Finding a restaurant to eat at used to be pretty simple. You might ask a friend where they like to eat, search for something nearby, or just go to a restaurant you are familiar with. Now, finding something to eat is more like an activity with social media today. Nowadays, I’m always discovering new restaurants I want to try when I go on TikTok or Instagram. One example is CasaTK, a cafe I discovered on TikTok. I haven’t had the chance to visit the cafe yet, but coming across it introduced me to another place I would like to try eventually. This isn’t just something I have noticed personally. Social media has also become an important way for Gen Z to find restaurant recommendations and decide where they want to eat. According to TouchBistro’s 2025 U.S. Diner Trends Report, 67% of Gen Z have used social media to decide which restaurant reviews. The report also found that 55% use Instagram for restaurant reviews, while 44% use TikTok. Instead of searching through a list of restaurants on Google, you can now watch videos of people actually eating at restaurants and see what the food looks like before deciding where you would want to get to eat.
I’ve noticed this even in my own experience, especially when it comes to me finding breakfast spots and cafes. Since those are my favorite places to visit and go enjoy food and drinks, I often come across TikTok and Instagram videos featuring lots of different cafes, breakfast dishes, and drinks that immediately catches my attention. There have been plenty of times where I’ve saved videos of cafes or particular dishes because I want to try it myself later on. Sometimes, seeing the beauty of a place or how a dish is presented makes me want to add it to my list of restaurants to try out. Even if I wasn’t originally planning to go out to eat, a video can introduce me to somewhere new that I wouldn’t have known about otherwise.
TikTok has become a place to find food.
TikTok has made it very easy to discover new restaurants and food items to try. There is even a new trend all over TikTok where you can search “lunch in my city” or “breakfast in my city” to find a restaurant that is located where you live. This is what makes finding new restaurants so much easier and fun now. Instead of just looking at menus or searching for nearby restaurants, viewers get to see someone else’s experience, including what the food looks like and what they ordered. I especially enjoy coming across videos of breakfast spots and cafes because those are some of my favorite places to visit.When a place catches my attention, I sometimes save the video so I can look back at it when I’m deciding where to go. One TikTok is all it takes for me to add a new restaurant I would like to try eventually.
You can find your next meal before you’re even hungry.
The interesting part is that you do not always have to be looking for a restaurant because you are already hungry. Sometimes, you’re just scrolling through TikTok and a video of a restaurant just pops up on your for you page. It can catch your attention and will make you want to save the video to look back and you will plan a trip to go. You might see someone trying a new breakfast spot, showing their lunch, or even just recommending the best places to eat in your city. These videos can encourage people to explore new places and make going out to watch even more exciting. I’ve experienced this myself when coming across restaurant videos that introduce me to places I didn’t previously consider visiting. Social media can turn a random video you see into your next lunch date or dinner plans with friends.
The food has to be worth posting.
I think part of the reason restaurant discovery has become so much fun is because people are looking for more than just the typical places we would go and eat at. They want somewhere that doesn’t only have good food, but also a fun environment and something different so that the experience can be memorable and worth sharing with everyone. A restaurant can catch your attention because of a dish you have never seen before, a cute interior, a popular menu item, or even the way someone on social media talks about their experience there. It makes you want to see the restaurant for yourself and decide on your own if it’s as good as it looks and what lots online say it is. People are not just picking somewhere to eat, they are finding somewhere to have a new experience and enjoy themselves.