3D Tours, Google Maps 360°, Photos, Video & Aerial Media for Restaurants
Updated: Oct 29
A restaurant's food matters, but so does the experience of being there.
Before choosing where to eat, people may want to understand the dining room, bar, patio, views, atmosphere, private-event spaces, parking, entrances, or overall layout.
Conventional photography can show beautiful individual features. Matterport 3D tours, Google Maps 360° imagery, photography, video, and aerial media can help people understand the restaurant itself.
I create these types of media using professional equipment, including the Matterport Pro3, conventional photography and video equipment, 360° cameras, and drones where permitted.
For restaurant owners and managers considering granting me access, the approach is flexible. A restaurant can approve selected spaces, choose which types of media may be created, exclude sensitive areas, and determine which publication methods are appropriate.
On This Page:
See an Example of My Restaurant 3D Work
I have already used Matterport to document restaurant spaces.
Unlike conventional photography, a Matterport tour allows viewers to explore a location independently, look around in different directions, and better understand how spaces connect.
Example of a Restaurant Matterport 3D tour using MPSkin Overlay in James River Country Captured by Adam Garrett.
The full Matterport experience may also include floor-plan and dollhouse views, informational tags, photographs, video, and links to other restaurant resources.
My Google Maps 360° Restaurant Example — James River Country Club
In addition to Matterport 3D tours, I create Google Maps 360° imagery that allows visitors to explore dining and other interior spaces directly through Google Maps.
One local example is the dining area at James River Country Club in Newport News, Virginia.
This demonstrates how restaurant interiors can be presented through Google's mapping platform, complementing the more extensive features available through Matterport.
Local Restaurants Are Already Using Virtual Tours
Restaurants in Hampton Roads are already using immersive media to help customers explore their locations before visiting.
Second Street American Bistro — Williamsburg & Newport News
Second Street provides Google Maps/Street View 360° virtual tours for both locations.
Its official website includes virtual-tour links for:
Both links open Google Maps panoramic imagery rather than a full Matterport digital twin. [1]
These are useful local examples because they demonstrate how a restaurant can provide an indoor virtual-tour experience through Google while also linking to that experience from its own website.
Park Lane Tavern at Peninsula Town Center also provides an interior Google Maps 360° virtual tour directly from its official Hampton location page. [2]
This provides another nearby example of a restaurant using immersive imagery beyond ordinary photographs.
The important distinction is that these local examples are Google Maps 360° tours, not verified Matterport 3D models.
A restaurant can potentially use both technologies, depending on what it wants customers to experience.
Major Restaurants Are Using 3D and 360° Tours Too
Immersive restaurant tours are not limited to small or independent restaurants.
Established restaurant groups, international brands, and upscale dining destinations have used them to present dining rooms, private-event spaces, and other distinctive features.
The Ivy Collection — Matterport Across 50 Private Dining Rooms
The Ivy Collection and Caprice Holdings provide one of the strongest documented examples of restaurant Matterport adoption.
Matterport's case study reports that the group added digital twins of 50 private dining rooms to its website.
The restaurant group's sales leadership described the tours as useful for helping prospective clients understand rooms remotely and reducing the number of physical venue visits needed. [3]
The group's event-sales operation reported approximately 700–1,000 inquiries per week. That figure describes the volume of event inquiries, not additional inquiries proven to have been generated by Matterport.
The case study also reports that the tours were particularly useful for international customers who could not easily visit the venues beforehand.
This is an important distinction:
A restaurant tour can be more than a way to attract someone looking for dinner. It can also help prospective clients evaluate substantial private events.
Hard Rock Cafe Kraków — A Recognizable International Brand
Hard Rock Cafe Kraków includes a dedicated 3D Interior Tour section on its official website.
The restaurant links to an MPEmbed-powered interactive 3D tour, allowing visitors to explore its multi-level interior. [4]
For a restaurant with distinctive architecture, multiple floors, memorabilia, and event areas, an immersive presentation can communicate much more than a small collection of photographs.
