Restaurant owners are hard to reach. They read email late at night or in the gap between lunch and dinner, often on a phone, and they delete anything that looks like a pitch from a stranger who has never seen their menu. The templates below are short, specific and built to be personalised in a minute or two per lead.
Every template uses merge tags written exactly as GetClient fills them: {{params.name}} (the restaurant name), {{params.firstname}}, {{params.website}}, {{params.city}} and {{params.category}}. Replace anything in [square brackets] by hand before sending.
Before you write a word: build the right list
A good template sent to the wrong restaurants still fails. Narrow your list by type, because a pizza takeaway and a fine-dining room have different problems.
- Search by specific category and city, such as "thai restaurant Leeds" or "brunch cafe Austin", not just "restaurant".
- Run several categories and cities at once rather than one by one. The Google Maps bulk keyword search guide covers how to set this up.
- Keep the website column. You need it to write a real first line.
- Note owner names where available. Restaurants are often owner-run, so a named email beats "Hi there".
If you are new to pulling leads from Maps, start with the Google Maps scraper guide. In GetClient the scraped list and the campaign sit in the same place, so you can verify emails and send without exporting files between tools.
Template 1: The specific observation (first email)
Use this when you have looked at their website or listing and spotted one concrete thing.
Subject: quick question about {{params.name}}
Hi {{params.firstname}},
I was looking at {{params.website}} and noticed [specific thing: no online booking link / menu is a PDF that is hard to read on a phone / opening hours differ from your Google listing].
I help {{params.category}} owners in {{params.city}} fix exactly this, usually without changing how the kitchen or front of house works.
Would it be useful if I sent over a short example of what that could look like for {{params.name}}?
[Your name] [Business name, one line]
Why it works: one problem, one offer, one easy yes/no question. No calendar link in the first email.
Template 2: The quiet-shift angle
Good for services that bring in covers: marketing, delivery setup, events, loyalty programmes.
Subject: filling quieter nights at {{params.name}}
Hi {{params.firstname}},
Most restaurants I speak to have one or two nights that are noticeably slower than the rest. Is that true for {{params.name}} too?
I work with {{params.category}} spots in {{params.city}} on [what you do, e.g. set menus and local promotion for midweek evenings].
If you tell me which night is quietest, I will send you two ideas I would try first. No cost, no call needed.
[Your name]
The offer of free, specific ideas lowers the barrier to replying. Only promise what you will actually send.
Template 3: The supplier or product pitch
For suppliers of food, drink, packaging, equipment or software.
Subject: [product] for {{params.name}}?
Hi {{params.firstname}},
I supply [product, e.g. locally roasted coffee / compostable takeaway packaging] to {{params.category}} businesses around {{params.city}}.
The main reason owners switch to us is [one honest reason: next-day delivery / no minimum order / fixed pricing].
Happy to drop off a sample at {{params.name}} one afternoon outside service hours. Would that be worth it?
[Your name] [Phone number]
Offering to come outside service hours shows you understand their day.
The follow-up sequence
Owners miss emails during busy weeks, so a short sequence is reasonable. Keep each follow-up shorter than the one before.
Follow-up 1 (3 to 4 days later), Subject: re: quick question about {{params.name}}
Hi {{params.firstname}}, just bumping this in case it got buried during service. Worth me sending that example for {{params.name}}?
Follow-up 2 (5 to 7 days later), new angle
Hi {{params.firstname}},
Different thought: [one extra useful observation or a tip they can use without you].
If timing is wrong right now, just say "later" and I will check back in a few months.
Breakup (about a week later)
Hi {{params.firstname}}, I will stop emailing about this. If [problem] ever moves up the list at {{params.name}}, my details are below. Good luck with the season.
The timing gaps above are a rule of thumb, not a benchmark. For more closing variations, see the breakup email templates.
Branching follow-ups by behaviour
In GetClient's flow builder you can split follow-ups with If Opened or If NOT Opened. A simple setup: if they opened but did not reply, send the new-angle follow-up; if they did not open, resend with a different subject line. Opens are a rough signal, since some email apps block or fake them, so do not read too much into a single open. The If Opened branching playbook walks through this.
Timing and sending tips for restaurants
- Avoid service hours. Mid-afternoon on a weekday is often a lull. Friday and Saturday evenings are not.
- Think about the week shape. Many restaurants close Monday or Tuesday, which can be a calmer admin day. Weekday send limits let you aim for these.
- Write for a phone screen. Short lines, no attachments, no images in the first email.
- Personalise the first line every time. The [specific thing] slot is the part that earns a reply. Skipping it turns Template 1 into spam.
- Verify before sending. Restaurant contact addresses change often when ownership changes. Run verification and decide how to treat risky addresses; the post on catch-all emails helps here.
Pre-send checklist
- List filtered to one restaurant type and area
- Every [bracket] replaced; preview each step
- Merge tags spelled exactly, e.g. {{params.firstname}}
- Fallback planned for leads with no first name (edit the greeting to "Hi there" for that segment)
- Emails verified
- Unsubscribe link included and your real business details in the signature
- Daily sending kept modest per inbox
- You have checked the outreach rules that apply in your country and theirs
The outreach compliance checklist covers sender rules in more depth. It is a starting point, not legal advice.
When replies come in
Answer quickly and keep it short. If they say "send the example", send it the same day. If they say "not now", note the date and follow up when you said you would. If replies are thin, the guide to fixing a low reply rate shows what to change first, usually the list or the first line before the template itself.
You can try the whole flow, from Maps search to campaign, with 100 free credits and no card. Plans are on the pricing page.