restaurateur

noun

res·​tau·​ra·​teur ˌre-stə-rə-ˈtər 

variants or less commonly restauranteur

ˌre-stə-ˌrän-ˈtər 

: the operator or proprietor of a restaurant

Did you know?

Restaurateur Has French Roots

Restaurateur and restaurant are French words from Latin restaurare, meaning "to restore." Of the two words, restaurant is more common—a fact that may have influenced the development of the variant spelling restauranteur for restaurateur. Some people consider restauranteur to be an error, but it is still on the menu as an acceptable word choice.

Examples of restaurateur in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

That’s more than fair on the part of the restaurateurs. —The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 16 Mar. 2026

On Monday, local restaurateur David Grutman posted a few Instagram snaps from his home in Miami Beach with the action star. —Madeleine Marr, Miami Herald, 12 Mar. 2026

With their freewheeling approach, the two joined a wave of young restaurateurs introducing diners to new visions of South Asian cooking. —Elazar Sontag, Washington Post, 12 Mar. 2026

Padró, a restaurateur who recently stepped down as CCG’s CEO, said the concepts are closing because of personal reasons involving De Souza and Younggreen, who operated the businesses. —Max Scheinblum, Denver Post, 11 Mar. 2026

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from French, "restorer, proprietor of a restaurant," going back to Middle French, "restorer," borrowed from Latin restaurātor, from restaurāre "to return to its former condition, restore" + -tor, agent suffix

First Known Use

1796, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for restaurateur

• entrepreneur
• amateur
• connoisseur
• kieselguhr
• monseigneur
• procureur
• retransfer
• saboteur
• silencer
• voyageur
• birr
• blur

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Kids Definition

restaurateur

noun

res·​tau·​ra·​teur ˌres-tə-rə-ˈtər 

variants also restauranteur

-ˌrän- 

: a person who owns or runs a restaurant