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Negative keywords for restaurants. Diners, not recipe readers.

Food searches are mostly about cooking at home. This list blocks recipes, jobs and cooking schools so a restaurant's budget reaches people looking for a table or an order.

  • 25 negatives for this industry, plus the general groups.
Searches your business never sells to
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Your list

25 negative keywords

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  • "calories"
  • "chef course"
  • "chef courses"
  • "chef job"
  • "chef jobs"
  • "cooking class"
  • "cooking classes"
  • "cooking video"
  • "cooking videos"
  • "culinary school"
  • "culinary schools"
  • "frozen meal"
  • "frozen meals"
  • "how to make"
  • "ingredients"
  • "kitchen porter"
  • "line cook salary"
  • "ready meal"
  • "ready meals"
  • "recipe"
  • "recipes"
  • "restaurant hiring"
  • "supermarket"
  • "waiter job"
  • "waiter jobs"

Check the list against your business before pasting it. Never add a negative for a search that has converted.

Oppy reads your own search terms every week and proposes the negatives your account needs, for your approval.Try it on your account

Why these searches cost you

Dish names are searched far more by home cooks than by diners. A broad keyword like pizza can spend most of its budget on recipe readers.

Delivery app brand searches are a separate decision: some restaurants want them blocked, others sell through those apps.

Words to check before you block them

These look like waste on most accounts. On some of yours they may be customers, so read your search terms before adding them.

near me, open now
The strongest diner signals. Never block them.
delivery, takeaway
Keep if you deliver or offer takeaway.
menu, prices
People deciding where to eat. Keep them.

How to use the list

Add the list to a shared negative keyword list and attach it to every Search, Shopping and Performance Max campaign. Phrase match is a safe default for single words.

Negatives do not match close variants, so the generator adds the plurals. Never add a negative for a search that has converted in the last year.

Then read your own search terms every week at first. A starting list catches the common cases; your report shows the ones that are yours.

Questions, answered.

Anything else? Ask Oppy in the product, or write to the team.

What negative keywords should a restaurant use?

Recipes and cooking, restaurant jobs, cooking schools and supermarket food like frozen or ready meals. Keep near me, open now and menu searches.

Should restaurants block delivery app names?

Only if you do not sell through them. If you do, those searches can bring orders.

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