TAO & Cathédrale — Upscale Restaurant 360° Tours
TAO Group provides 360° virtual tours for several of its venues, including:
TAO Uptown, New York
TAO Downtown, New York
Cathédrale, New York
These are examples of 360° immersive tours, not necessarily Matterport digital twins. [5][6]
For restaurants where interior design, ambiance, architecture, and private-event settings help define the experience, this approach can allow visitors to explore those spaces rather than relying entirely on selected photos.
Estefan Kitchen — Interactive Menus and Multimedia
Matterport documented an interactive 3D tour of Estefan Kitchen in Orlando in 2022.
The project incorporated Mattertags and links to menus, videos, shopping content, and other information. [7]
This illustrates another potential approach:
A restaurant tour can serve as an interactive information hub rather than merely a virtual walkthrough.
Restaurants can potentially direct visitors from relevant parts of a tour to current menus, reservation systems, event inquiries, or other resources.
Google Maps Can Be a Major Distribution Channel
One of the strongest potential advantages of restaurant 360° media is that customers may encounter it without first visiting the restaurant's own website.
Google specifically supports indoor and outdoor virtual tours for businesses and describes them as a way for customers to understand a location before visiting. [8]
A potential diner might already be:
searching for restaurants nearby;
comparing Google reviews;
looking at menus;
browsing restaurant photographs;
checking parking or entrances;
exploring the surrounding neighborhood; or
examining a restaurant's Google Maps listing.
Where eligible imagery is successfully published, Google Maps and Street View can provide another way for those customers to explore the business.
The Second Street and Park Lane Tavern examples above illustrate this locally.
How Matterport & Google Maps Can Work Together
Matterport and Google Maps offer related but different experiences.
A full Matterport tour can provide:
interactive navigation;
a spatial 3D model;
dollhouse and floor-plan perspectives;
informational Mattertags;
images and video;
menus and reservation links;
custom navigation; and
other enhanced features.
Google Maps / Street View can provide:
published 360° panoramic imagery;
connections between approved viewpoints;
location-based discovery;
visibility within Google's mapping environment; and
links that restaurants can share from their websites.
A full Matterport digital twin is not reproduced in Google Maps.
Instead, suitable 360° imagery may be published through a supported Street View workflow. Google documents methods for publishing and connecting panoramic images using compatible third-party tools. [9]
Matterport is generally better for detailed spatial exploration. Google Maps can be valuable for public discovery and distribution.
Showing Entrances, Parking & How to Find the Restaurant
Not every restaurant is easy to find.
Some have entrances that are:
inside hotels;
behind other buildings;
accessed through courtyards;
reached from parking garages;
located within shopping centers;
above street level;
beside marinas;
or accessed from waterfront walkways.
Google specifically identifies business 360° imagery as a way to help visitors understand entrances, parking, and the approach to a business. [8]
A virtual experience might therefore show:
Parking or street approach → entrance → host stand → dining room → bar → patio
This can add practical value beyond presenting an attractive interior.
It is not a substitute for verified accessibility information, but it can help customers understand some aspects of the route and layout before arriving.
Will a 3D Tour Improve My Google Ranking?
I would not promise that.
Google supports photographs, video, indoor Street View, and virtual tours, but that does not establish that publishing a virtual tour will directly improve a restaurant's local-search ranking.
Google identifies relevance, distance, and prominence as major local-ranking considerations. [10]
The benefit I am comfortable describing is:
Another way for people researching the restaurant to explore it through Google's ecosystem.
How frequently Google displays a particular 360° image, whether a tour appears prominently, and whether it affects customer decisions are not guaranteed.
Private Dining & Events: A Particularly Strong Use Case
For restaurants offering private dining, rehearsal dinners, corporate events, receptions, celebrations, or full-property buyouts, the case for an immersive tour can be especially compelling.
Someone choosing a table for dinner may be satisfied with photographs, a menu, and reviews.
Someone considering a more substantial event may need to understand:
room size and shape;
table arrangements;
room divisions;
privacy;
entrances;
bar access;
patio access;
circulation between spaces;
and how the venue would accommodate their particular event.
