Quick Pitch: LetsEat.at is a free website builder made specifically for smaller family owned restaurants that can't afford professional web design services.
Genius Idea: Let's face it: if you're a local business, it's almost a necessity to have a web presence to stay competitive. Nearly every consumer's first instinct is to Google your business for reviews, menus, and information. Yet many local restaurants still don't have a website, leaving their fate to reviewers on sites like Yelp. A few bad reviews could literally mean the difference between a thriving business or closing up shop. LetsEat.at combats this by giving these eateries their own web presence with little hassle and little to no cost.
The service, simply put, creates a functional restaurant web page without the need for a web designer or a programmer. Instead, you just have to go through a step-by-step process to get a website up. You start by picking your restaurant name, your letseat.at URL, and the package you want - basic and and advanced are free (but ad-supported), while pro costs $5 per month. After that, you can perform a variety of tasks, like writing introductions to your restaurant, uploading logos, posting menus, and providing driving directions.
Each of these tasks is designed to be very basic and simple to perform. Adding menu items, for example, just requires adding a name, though you probably want to add a description and a price as well. You can choose everything from theme customization to background images, and you can even get a custom domain if you follow LetsEat.at's instructions on the matter. The web tool also integrates with OpenTable for taking in reservations.
After about 10 minutes, I was able to build this with little difficulty. The layouts are basic, and almost blog-like, but they do indeed get the job done. If you want more detailed customization with HTML and CSS, you need to buy a pro account, though we don't know why you wouldn't just build your own website if you want to have that type of front-end experience. One very nice thing that this tool can do, though: build you a mobile-friendly version of your website.
LetsEat.at is a simple but comprehensive service for the average restaurant owner or manager that might not have a lot of tech savvy but wants a usable website for their business. We believe that it's great for the local restaurant that's been in need of a website for way too long, although we have to wonder just how much demand still exists for this market.
Sponsored by Microsoft BizSpark
BizSpark is a startup program that gives you three-year access to the latest Microsoft development tools, as well as connecting you to a nationwide network of investors and incubators. There are no upfront costs, so if your business is privately owned, less than three years old, and generates less than U.S.$1 million in annual revenue, you can sign up today.