Taking orders from your own site is less work than most owners expect. The technical part takes a day. Here is the full sequence, including the step most restaurants skip.
There are two different things people mean by online ordering. Listing on a marketplace like DoorDash means paying commission per order and the platform keeping the customer. Direct ordering means your own page, a flat software fee, and the customer relationship stays yours.
Most restaurants end up running both. This guide is about setting up the direct side.
Pickup only is simpler and cheaper to run than delivery. Most independent restaurants should start with pickup, prove that customers will order direct, and add delivery later if the volume justifies it.
A photograph of a printed menu is not enough. You need item names, descriptions, prices, and the modifier groups that go with each item — sizes, sides, spice levels, substitutions. This is the part that takes the longest, and a provider that does it for you removes the main reason setups stall.
Either the platform's processor or your own. If you have negotiated card rates, check whether the platform lets you keep them — some require you to switch, which can cost more than the software saves.
Your own branded page on your own domain, not a listing on someone else's marketplace. It should load fast on a phone, show hours and pickup times accurately, and never add fees to the guest's bill.
Orders must arrive somewhere the kitchen actually looks during service — a printer, a tablet, or both. Decide before launch who acknowledges orders and what happens when you are slammed.
This is the step most restaurants skip, and it is the one that determines whether direct ordering works. Table cards, a sign at the register, your Instagram bio, a note in the bag. Your regulars are already ordering from you through an app that charges you 25% — tell them there is a direct link.
Software for an independent restaurant generally runs from around $100 to $500 a month. The number on the pricing page is rarely the whole cost — check for setup fees, menu migration charges, required payment processing, and whether the platform adds fees to your guests' bills.
Against marketplace commission, the comparison is straightforward arithmetic: calculate what you currently pay per year and compare it with a flat monthly fee.
Software typically runs from around $100 to $500 a month for an independent restaurant, depending on the provider and features. Watch for separate setup fees, menu migration charges, and required payment processing, which can change the real cost significantly. Marketplace apps have no monthly fee but charge 15–30% per order instead.
The technical setup is fast — often the same day. Menu entry is the real work and depends on how complex your menu is. A provider that migrates the menu for you reduces the restaurant's involvement to roughly twenty minutes of review and approval.
Not necessarily. Most direct ordering platforms provide a hosted ordering page you can link to from anywhere, including a Facebook or Instagram profile. A full website helps for search visibility but is not a prerequisite for taking orders.
Start with pickup unless delivery is central to your business. Delivery adds driver logistics, delivery-zone pricing and a longer service window. Pickup proves whether your customers will order direct at all, which is the question that matters first.
Commission-free ordering explained →
Why keeping a regular beats finding a new customer →
Send us your menu and we'll build your ordering page before you pay anything. Setup and migration are included — your part is about twenty minutes.