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

Other Texas honorees include Houston restaurateurs and married couple chef Hugo Ortega and Tracy Vaught, whose H-Town Restaurant Group (Hugo's, Xochi, et al) was named a semifinalist for Outstanding Restaurateur. —Matthew Odam, Austin American Statesman, 21 Jan. 2026

The announcement is broken up into several categories, including outstanding restaurateur, outstanding chef, outstanding restaurant, emerging chef, best new restaurant, outstanding bakery, regional awards, and more. —Austen Erblat, CBS News, 21 Jan. 2026

The James Beard Foundation on Wednesday released the list of chefs and restaurateurs who are semifinalists in the annual James Beard Awards, which celebrate the best restaurants, bakeries and bars in America. —Miguel Otárola, Denver Post, 21 Jan. 2026

Opened in 2022, The Laurel is not only a boutique stay, but a luxury teaching hotel designed from the start to train the next generation of hoteliers, restaurateurs, and culinary leaders with real-word, hands-on experience. —Melinda Salchert, Southern Living, 19 Jan. 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

Podcast

Get Word of the Day delivered to your inbox!

Kids Definition

restaurateur

noun

res·​tau·​ra·​teur ˌres-tə-rə-ˈtər 

variants also restauranteur

-ˌrän- 

: a person who owns or runs a restaurant