Short answer. To check if AI recommends your restaurant, ask ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini and Perplexity what a diner would ask, such as "where should I eat Italian near Greenpoint on a Friday night?", with web search switched on and in a private window. Write down whether your restaurant is named, whether your address or website is given, and who is named instead.
Why restaurants should test this separately
Diners ask AI for places to eat, and the answer is a short list, not ten blue links. If you are not on the list, that diner may never see your name. A restaurant is also a local business, so the answer depends on where the question is asked from, and on listings that are specific to places, not just your own website.
The general method is in our guide how to check if AI recommends your business. This guide adds what is different for a restaurant.
Which sources decide a restaurant answer
For a restaurant, the AI is reading your own pages and also what other sites say about you. The pieces that are documented:
- Google. Google says that to appear in AI Overviews or AI Mode a page must be indexed and eligible to be shown in Search with a snippet, and that there are "no additional requirements" beyond that (Google Search Central). The same guide lists keeping your Merchant Center and Business Profile information up to date among its best practices. Adding or claiming a Business Profile costs nothing (Google Business Profile help).
- Bing. Microsoft says Copilot sends its web queries to the Bing search service (Microsoft Learn). Bing Places for Business is free, and guides describe an import from an existing Google Business Profile (ppc.land), which is secondhand, so confirm the steps on Bing's own site.
- ChatGPT. OpenAI says its search uses third-party search providers, and has not said how much comes from Bing or anyone else. A September 2026 investigation by Peec AI, a vendor in this field, reports that Yelp and Tripadvisor are licensed partners for local data (Peec AI). Peec labels some of its attributions unconfirmed, and OpenAI has not confirmed that one, so treat it as a lead and not a fact.
An older measurement points the other way. In a November 2024 test of 800 local searches in ChatGPT Search, BrightLocal found business websites made up 58% of the sources listed, and that Yelp and Google Maps did not appear as directory sources (BrightLocal). BrightLocal sells local SEO tools and called the result a snapshot. Together the two sources say the mix has changed and may differ by city and by question. The full table of what is confirmed is in which search engine each AI uses.
How to check, step by step
- Write eight questions a diner would type. Include the cuisine, the area and the occasion: "best place for a birthday dinner for eight in Leith", "where can I get vegan brunch near the station that takes bookings". Leave your name out.
- Add three questions that name you. "Is [your restaurant] open on Mondays?", "what is on the menu at [your restaurant]?", "does [your restaurant] take bookings?" These find wrong details.
- Use a private or signed-out window and set the location to where your diners are. OpenAI says ChatGPT may share your general location with its search providers (OpenAI help centre).
- Turn web search on in each AI. Source links in the answer are the sign that search ran.
- Ask each question three times on each AI and keep the answers.
- Record the result. For every run, write: named (yes or no), address or website given (yes or no), and the other restaurants named. Copy the pages the AI listed as sources.
- Ask once with search off. This is the memory check. If you appear only with search on, a diner can find you today, but the model does not remember you. The difference is explained in memory versus live search.
Reading what you find
| What you see | What it usually means | What to look at |
|---|---|---|
| Named, with address | The AI found you and trusts the details | Check hours and menu are right |
| Named, wrong hours or menu | It read an out-of-date page | Open the source page it listed and correct it there |
| Not named; competitors named | Your pages are missing from what it read | Open the listed sources: those are the pages that won |
| Named by one AI only | Each AI reads a different index | Check you are in Google, Bing and the review sites diners use |
| Only found when asked by name | The AI knows you exist but does not choose you | Compare how competitors are described in the sources |
The sources an AI lists are the most useful part of the test. They are the actual pages it read to answer. If a food guide, a local news list or a review site names your competitors and not you, that page is where you are missing.
Menus, hours and crawlers
Put your menu, hours and address on your site as text, not only in a PDF or an image, because an AI reads text. Then open yourrestaurant.com/robots.txt and make sure none of the AI crawlers is blocked by mistake. OpenAI says a site that opts out of OAI-SearchBot will not appear in ChatGPT search answers (OpenAI), and Perplexity says to allow PerplexityBot to appear in its results (Perplexity).
Why one test is not enough
The same question can return different restaurants on the next run, and the list shifts from week to week. Check monthly, and after you change your menu or move. Our guide on why AI answers change every time explains why.
Or have it done every morning
aipozi asks the questions you choose on ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini and Perplexity every morning with live search on, and shows whether your restaurant was named, whether your address was given, and who was recommended instead.
Frequently asked questions
Can I check if AI recommends my restaurant for free? Yes. ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini and Perplexity all have free versions. Ask each the questions a diner would type, with web search on, and write down whether your restaurant is named. Free plans may limit daily searches, so spread the four AIs across separate sittings.
Why does Gemini name my restaurant but ChatGPT does not? Each AI reads a different search source. Google says its AI features draw on pages indexed in Google Search, and Gemini grounding uses Google's index (Google). ChatGPT draws on several providers, and OpenAI has not said how much comes from any one of them. Being found in one does not mean being found in the others.
Should I ask for my restaurant by name? Do both, but separately. Asking by name tells you what the AI says about you, including wrong hours or a wrong menu. Asking without your name, the way a stranger would, tells you whether it recommends you. The second test is the one that matters for new diners.
How many times should I repeat each question? At least three times per AI, because the same question can return different restaurants. Count how many of the three answers include you instead of relying on one run.
What should I fix first if no AI names my restaurant? Start with the basics every source reads: a claimed and accurate Google Business Profile, a claimed Bing Places listing, and a website with the menu, hours and address as plain text. Then check that the AI crawlers are not blocked in robots.txt. The next steps are in how to get recommended by ChatGPT.