SMS Marketing for Restaurants: 10DLC, Opt-In and Your First Text

Short answer: SMS marketing for restaurants starts with registering the number you'll text from, through 10DLC registration for a local number or verification for a toll-free one, and then collecting written consent before anyone gets a marketing text. Once that's done, a welcome text and one simple offer sent in your first week will show you quickly whether your guests respond.

Most guides on SMS marketing for restaurants start with clever copy. The copy matters, but it comes last. Before your first message goes out, the phone carriers want to know who you are, and federal law wants proof that each guest asked to hear from you.

This guide walks through those steps in order, then gives you a first campaign you can send in week one, with the actual words included. It's written for independent owners in Houston who don't have a marketing department and don't want one.

How do restaurants start text message marketing?

Restaurants start text message marketing by choosing a texting platform, registering the number it sends from, giving guests a clear way to opt in, and sending a welcome text to everyone who joins. That's the whole setup. The order matters, because carriers expect the sending number to be registered before marketing messages go out.

Here is the sequence we follow with clients:

1. Choose where the texts come from. Many point-of-sale systems now include texting. Toast, for example, has SMS Marketing built in. A standalone texting tool works too.
2. Register the sending number. A local number goes through 10DLC registration. A toll-free number goes through its own verification.
3. Set up opt-in. A sign at the counter, a QR code on the table, an unchecked box in your online ordering flow.
4. Write the welcome text. It goes out automatically the moment someone joins.
5. Send your first campaign. One offer, one night, one clear reason to come in.

There is real interest on the guest side. In a February 2024 blind survey of 1,571 US restaurant guests, Toast found that 57% were extremely or somewhat interested in hearing from their favorite restaurants by text. That's a lot of people who would say yes if someone at the counter simply asked.

What is 10DLC registration, and do I need it?

10DLC registration is how the major US carriers approve businesses that send texts from a regular local phone number, and you need it if that's how you plan to text guests. The name stands for "10-digit long code," which is just a normal phone number with an area code.

According to Quo's 2026 guide, AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile all require A2P 10DLC registration for businesses texting from a local 10-digit number. "A2P" means application-to-person: a business sending messages through software, as opposed to you texting a friend from your own phone.

How long does 10DLC registration take?

The form is quick, and the approval takes longer. Quo says registration goes through The Campaign Registry, takes about 10 to 15 minutes to fill out, and that most businesses are approved within 5 to 7 business days. Plan for that gap. If you want to promote a Friday event by text, start the registration well before that week.

Your texting platform will usually walk you through the form. Have your legal business details handy, and describe honestly what you plan to send, such as specials and event announcements.

Do I need 10DLC if my POS gives me a toll-free number?

Usually not, because toll-free numbers go through their own verification instead of 10DLC. Toast's help center says that when a restaurant turns on Toast's SMS Marketing, Toast registers a dedicated, verified toll-free number for it, and guests join by texting JOIN to that number. If your system works this way, much of the registration step is handled for you.

So, to the question owners ask us most: do you really need to register just to text your regulars? If you're sending marketing texts from a local number through software, yes. If your platform uses a verified toll-free number, that verification takes its place. Either way, ask your provider which kind of number you're getting and who handles the paperwork.

How do I get guests to opt in to texts legally?

You get guests to opt in legally by asking clearly, getting their written consent before you send any marketing text, and making it easy for them to stop. According to ActiveProspect, a compliance software company, the TCPA generally requires prior express written consent for marketing texts and requires you to honor requests to stop.

TCPA is the Telephone Consumer Protection Act. Toast's SMS Marketing FAQ warns that texting guests who haven't opted in may violate it, which could lead to lawsuits, statutory penalties and damages. Toast also notes that high unsubscribe rates can cause problems of their own.

Consent is the foundation of SMS marketing for restaurants, and it's the part of restaurant text message marketing worth getting right from the start. Nothing here is legal advice, and a short conversation with your attorney before launch is a good idea.

What does a good restaurant SMS opt-in look like?

A good restaurant SMS opt-in is something the guest does themselves, with the terms right in front of them. Texting a keyword like JOIN to your number is the cleanest version, because the guest starts the conversation. A form in your online ordering checkout can work too. We recommend leaving the box unchecked and saying plainly that guests will receive marketing texts.

Toast's own guidance is to put up a sign or QR code and train staff to promote the program. Good places to ask:

• At the counter or host stand. A small sign with the QR code and the keyword.
• On the table. A tent card next to the hot sauce.
• On the to-go bag. A sticker with the keyword.
• In your ordering flow. An unchecked box with clear wording.

The staff part is what makes it work. A sign on its own gets ignored. A cashier who mentions the list while handing back a card gets sign-ups.

Picture a taqueria in the Heights that puts the keyword on the menu board above the register, right where every guest looks while they decide what to order. That's free placement in the one spot nobody skips.

Can I text guests whose numbers came from reservations or online orders?

Not for marketing, unless they also agreed to receive marketing texts. A number given to confirm a reservation or a pickup order was shared for that purpose. Under the written-consent standard ActiveProspect describes, you need a separate, clear yes before sending promotions. The fix is simple: add an opt-in checkbox to your reservation and ordering forms going forward.

