Holiday menu and December hours: get them online
In December, guests look for three things: your holiday menu, your hours on 24, 25 and 31 December, and whether there is still room. Publish the menu in your online menu, set special hours on your Google profile and block closed days in your booking tool. Up-to-date information everywhere avoids pointless calls and guests in front of a closed door.
Why mistakes cost the most this month
In December, routines change: closed on 25 December and 1 January, shifted services, special menus. A guest who sees “open” on Google on a day you are closed may not come back. A holiday menu nobody can find means a table booked elsewhere.
Guests look in four places:
| Where | What they check | What to update |
|---|---|---|
| Google profile | Hours, photos, website link | Special hours, a “Holiday menu” post |
| Your website | Menu, hours, booking button | ”Holiday menu” section, hours |
| QR code on tables | Today’s menu | Nothing: it points to the online menu |
| Booking | Available time slots | Exceptional closures |
Step 1: publish the holiday menu online
Add a “Holiday menu” (or “Christmas menu”) section at the top of your online menu, with:
- each dish and a short description;
- the price per person, and the dates it is served;
- a photo if you have one: a holiday dish in a picture is more tempting than a list.
With Resto1Click, the change shows straight away on your website and on the menu page opened by the QR code. No reprinting: the same QR code shows the new menu (see our QR code menu guide).
Over the holidays you can mark dishes you don’t serve as unavailable instead of deleting them, and switch them back in January.
The Resto1Click free plan limits the menu to 10 dishes; with a holiday menu on top of your regular one, the Pro plan (EUR 19/month excl. VAT) removes that limit and lets you download the QR code in high resolution for your tables.
Step 2: set special hours on Google
This is where most people check opening hours. Google has a dedicated setting that leaves your regular hours untouched (Google help: set special opening hours):
- open your Google Business Profile;
- go to Hours, then Special hours;
- pick the date (Google suggests public holidays) or add it;
- set open with your hours, or closed;
- save.
Do it for 24, 25 and 31 December and 1 January, even if your hours don’t change on that day: guests then see confirmed hours for those dates.
While you are there, publish a post “Holiday menu” with a photo and the link to your online menu (see our Google Business Profile checklist).
Step 3: update the hours on your website
If your hours change for a whole week (annual closure, shifted services), change them on your website for that period, then restore your regular hours in January. In Resto1Click: My site → Opening hours.
For a single closed day on 25 December or 1 January, your Google profile (step 2) and your booking tool (step 4) are enough: those are what guests check for a specific date.
Step 4: block closed days in your booking tool
A closed day must not show as bookable. With Resto1Click booking (Pro+ plan), add an exceptional closure for each date: no online booking is offered that day, even if your regular hours say you are open. You can also close only part of a day, for example lunch on 31 December.
For the holiday evenings themselves, see our guide to Christmas and New Year’s Eve bookings without no-shows.
Step 5: tell your regulars
A social media post and a notice in the restaurant in early December are enough: closing dates, holiday menu, booking link. Guests who know you book before looking elsewhere.
December checklist
- “Holiday menu” section published in the online menu, with price and dates
- Dishes not served marked unavailable (switch back in January)
- Special hours for 24, 25, 31 December and 1 January on your Google profile
- Google “Holiday menu” post with photo and link
- Website hours adjusted if a whole week changes
- Exceptional closures added in your booking tool
- Post and notice for your regulars
FAQ
How do I set Christmas opening hours on Google?
In your Google Business Profile, under Hours, use special hours: pick the date, set open or closed, then save.
Where should a restaurant publish its holiday menu?
In your online menu, under a dedicated section. The same link works for the QR code, your Google profile and your social accounts.
Should we remove the regular menu over the holidays?
Not necessarily: add the holiday menu at the top and mark the dishes you don’t serve as unavailable.
How do we stop bookings on a day we are closed?
Add that day as an exceptional closure in your booking tool.
Your menu, hours and bookings, up to date in one place.
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