can now rearrange the grid by pressing and holding a post, then dragging it.

That’s the principle behind the design system Muffino built for Chez B, called “Maison Bleu Nuit”: about ten layouts (photo poster, price, quote, event, carousel, story…) that all follow the same colors, margins and typefaces. The content changes, the style stays.

## How do you write a caption that makes people want to book?

The visual stops the thumb, the caption gets people to act. Four lines are enough for almost every post:

1. **The hook**: the craving or the main piece of information, in one sentence.
2. **The specifics**: what’s on the plate, the price, the days.
3. **The practical details**: opening hours, address, phone.
4. **The action**: “Book at…”, “Link in bio”.

Here is a template for the set lunch post, in French as Chez B would post it, to fill in with your own opening hours and number:

> Midi bien mérité à Épône. Du lundi au vendredi : entrée + plat ou plat + dessert, 19,90 €.
> Chez B, 19 rue Charles-de-Gaulle, Épône. Service du midi : (vos horaires).
> Réservez au (votre numéro) ou par le lien en bio.

In English: “A well-earned lunch in Épône. Monday to Friday: appetizer + main or main + dessert, €19.90. Chez B, 19 rue Charles-de-Gaulle, Épône. Lunch service: (your hours). Book at (your number) or through the link in bio.”

To make booking a single tap, add a Link sticker pointing to your booking page in a story: Instagram opened it to all accounts in 2021 ([Instagram](https://about.instagram.com/blog/announcements/expanding-sharing-links-in-stories-to-everyone)). A professional profile can also display a “Reserve” action button, connected to a partner booking service ([Instagram Help](https://help.instagram.com/122793804938499)).

Even better: put the practical information in the visual itself. Chez B’s terrace post shows “Réservez par téléphone” (“Book by phone”), the number, then the address. Nobody needs to open the caption to know what to do.

![Chez B Instagram post on a midnight-blue background: “On prolonge les belles soirées en terrasse” (“Let’s make the warm evenings on the terrace last”), the word “terrasse” in calligraphy, then “Réservez par téléphone” (“Book by phone”), the number and the address, 19 rue Charles-de-Gaulle, Épône](https://muffino.ai/assets/posts/chezb-terrasse.webp "The call to book, the phone number and the address are on the visual, not just in the caption.")

## What mistakes should a restaurant avoid on Instagram?

- **Dark photos.** A plate photographed in the evening under yellow lighting looks dull. Photograph your dishes near a window, during the day, and keep the evening photos for atmosphere.
- **Unreadable text.** Too many words, too small, laid over a busy photo. Go for a short headline and strong contrast, and put the details in the caption.
- **Missing prices.** “Set lunch” with no price doesn’t answer the question everyone is asking. Chez B shows €19.90 in very large type and spells out the conditions: Monday to Friday, excluding public holidays and drinks.
- **Dishes that don’t exist.** An image generator like Midjourney or DALL·E can produce a perfect plate, but the customer who orders it will get the real one. Show your real dishes, and never caption a photo with something it doesn’t show: a stock photo can illustrate a mood, not “our rib-eye steak”.
- **Outdated information.** Summer hours still displayed in October, an annual closure nobody announced: a customer who finds the door closed won’t necessarily come back.
- **Posting in bursts.** Ten posts in opening week, then nothing for three months: the account makes it look as if the restaurant has closed.

## And how do you keep up the pace without a designer?

Muffino starts from your website address: it reads your logo, your colors, your photos and your PDF menu, then suggests campaigns designed for a restaurant, such as the set lunch or private hire. The posts are built with your real photos and your real logo, not generated like an image. You fix a price or swap a photo in the editor, which works without AI and uses no credits, then you schedule the week in the calendar. [See how to create your first restaurant posts](https://muffino.ai/en/#comment).

## Frequently asked questions

### What should a restaurant post on Instagram?

Your dishes with their prices, the set lunch menu, behind the scenes, the team, events, the seasonal menu, customer reviews and practical info. Rotate the families so that every week shows both an offer and something to crave.

### How many times a week should a restaurant post on Instagram?

There is no official number. Pick a pace you can keep up even in peak season, for example two posts a week and a few stories, and prepare them in one sitting.

### Should a restaurant show prices on its Instagram posts?

Yes for lunch deals, set menus and offers: it’s the first thing customers look for. Also spell out the conditions, such as the days the offer applies.

### Can you use AI-generated images to show your dishes?

Better not: customers expect to get the plate they saw. Show real photos of your dishes and keep mood images for visuals that don’t present a specific dish.

### How do you get people to book from Instagram?

Put the phone number, address and opening hours on the visual or in the caption, add a Link sticker to your booking page in a story and, if your booking tool supports it, a “Reserve” action button on your professional profile.

### Post, carousel, story or Reel: which format should a restaurant choose?

The 4:5 post for anything that should stay on your profile, the carousel for a full menu or a set menu, the story for today’s news and the Reel to show movement, such as a dish being plated or the dining room filling up.