How often can a restaurant text guests?

Most guests are comfortable hearing from a business about every other week, and once a week is a sensible upper limit. SimpleTexting's 2026 statistics report found that 50% of SMS subscribers prefer texts from a business once every other week, and 37% prefer once a week. That survey covers all industries, not just restaurants, but the logic holds: people joined for something good, not something constant.

For SMS marketing for restaurants, every other week is a reasonable default, with an extra text when you have real news like a new dish or an event.

Timing has rules too. According to ActiveProspect, the TCPA bars texts before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m. in the recipient's time zone, and many states set stricter hours. ActiveProspect also says breaking the calling-hours rules can bring fines of up to $500 per violation, or $1,500 for willful violations.

One honest caveat: whether those quiet hours apply to texts sent with consent is still being argued. The National Law Review reports that the FCC has asked for public comment on the question while lawsuits continue. Until it's settled, treat the window as firm. For a restaurant it rarely costs anything, since the best time to text about dinner is the afternoon anyway.

How many texts a month is too many? There isn't a fixed line, so watch your opt-out count after every send. If a lot of people leave after one message, that message or that frequency was the problem.

What should the first text say?

The first text should confirm the sign-up, tell guests what to expect, and show them how to stop. After that, your first campaign should give one reason to come in on one specific night. The first text is where SMS marketing for restaurants either earns trust or loses it, so keep it short and useful.

Here are restaurant SMS examples you can adapt, written for a Houston spot with a slow weeknight it wants to fill.

The welcome text (sent automatically on sign-up)

[Restaurant name]: You're on the list. We'll text about every other week with specials and first word on new menu items. Reply STOP to opt out.

It names the restaurant so nobody wonders who's texting, sets expectations on frequency, and includes the opt-out.

The first campaign (week one, sent mid-afternoon)

[Restaurant name]: Thanks for joining our list. Show this text tonight and get [free item] with any entree. It's our thank-you for signing up. Reply STOP to opt out.

Pick your slowest weeknight and send in the afternoon, before people decide on dinner. Choose something that costs you little and feels generous, like chips and queso, a side or a dessert. Then have staff count how many guests show the text. That count is your first real evidence of whether texting works for your room.

The lapsed guest text (set up once, runs on its own)

[Restaurant name]: It's been a while and we've missed you. [New dish] just went on the menu. Come by this week, show this text, and the first one's on us. Reply STOP to opt out.

A lapsed guest text works best as an automated message that goes out when someone hasn't visited or ordered in a while. Klaviyo's 2026 benchmarks, based on more than 183,000 customers, put a good click-through rate at 9.65% for automated messages compared with 5.6% for one-off campaigns. Klaviyo's data also shows automated flows made up only 7.6% of sends but drove 45.2% of SMS revenue. Those customers are mostly ecommerce brands, not restaurants, so treat the numbers as direction rather than a forecast.

Is SMS better than email for a restaurant?

SMS is better for short, time-sensitive offers, and email is better for anything longer, so most restaurants do best with both. A text about tonight's special gets seen tonight. A newsletter about the new season's menu, with photos and the story behind a dish, belongs in email.

Reach is rarely the issue. According to Pew Research Center, as of June 2025, 98% of US adults own a cellphone and 91% own a smartphone, so nearly every guest can receive a text.

Judge texts by what you can actually count: clicks, redemptions at the counter and opt-outs. Those tell you more than any industry average.

Is texting worth paying for if you already send an email newsletter? If you have nights that need filling, usually yes, because the two do different jobs. Email keeps people informed. Texts move people on a specific day. Good SMS marketing for restaurants doesn't replace email, it handles the urgent messages email is too slow for.

That's how we run email and SMS marketing for clients: we build the list at the counter and in the ordering flow, then use it to fill the nights that need filling.

Why does a guest list matter more than any single text?

A guest list matters because it's a marketing asset you own, and it grows every time someone joins. Social followers see you when a platform decides to show you. A text list reaches the people who asked to hear from you.

Yoyo's Hotdog is the Houston example we point to. Yoyo's was the place you lined up for after a night out, and that reputation kept the lights on but stopped bringing new people in. We rebuilt the brand, the content and the loyalty program around a menu that never changed. According to our Yoyo's Hotdog case study, the results were 229% sales growth in year one and 38,000 loyalty members from zero. You can read how it came together in the Yoyo's Hotdog case study.

The lesson isn't that a list alone did that. It's that a list of people who want to hear from you gives every other piece of marketing somewhere to land. Social content brings people in once, and the list brings them back. If you're working on the social side as well, our guide to social media marketing for bars covers what to post and how often.

That's what SMS marketing for restaurants is really for: turning one good visit into the next one.

How can we help you send your first text?

The easiest way to start is a demo shoot. We spend two hours filming at your restaurant, and three days later you get a reel, ten photos and a written plan. You keep the content either way.

If you'd like a hand with registration, opt-in signs and that first campaign, we can talk it through when we visit. Book your demo shoot.