On a venue's website, the description often gets the least effort and does the most work. Photos catch the eye and the menu covers the practical side, but a few short paragraphs answer the question that matters most: why here? This guide covers what a restaurant, café or boutique hotel description should include, the right tone, and three samples you can adapt.
What a venue description is for
Guests usually arrive from a search or from your card on Google Maps, with a few questions in mind. What kind of place is this? Is it what I want? Where is it and when is it open? A good description answers them briefly and in order, and tells Google what your business is, where it is and who it is for.
Six things every description should cover
1. A short story
Who opened the place, when and why? Two or three sentences will do. "In 2015 we turned my father's bakery into a café" sticks far better than "serving you with years of experience".
2. Atmosphere
What does a guest see and hear on walking in? Stone walls, a garden, an open kitchen, live music on Fridays. Give concrete details, not adjectives. "Warm and welcoming" is what everyone writes; "a twelve-table room with an open fire" describes your place.
3. Menu or speciality
Name the one or two things that set you apart: flatbread from a wood oven, coffee you roast yourself, farm butter at breakfast. Link to the menu rather than listing it. For a hotel, this might be the rooms, the breakfast or the view.
4. Location and how to get there
Mention the neighbourhood, a well-known landmark nearby and parking. "Two minutes' walk from the seafront, with free parking at the end of the street" guides the guest and tells Google where you are, naturally.
5. Opening hours
Write the hours clearly where they are easy to find. Breakfast times, when the kitchen closes or a hotel's check-in and check-out times cut down the questions you get by phone.
6. A booking or contact prompt
End with the next step: "To book a weekend table, message us on WhatsApp" or "See available dates on our booking page." A convinced reader should know what to do next.
Tone: who are you talking to?
Write as if you were greeting a guest at the door, not drafting a brochure:
- Write as "we" and speak to the guest directly. Phrases like "our establishment" and "our valued customers" put distance between you.
- Match the language to the character of the place. A lively tavern and a formal dining room should not sound the same.
- Skip the superlatives. Nobody believes "the best in town". Let the reviews say it.
- Keep sentences short. Long sentences get lost on a phone screen.
Length: how much should you write?
On the home page, 60-120 words is enough. An about page gives you 250-400 words for the story, the team and the kitchen. The Google Business Profile description is limited to 750 characters, so a trimmed version of your home page text fits there. Adapt the text to each place rather than pasting it everywhere word for word.
Common mistakes
- Sentences anyone could write. "Quality service, fair prices, friendly staff" does not separate you from a single competitor.
- Missing details. A well written text without an address and opening hours is only half done.
- Keyword stuffing. Repeating "brunch Bristol, best brunch Bristol, Bristol brunch spot" puts off readers and Google alike.
- Out of date information. A text that still mentions a closed branch or a departed chef sets the wrong expectations.
- Text inside an image. A description uploaded as a poster is hard to read on a phone, and search engines cannot read it properly.
Three sample descriptions
Do not copy these word for word. Use them as a skeleton: once you swap in your own name, neighbourhood and details, the text becomes yours.
Restaurant
"Kır Sofrası has been in the courtyard of an old stone house in Gaziantep's Şahinbey district since 2009. We grill our kebabs over oak charcoal using meat chopped by hand, and our breakfast soups go on the stove at dawn and sell out by mid-afternoon. The forty-seat dining room suits family meals and the courtyard is made for summer evenings. We are a five-minute walk from the Coppersmiths' Bazaar. Open daily 11:00-22:30, kitchen closes at 22:00. For groups of more than ten, please call us a day ahead."
Café
"Sabah Kahvesi is a small café on a side street in Moda. We roast our beans twice a week in the back room and brew a different single origin as filter coffee every day. Cakes and cookies come out of the oven each morning, with at least one gluten-free option daily. The long table by the window is for anyone working on a laptop; the back garden is for quieter conversations. Open weekdays 08:00-19:00 and weekends 09:00-20:00. You can buy our beans in the café or on our website."
Boutique hotel
"Zeytin Konak is a nine-room hotel in an 1890s stone house in the old Greek quarter of Bozcaada. Each room has been furnished separately around its stone walls and wooden ceiling, and four have balconies over the courtyard. Breakfast is served under the vine with cheese, olives and jams from the island. The harbour is five minutes away on foot and Ayazma beach fifteen minutes by car. Check-in from 14:00, check-out by 11:00. To see available dates and book direct, go to our booking page."
All three run to 80-100 words, say what and where in the first sentence, use concrete details instead of adjectives, give the hours and end with a next step. None claims to be "the best".
How it helps with Google
The better Google understands a page, the easier it is to show it for the right search. A good description names the type of business (grill house, coffee roaster, boutique hotel), the neighbourhood and town, and what you are known for, in natural sentences. Those are the words people search with: "quiet café in Moda", "Bozcaada boutique hotel with breakfast".
- Use the neighbourhood and town in the title and the first paragraph, not in every sentence.
- Use your guests' words: "dinner" rather than "dining experience", "hotel" rather than "accommodation facility".
- Instead of repeating one phrase, use related words: breakfast, brunch, local cheese.
- Make sure the address, phone and hours match your Google Business Profile exactly.
Good copy will not lift you to a particular position on its own, and nobody can guarantee that. What it does is give Google and your guests the right information. For the remaining steps, see our guide on how to get found on Google.
Photos finish the job
Whatever the text describes, a photo should show: if you mention the courtyard, show the courtyard. Clear phone photos taken in daylight usually do the job, each with a short alt text.
Putting the text on your site
KMG templates come with sections ready for your description. Open Savor, Bean or Corner for a restaurant or café, or Manor for a boutique hotel, type your own text in the Studio and see the result straight away. Every template is on the templates page; for the rest of a restaurant or café site, see our checklist.
Frequently asked questions
How long should a venue description be?
For the home page, 60-120 words is enough. An about page can run to 250-400 words to tell the story and introduce the team. A Google Business Profile description is limited to 750 characters.
Should I mention prices in the description?
Price lists belong on the menu or rooms page. But if something like a weekday lunch menu is a big part of what you do, a single sentence about it is fine.
How do I work keywords into the text?
Use the type of business, the neighbourhood and the town naturally in the title and first paragraph. Rather than repeating the same phrase, describe your place with the words your guests actually use.
Can I use the same text on Google and Instagram?
Yes, but adapt it for each. A short, factual version works best on your Business Profile and a one-line summary in your Instagram bio. Address, hours and phone number should match everywhere.
How often should I update the description?
Straight away whenever hours, the menu, the chef or the number of rooms change. Beyond that, reading it once a year and refreshing anything that has gone stale is enough.