Send Your Menu by Instagram DM: A Guide for Restaurants

Every restaurant gets the same message under a reel: "menu?", "prices?", "where do I order?". Answering one by one eats your evening, and the person has often moved on by the time you reply. The fix is to send your menu by Instagram DM the moment someone comments a word like MENU. Here is how to set it up, what to put in the message and what to avoid.

Short answer: End your reel with "Comment MENU and I'll send it to you." An automation spots the word and replies privately with your menu, the day's offer and one button to order or book. Instagram allows one private reply per comment, within 7 days, for professional accounts. Keep the message short and put the link on a button.

Why send the menu by DM instead of a link in the bio?

A link in the bio asks a hungry person to leave the reel, open your profile, find the link and then pick the right page. Each step loses some of them. A DM puts the menu in their inbox within seconds, with the dish they just saw still fresh in their mind.

It also solves a problem that restaurants know well: menus change. A PDF pinned somewhere gets old, but a DM can point to the current menu page every time. You update one page and every future reply is correct. Our comparison of link in bio vs link in DM goes deeper on when each one wins.

• Fewer taps. The commenter gets the link without hunting for it.
• Always current. The button opens your live menu or ordering page, not an old file.
• A conversation starter. A DM can keep the chat open, so the guest can ask about allergies or a table afterwards.

What can a restaurant send in the first DM?

Think about what the person wants right now. Someone who commented MENU after a shawarma reel wants to see prices and order. Someone who saw a brunch reel may want to book a table. The first message should serve that moment and nothing else.

• The menu. A link to your online menu page, or the PDF hosted on your website. Hosted pages load faster and are easier to update.
• Today's offer. One line such as "Lunch combo until 4 pm." Offers feel personal in a DM and do not crowd the caption.
• The order or booking link. Your delivery page, your WhatsApp order link or your reservation page. Give the main action as a button.
• Your location and hours. One short line, or a link to the map. Do not paste a long address block.

You can attach up to two link buttons in DmReel, which suits a restaurant well: one for the menu, one for ordering or booking. Our article on sending links as a button shows why a button beats a pasted URL.

How do you set it up step by step?

• Switch to a professional account. Instagram only allows this for Business or Creator accounts. Our guide to switching to a professional account takes two minutes.
• Sign up and connect. Create a DmReel account with Google, email or Instagram and connect with Instagram's official login. It is free during early access and needs no card.
• Pick the reel. Choose it from your real reels with thumbnails, or set the automation for your next reel before you post, so the first comments get answered as well.
• Add trigger words. MENU, منيو, المنيو, قائمة. Matching works on whole words, ignores capital letters and understands Arabic spelling variations, so one automation covers English and Arabic.
• Write the DM and add buttons. Two or three lines and one or two link buttons. Keep it friendly and specific.
• Set a public reply. Optionally add short replies like "Check your DMs" in several variations, so the comment section does not look copy-pasted.
• Go live and test. Comment on your own reel from a second account. Check the message, the buttons and how it looks on a phone.

Start free

What should the DM say? Examples that work

Write it like the person at the counter would say it. Greet, deliver, offer one next step. Avoid the long welcome speech that nobody reads.

• Burger place, Riyadh. "Hi! Here is our full menu. Tonight: any two burgers and fries for one price. Order from the second button."
• Cafe, Cairo. "Welcome! The menu is on the first button. Want a table for the weekend? Use the second one."
• Bakery, Dubai. "Here is today's list, fresh from the oven. Reply with what you'd like and we will keep it for you."
• Arabic version. "أهلاً فيك! هذا المنيو الكامل. عرض اليوم: وجبتان بسعر واحد. اطلب من الزر الثاني."

Notice the last line of the bakery example: it invites a reply. A guest who answers opens the chat, and then you are allowed to follow up. Read more in our guide to how private replies work.

Which reels work best for a menu DM?

Any reel where the viewer thinks "I want that" and does not yet know how to get it. Close-ups of a dish, a drink being made, a behind-the-kitchen moment, a seasonal special. The call to action goes in the last seconds, spoken and written on screen.

• Dish close-ups. End with "Comment MENU and I'll send you the full list."
• New item launches. End with "Comment NEW for the price and the order link."
• Event or catering. End with "Comment EVENT and we will send the packages."
• Weekend brunch. End with "Comment TABLE and we will send the booking link."

Use a different word per reel when you can. It tells you which reels bring people in, and the person understands exactly what they will receive. More lines to try are in our list of reel call to action examples.

What mistakes should restaurants avoid?

• Long messages. A wall of text gets ignored. Menu on a button, one offer line, done.
• Broken or old links. Open your own buttons every week. A dead order link on a busy Friday costs real orders.
• Promising what you cannot deliver. Do not write "order now, ready in 10 minutes" if the kitchen cannot keep it.
• Asking for too much. Do not ask the guest for a phone number or a survey in the first DM.
• Forgetting the Arabic words. Add منيو and المنيو next to MENU. Your audience may comment in either language.

FAQ

Can I send the menu as a PDF? The safest way is a link or a button that opens your menu page or a PDF hosted on your website. DmReel sends text with up to two link buttons, so host the file and link to it. A web page also stays up to date when your prices change.

What if someone comments MENU five times? They get one DM per automation, not five. Even if a guest comments again and again, the inbox stays clean. That also protects you from looking like a spam bot to your own customers.

What happens when a reel gets many comments at once? Instagram sometimes slows down sending. When that happens, DmReel queues the messages and retries them, so a busy reel does not lose guests. Instagram's own rule still applies: each private reply must go out within 7 days of the comment.

Do guests need to follow me first? No. Meta's rules allow a private reply to someone who commented on your post or reel. The comment is the invitation, so no follow is needed. Messaging people who never contacted you stays off limits.

A menu DM is a small habit with a clear payoff: fewer repeated questions for your team and a faster path from craving to order. Start with your best-performing reel this week, pick one word, and see how many guests ask for the menu. If you run a shop as well, see our article on Instagram auto reply for small business.