WhatsApp Business Greeting Message Examples for Restaurants

A good WhatsApp greeting message for restaurant customers does three things in under fifty words: says who you are, tells the customer what to do next, and sets an expectation for how fast a human will reply. The WhatsApp Business app sends it automatically the first time someone messages you, and again if they come back after 14 days of silence.

Below are twelve greeting messages written for different kinds of food business, each ready to paste into the app and edit. After the examples, there are the setup steps and the mistakes that make greetings useless.

What a greeting message does and when it is sent

In the WhatsApp Business app, the greeting message is an automatic reply to a customer's first message. It fires when a new contact messages you for the first time, and when an existing contact messages after 14 days with no activity.

That timing makes it the first impression for every new customer and a re-introduction for every lapsed one. Its job is to move the customer to the next step, usually the menu, without waiting for a person. If an ordering bot is answering your number on the WhatsApp Business API, the greeting is the bot's opening message instead, and it can carry buttons; the guide to taking orders on WhatsApp covers both setups.

What a good restaurant greeting includes

• Your name and one line on what you serve. New customers may have found you from a QR code with no context.
• The next step. A menu link, or the word to send ("type MENU"), or the three things you can help with.
• Hours and delivery area. The two facts that decide whether an order is possible right now.
• Reply time. "A person will reply within 10 minutes during opening hours" is honest and reduces repeat messages.

12 greeting message examples

1. Delivery restaurant

Welcome to Sharma Kitchen, North Indian food delivered within 6 km of Vijay Nagar, 11 am to 11 pm. See the menu and order here: tezzu.in/store/sharma-kitchen. Or send MENU and we will share it in chat. A team member replies within 10 minutes during opening hours.

2. Dine-in restaurant with bookings

Thanks for messaging Courtyard Grill. We are open 12 to 3 pm and 7 to 11 pm, Tuesday to Sunday. For a table, send the date, time and number of guests. For takeaway, send ORDER to see the menu. We confirm bookings within 15 minutes.

3. Cloud kitchen

Hi, this is Biryani Box, a delivery-only kitchen in Kondapur. We deliver 11 am to midnight within 5 km. Order direct here for the same prices as the apps, with free delivery above ₹499. Send MENU to start, or tap the link: tezzu.in/store/biryani-box.

4. Cafe

Welcome to Daily Grind Cafe, Koramangala. Coffee, breakfast and sandwiches, 8 am to 10 pm daily. Order ahead for pickup and skip the queue: send PICKUP. For delivery within 3 km, send DELIVERY. We reply within a few minutes when the cafe is open.

5. Home bakery

Hi, thanks for reaching out to Anita's Bakes. Custom cakes, brownies and cookies, baked to order in Pune. Cakes need 48 hours notice; brownies and cookies can be ready next day. Send the occasion, date and number of people, and I will share options and prices within a couple of hours.

6. Tiffin service

Welcome to GharKaKhana Tiffins, home-style lunch and dinner delivered in Sector 15 to 22, Noida. Plans: daily, weekly and monthly, veg and non-veg. Send TRIAL for a one-day trial meal at ₹120, or PLANS to see the weekly menu and prices. We reply between 8 am and 8 pm.

7. Sweet shop

Thank you for contacting Mishra Sweets, Indore, since 1982. Mithai, namkeen and gift boxes for delivery across the city and courier across India. Send MENU for today's list, or GIFT for box options. Bulk and festival orders need 2 days notice. We reply within 15 minutes, 9 am to 9 pm.

8. Outside opening hours

Hi, this is Sharma Kitchen. We are closed right now and open at 11 am. You can see the menu any time at tezzu.in/store/sharma-kitchen and place an order for later. We will confirm it as soon as we open.

Set this as the away message rather than the greeting, so it only goes out when you are closed. The 30 auto reply messages for food businesses post has more away message versions.

9. Festival pre-orders

Welcome to Mishra Sweets. Diwali pre-orders are open until 28 October. Gift boxes from ₹450, delivery on 30 and 31 October. Send DIWALI for the box list, or MENU for the regular menu. Pre-orders need 50 percent advance by UPI.

10. First-order offer

Hi, welcome to Biryani Box. New customers get ₹50 off the first order with code FIRST50, valid on orders above ₹299. Send MENU to see what is cooking today. We deliver 11 am to midnight within 5 km.

11. Multiple outlets

Thanks for messaging Courtyard Grill. We have outlets in Indiranagar, HSR Layout and Whitefield. Share your location pin and we will route your order to the nearest kitchen. Send MENU to see the full menu, or BOOK for a table at any outlet.

12. Hinglish, for a neighbourhood audience

Namaste, Sharma Kitchen mein aapka swagat hai. Hum 11 baje se raat 11 baje tak Vijay Nagar ke 6 km mein deliver karte hain. Menu dekhne ke liye MENU bhejein. Order ke liye item, quantity aur address bhejein. 10 minute mein reply milega.

How to set a greeting message in the WhatsApp Business app

1. Open the app and go to Business tools, then Greeting message.
2. Turn on Send greeting message.
3. Tap the message to edit it. Paste one of the examples above and change the names, hours and links.
4. Under Recipients, choose Everyone for a restaurant. The other options (everyone not in your address book, or specific contacts) are for personal use of the number.
5. Save. Test by asking a friend who has never messaged the number to send "Hi".

Set up the away message and a few quick replies at the same time, in the same Business tools screen. Together they handle the first three messages of most conversations without a person. On the WhatsApp Business API, the greeting is configured in your platform's dashboard and can include buttons such as Order now and View menu, which is what the app vs API comparison describes.

Greeting message mistakes

• No next step. "Thanks for contacting us, how can we help?" makes the customer do the work. Give them the menu or a word to send.
• Stale information. A greeting that still says "Diwali orders open" in January tells customers nobody is looking after the number.
• Promising a reply time you cannot keep. "We reply instantly" followed by 40 minutes of silence loses the order and the trust.
• Treating the greeting as the whole system. The greeting says hello. Someone, or something, still has to take the order; the complete guide to WhatsApp ordering systems covers that part.

On the free app, that someone is a person with quick replies. On Tezzu, it is an ordering bot on the same number: the greeting carries buttons, the menu appears with variants and add-ons, the address and delivery charge are collected automatically, and payment is UPI or card through Razorpay or cash on delivery, in Hindi or English. Orders land in a live dashboard and on the staff app, at ₹10 per order with no commission. The setup walkthrough shows the greeting and first order in about 15 minutes.

Frequently asked questions

What is a good greeting message for a WhatsApp Business restaurant account?

One that names the restaurant, gives the customer a next step (a menu link or a word to send), states hours and delivery area, and sets a realistic reply time, all within about 50 words. For example: "Welcome to Sharma Kitchen, delivering within 6 km, 11 am to 11 pm. Send MENU to see today's menu and order. A team member replies within 10 minutes."

When does WhatsApp Business send the greeting message?

The app sends it automatically when a customer messages you for the first time, and again when a customer messages after 14 days of no conversation. It does not send on every message and is not sent to people you message first. The away message is separate and goes out only during the hours you set as closed.

Can the greeting message include a link to my menu?

Yes. Paste the full link in the message text and WhatsApp makes it tappable. Use a link that opens well on a phone, such as a store page or web menu, rather than a PDF hosted on a drive. If you are on the WhatsApp Business API, the greeting can also carry buttons that open the menu directly inside the chat.

Should the greeting be in English or Hindi?

In the language your customers message you in. Check your last fifty chats: if most open in Hindi or Hinglish, write the greeting that way. The goal is a fast reply from the customer, and that happens when they read the message without effort.