restaurant

noun

res·​tau·​rant ˈre-stə-ˌränt 

-stränt

also -st(ə-)rənt, 

-stərnt

: a business establishment where meals or refreshments may be purchased

Synonyms of restaurant

• diner
• grill
• cafeteria

Examples of restaurant in a Sentence

when we get sick of cooking dinner at home, we like to go out to eat at a nice restaurant

Recent Examples on the Web

Thomas named the restaurant after his 8-year-old daughter. —Arizona Republic, AZCentral.com, 15 Nov. 2025

Business has been down 70%, restaurant manager Francisco Valle said, since news broke that Charlotte would become the next target for Border Patrol agents after their months-long stint in Chicago. —Briah Lumpkins, Charlotte Observer, 15 Nov. 2025

For 36 years however, at Davé, a Chinese restaurant on Rue Saint-Roch in Paris’s 1st Arrondissement, Polaroids of beloved guests were less a marketing tactic than a key feature of the building’s interior, framed and affixed to any available wall space. —Zoe Whitfield, CNN Money, 15 Nov. 2025

Thanksgiving lunch and dinner reservations can be made on the restaurant’s website. —Camila Pedrosa, Sacbee.com, 15 Nov. 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from French, "restorative food or drink, public establishment where food and drink may be purchased," noun derivative from present participle of restaurer "to repair, refresh, renew," going back to Old French restorer, restaurer — more at restore

First Known Use

1806, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing restaurant

• Chinese restaurant syndrome
• restaurant car

Rhymes for restaurant

• commandant
• confidant
• conodont
• debutante
• nonchalant
• avant
• croissant
• detente
• entente
• savant
• storefront
• daunt

Kids Definition

restaurant

noun

res·​tau·​rant ˈres-t(ə-)rənt 

-tə-ˌränt

: a business place where meals or refreshments may be bought

Etymology

from French restaurant "food that restores, restaurant," from restaurer "to restore, renew"