Running a restaurant today goes far beyond your kitchen door.
In fact, before diners even see your menu, they’ve already formed an opinion, you guessed it, on social media.
Platforms like Instagram and TikTok shape where people eat and even what they order.
And if you want customers to order at all, your restaurant needs a good social media presence.
In this article, we’ll break down eight vital social media stats that every restaurant owner should know.
And by “know,” we mean how those numbers actually impact your visibility, reputation, and future bookings.
Let’s dive right in.
According to the 2025 Diner Trends Report from TouchBistro, 41% of diners say they’ve used social media to research which restaurant to visit.
That figure jumps by quite a lot with younger audiences: 67% of Gen Z and 57% of Millennials rely on social platforms when deciding where to eat.
This stat reflects a big shift in how discovery works.
Social media has become a visual search engine, where menus, atmosphere, and real guest experiences are evaluated long before a table is ever booked.
Simply put, diners aren’t just checking your opening hours online anymore. They’re assessing whether your restaurant feels worth their time and money.
The report also states how various social media platforms differ by purpose:
Illustration: Tablein / Data: TouchBistro
And it goes beyond inspiration, too.
Social media is increasingly replacing traditional review platforms altogether.
The report states that 55% of Gen Z diners use Instagram for restaurant reviews, with 44% turning to TikTok.
Illustration: Tablein / Data: TouchBistro
And it makes sense.
These are the diners who prefer short, visual snippets, so they may feel faster and more authentic than your average written review.
For this generation, social media now rivals Google as a review source, and in some cases even surpasses it.
Also, among Millennials, social media platforms sit much closer to Google today than in previous years. Adding up these two generations, that’s a lot of diners.
For you as a restaurant owner, this means social media often acts as the first touchpoint.
Even diners who ultimately book through Google or word of mouth may have validated their choice by scrolling through your posts first.
What does this mean?
Well, if your restaurant isn’t visible (or, arguably worse, looks outdated) on social media, a large share of potential guests may never make it past the research phase.
In 2026, social media is a baseline expectation for restaurants of all sizes and price points.
To understand just how widespread adoption has become, it’s worth looking at TouchBistro’s 2025 State of Restaurants Report, one of the most comprehensive industry studies published recently.
The report surveyed hundreds of restaurant owners, CEOs, general managers, and area managers across the US.
Many of these have spent years, if not decades, operating full-service restaurants and navigating the ever-changing expectations of diners.
According to the report, 99% of restaurants now have at least one social media profile.
In practical terms, nearly every restaurant you compete with is present on social platforms in some form.
From world-renowned fine dining spots like Chef Son Jong-won’s L’Amant Secret:
Source: L’Amant Secret on Instagram
… to crowd pleasers like Shake Shack:
Source: Shake Shack on Instagram
A strong social media presence and a meticulously curated feed are a given.
What’s more interesting is where that presence is shifting.
While Facebook remains the most commonly used platform, TikTok usage has surged.
Nearly half of restaurant operators—48% of them to be exact—now report using TikTok, up from just 26% in 2023.
Illustration: Tablein / Data: TouchBistro
This shift isn’t accidental at all.
Gen Z increasingly treats TikTok as a search engine when looking up restaurants, recipes, and myriad other things.
When it comes to restaurants, food recommendations, and dining experiences, TikTok’s algorithms appear more in sync with diners’ needs and wants.
So, combined with TikTok’s algorithm-driven “For You Page,” even small restaurants can achieve significant organic reach.
This stat highlights an uncomfortable truth: simply being on social media is no longer a differentiator. Presence is expected.
Visibility, relevance, and platform choice are where competition now happens.
Next on our list is a precious stat that puts TikTok’s influence into even sharper focus.
A 2024 survey by Toast examined social media habits across dining demographics.
Their focus was on how diners use specific platforms when deciding on a new place to eat.
According to this survey, 41% of diners aged 18–24 use TikTok more than any other platform to discover new restaurants.
This builds directly on the previous statistics and confirms TikTok’s role as a discovery engine, rather than a simple entertainment app.
And to really drive the point home, for even younger diners (ages 16-17), a whopping 60% of them use TikTok primarily when discovering restaurants.
Illustration: Tablein / Data: Toast
For younger diners, short-form video offers something traditional search cannot: context.
A 20-second clip can show portion size, atmosphere, plating style, music, and even how busy a place feels.
And all those details influence dining decisions.
This shift toward video-first discovery has been observed well beyond the restaurant industry.
As Prabhakar Raghavan, Senior Vice President at Google, noted when discussing changing search behavior among younger users:
“Something like almost 40% of young people, when they’re looking for a place for lunch, they don’t go to Google Maps or Search. They go to TikTok or Instagram.”
Indeed, this is a valid and relevant stat outside food and restaurants, too.
But for the purpose of this article, this insight helps explain why TikTok plays such a central role in how Gen Z discovers restaurants right now.
This stat matters because habits formed early tend to stick.
As Gen Z and younger generations age into higher spending power, their preference for video-first discovery will shape restaurant marketing expectations for years to come.
So if your restaurant aims to attract younger guests now or in the future, TikTok is a much-needed visibility channel.
The same 2024 Toast survey reveals what exactly people want to see on your social media platforms.
84% of users say they prefer to see photos of food and drinks on a restaurant’s social media. This makes menu visuals by far the most in-demand type of content.
Other content types matter too, but they trail behind.
The visual below breaks down what diners value most:
Illustration: Tablein / Data: Toast
This statistic reinforces a long-standing truth in hospitality: people eat with their eyes first.
