5 Creative Ideas to Promote Thanksgiving Catering at Your Restaurant
We’re onto one of the best times of the year for restaurants: Thanksgiving! It’s a season filled with gatherings, gratitude, and fantastic food.
For restaurant owners, this holiday is a golden opportunity. Many families are looking to enjoy a high-quality feast without the days of stress, shopping, and prep. This is your moment to step in. Offering pick-up or drop-off catering—even if you’re closed on Thanksgiving Day—can capture a significant revenue stream and introduce your restaurant to new, loyal customers.
But how do you stand out? We’ve gathered five creative ideas, inspired by successful restaurants, to help you market your Thanksgiving offerings. Additionally, we’ll demonstrate how a direct booking tool like TripleseatDirect can streamline and enhance the holiday rush management process, making it both smooth and profitable.
1. Support the Local Community (and Build Loyalty)
Thanksgiving is about gratitude. Show yours by giving back to the community while enhancing your holiday offerings.
Easy Entertaining in Rhode Island does this beautifully with its Thanksgiving “Give a Meal” partnership with Amos House, providing holiday meals for food-insecure families. With each sponsored meal, their team prepares and delivers a warm Thanksgiving meal to those in need. This not only supports a great cause but also builds a deep, positive connection with customers.
- How TripleseatDirect Helps: You can “Make giving back easy by adding a ‘Donate a Meal’ item directly to your online order form, which is simple to set up with a tool like TripleseatDirect.”
Your Action Plan:
- Partner Up: Contact a local food pantry, shelter, or community center. Ask if you can support them with donated meals.
- Add the Option: Add a “Donate a. Thanksgiving Meal: $XX” as an add-on item to your online catering menu.
- Share the Story: Post about your partnership on social media. Customers are more likely to support a business that shares their values.
2. Promote Your Thanksgiving Offering on Every Platform
Your amazing menu won’t sell itself. Visibility is key to ensuring customers see your offer wherever they are.
Rodney Scott’s Whole Hog BBQ masters this by featuring its Thanksgiving catering prominently on its homepage with a direct link to pre-order. Their Linktree on social media also has a straightforward “Book your Thanksgiving Meal with us” option, keeping their offer accessible at every customer touchpoint.
Your Action Plan:
- Website: Add a “Thanksgiving Pre-Order Now” banner or pop-up to your homepage that links directly to your order form.
- Email: Send a short, enticing email to your subscriber list with your menu, the pre-order deadline, and a single, clear “Order Now” button.
- Social: Post your most “mouth-watering” Thanksgiving dish (the turkey, a signature side, a beautiful pie) on Instagram and put the order link directly in your bio.
3. Design a Creative, Must-Try Menu
While many crave the classics, a unique twist can make your menu the talk of the town. Industry Kitchen in NYC offers its popular Thanksgiving Pizza, which combines turkey, orange-cranberry sauce, stuffing, and smoked almonds. It’s a playful, delicious take on holiday staples. Alongside it, they offer a classic dinner plate, giving customers the flexibility to choose between novel and traditional.
- How TripleseatDirect Helps: “Easily add and remove seasonal specials—like a ‘Thanksgiving Pizza’—from your online catering menu without needing a web developer.”
Your Action Plan:
- Brainstorm One “Wow” Item: You don’t need a whole new menu. What’s one creative dish you can add? (e.g., Smoked Turkey Legs, Bourbon-Pecan Pie, Butternut Squash Lasagna).
- Create a “Hero” Photo: Get one fantastic photo of that item. This will be your star for social media.
- Feature It: Make this item the “Hero” on your catering menu and in your email promotion.
4. Offer Limited-Time Holiday Specials to Drive Urgency
Seasonal specials create excitement and scarcity, encouraging customers to book now before they miss out.
Maggiano’s Little Italy excels at this by promoting its limited-time fall menu, featuring cozy dishes like roasted butternut squash and seasonal pastas. By combining mouth-watering visuals with easy online ordering, they appeal to diners seeking comforting, family-style meals.
- How TripleseatDirect Helps: “Drive urgency by having your direct booking form automatically close on a specific pre-order deadline. Set it and forget it.”
Your Action Plan:
- Set a Hard Deadline: Decide on your pre-order cut-off date (e.g., “All orders must be in by the Friday before Thanksgiving”).
- Communicate the Deadline: Put this deadline everywhere—on the menu, on the social post, and in the email.
- Offer an Early-Bird Bonus: To drive even more urgency, try offering a small bonus (like a free dessert or $10 off) for orders placed by a specific early date.
5. Streamline Everything with a Direct Booking Platform
All these great ideas can create a lot of new business—and a lot of new headaches if you’re stuck managing orders via phone and email.
Whether you’re sticking with traditional fare or introducing something new, a direct booking platform like TripleseatDirect simplifies the entire process. By integrating a direct booking tool into your website, guests can easily book catering 24/7. They can choose their menu options, add a donated meal, process their payment, and complete the booking online, making the experience smooth for them and incredibly efficient for you.
Check out how Whiskey Cake uses a TripleseatDirect form. Their customers can easily order a full Thanksgiving Meal Kit for pickup in just a few clicks.
This setup is invaluable during the busy holiday season, ensuring you get the revenue without the chaos.
Share the Holiday Spirit (and Your Success!)
As you move through this holiday season, we’re eager to see what creative strategies you’re using! What’s your restaurant’s go-to Thanksgiving promotion? Or which of these ideas are you planning to try first?
To learn more about how Tripleseat and TripleseatDirect can help you do more than just manage holiday catering, set up a demo today. Let’s make this Thanksgiving one to remember—for both your customers and your bottom line.