Social media has only amplified that instinct. Visuals are becoming a serious deciding factor, and there’s an extra layer to the story.
Recent research from Barclaycard Payments shows that diners now spend an average of 40 minutes researching restaurants on social media before booking.
That’s basically examining food photos, ambiance, and overall presentation.
On top of that, diners are willing to pay more for restaurants that look good online: up to £28 ($38) more per person for venues they consider Instagrammable.
That’s a huge shift from, say, 20 years ago.
Photos and reels don’t just reflect demand anymore. They actively shape it.
As diners eat out less frequently and thus become more selective when they do, social media imagery increasingly determines which restaurants feel worth the spend.
Kirsty Morris, former Managing Director of CX and Market Dev at Barclays, explained it well:
Illustration: Tablein / Quote: Barclays
And having a pretty shop window is just as crucial as not having a sloppy one.
Inconsistent, outdated, or low-quality food photos send the wrong message.
Potential guests may associate these with a lower-value restaurant, which in turn means they’ll move on before they even consider booking a table.
Engagement matters so much more than many operators realize.
The aforementioned Toast survey reveals how much diners value restaurants responding to comments on social media, as shown below:
Illustration: Tablein / Data: Toast
Why is this important?
For starters, these numbers suggest that over 90% of diners notice and care about how restaurants interact publicly with their audience.
This means that social media isn’t viewed as a one-way broadcast channel as much as an ongoing conversation.
Responses signal professionalism, care, and respect for guests’ time and opinions.
Conversely, silence can be interpreted as disinterest or poor service, even if the food itself is excellent.
But there’s something even worse than silence.
Source: Daily Mail
Rude responses will lower your restaurant’s reputation, perhaps even faster than kind ones boost it.
At the end of the day, this stat reframes social media from a marketing task into a customer experience touchpoint.
The way you respond online contributes to how approachable and reliable your restaurant looks online.
Speaking of restaurant reviews, they’re no longer confined to dedicated websites. For younger dingers, they’ve gone social, like everything else.
Returning to the 2025 Diner Trends Report from TouchBistro, nearly half of Gen Z diners say they’ve looked up restaurant reviews directly on social media platforms.
Illustration: Tablein / Data: TouchBistro
Millennials are not far behind either: 39% reported checking out social media reviews in the past three months.
This signals a clear shift in where trust is formed. Instagram and TikTok are increasingly complementing, and sometimes replacing, traditional review sources like Google or TripAdvisor.
What’s the appeal, though?
Part of it lies in format.
Social media reviews tend to feel more immediate and authentic, often paired with photos or short videos that show the food, the space, and the overall vibe in real time.
Basically, guests are getting much more info in a few seconds than they would by reading someone’s review.
Source: EatsbyNYC on Instagram
The implication in this case is simple: your reputation now lives in more places than ever.
Social platforms aren’t just promotional channels anymore. Instead, they’re becoming decentralized review hubs that influence dining decisions in real time.
It also means it’s now harder to control reviews or delete negative ones. Your restaurant simply needs to be on par with diners’ high 2026 expectations.
This shift also helps explain why many restaurateurs are turning to local food creators and influencers.
While reviews can’t be tightly managed anymore, early exposure through trusted voices online is a smart way to influence perception.
Now, let’s discuss the other side of the coin.
The aforementioned TouchBistro report found that 25% of diners would be deterred from visiting a restaurant because of negative feedback on social media. That’s one in four potential guests!
And this percentage doesn’t include other types of negative feedback, like, for instance, one received from friends.
Interestingly enough, the percentage doesn’t vary much by generation (as other social media stats do).
The visual below explains it:
Illustration: Tablein / Data: TouchBistro
Everyone is deterred by bad feedback on social media.
This humble stat also tells you how quickly perception can shift.
A handful of unresolved complaints or poorly handled public responses can outweigh dozens of positive posts.
But then, of course, there’s research on responding to negative feedback, too.
Alfred Goldberg, Chief Brand Strategist at Absolute Marketing Solutions, told the Food Institute:
“Acknowledge the issue, apologize sincerely, and offer a solution – or invite the reviewer to discuss the matter offline. This approach demonstrates that the restaurant values customer feedback and is committed to improving.”
Public replies can defuse criticism and signal care, while silence often does the opposite.
It’s easy to see how social media feedback and your response to it affect your restaurant image in myriad ways.
It directly influences foot traffic, bookings, and long-term trust with all generations.
Let’s end our list with a strong stat.
According to the State of the Restaurant Industry 2025 Report from the National Restaurant Association, 74% of diners believe social media is a good way to learn about foods they haven’t tried before.
Illustration: Tablein / Data: National Restaurant Association
Why is this good news?
Well, if your restaurant has unique offerings—or any unique angle, really—this is the perfect opportunity to use social media and show it.
Diners aren’t looking only for familiar favorites anymore.
Instead, they want to complement those with novelty, limited-time items, and unique concepts presented visually.
And the NRA report confirms this: 7 in 10 Gen Z adults and Millennials claim they eat a wider variety of global cuisines now than they used to.
Now, anything from distinctive dishes to seasonal menus and cultural specialties can shine in a TikTok reel.
For owners, the message is simple: social media actively shapes what diners are willing to try once they arrive.
All eight stats we presented in this article reach a similar conclusion: social media has become inseparable from how diners choose, experience, and evaluate your restaurant.
For small and mid-sized restaurants, understanding these numbers helps you prioritize where attention matters most and what trends you should keep an eye on.
The goal isn’t perfection. It’s a social media presence that reflects your restaurant accurately and consistently.
So, use these insights to create smart campaigns and stay on top of the game.