Matterport's Ivy Collection case study describes how prospective event clients used the digital twins to evaluate venues remotely and how the group reduced the number of physical tours its team needed to provide. [3]
A 3D tour cannot replace every in-person visit, but it can help prospective clients decide whether a space deserves further consideration.
What Parts of a Restaurant Could Be Documented?
Different restaurants have different strengths. A modest café, waterfront restaurant, upscale dining establishment, sports bar, and restaurant with substantial private-event business will not need identical media.
Dining Rooms, Bars, Lounges & Private Spaces
Possible subjects include:
main dining room;
additional dining rooms;
booths;
bar seating;
lounge areas;
private dining rooms;
banquet areas;
chef's tables;
wine rooms;
fireplaces;
distinctive architecture;
artwork and interior details; and
entrances or connecting spaces.
The restaurant can approve selected areas while excluding others.
Matterport is especially useful when the relationship between spaces matters. Photography and video can then highlight the most visually interesting individual features.
Patios, Rooftops & Waterfront Dining
Outdoor dining may be a significant part of the restaurant experience.
Potential subjects include:
waterfront patios;
rooftop seating;
outdoor bars;
balconies;
terraces;
gardens;
courtyards;
firepits;
seasonal seating;
marina views; and
surrounding scenery.
For some restaurants, aerial photography or elevated 360° views can help customers understand the setting.
These areas are often best captured when seasonal furniture, landscaping, and other normal features are in place.
Food Photography, Video & Restaurant Atmosphere
A Matterport tour should not replace conventional food photography.
Photography is often best for communicating individual dishes, cocktails, desserts, tablescapes, and other visual highlights.
Video can show movement and experiences such as:
a chef preparing a dish;
a bartender making a cocktail;
a pizza oven;
food plating;
an open kitchen;
moving water or fountains;
live entertainment; or
the atmosphere of a restaurant during service.
Matterport is more useful for communicating the space and how it fits together.
One project can potentially combine these formats rather than expecting any one medium to accomplish everything.
Interactive Menus, Reservations & Event Inquiries
Matterport and enhanced presentation tools can potentially connect visitors to the restaurant's other online resources.
Examples include:
current menu;
reservation system;
private dining inquiry;
catering;
online ordering;
gift cards;
chef or restaurant history;
videos;
event packages;
brunch information; and
other restaurant resources.
Where possible, linking to a live menu or reservation webpage can be more practical than permanently embedding prices or specials that may soon become outdated.
The Estefan Kitchen example demonstrates how restaurant tours can incorporate additional links and multimedia. [7]
Kitchens, Bathrooms & Staff Areas
A public restaurant tour normally does not need to include every operational space.
An open kitchen or exhibition cooking area may be part of the guest experience and worth discussing.
However, a conventional back-of-house kitchen, storage area, employee office, cash-handling location, mechanical room, or other restricted space may contain information unrelated to what customers need to see.
Public bathrooms and changing areas generally add limited marketing value relative to their privacy considerations.
My normal approach is to focus on customer-facing areas, with any sensitive or operational spaces included only when there is a specific reason and appropriate authorization.
Capturing the Restaurant Without Disrupting Service
The timing of restaurant photography and 3D capture can make a substantial difference.
An attractive Matterport model usually benefits from an orderly space with fewer moving people. But a lively restaurant video may benefit from showing staff at work or other intentionally arranged activity.
When Should Different Media Be Captured?
Matterport / Google 360°: Preferably when the restaurant is fully prepared for service but empty or relatively quiet.
Dining-room photography: When tables, lighting, furnishings, and other features are presented appropriately.
Food photography: Coordinated with the kitchen when representative dishes can be prepared.
Video: May benefit from staff activity, demonstrations, food preparation, or other authorized subjects.
Patios and rooftops: Often depend on seasonal conditions, weather, and lighting.
Aerial photography: Depends on weather, site safety, airspace, and the type of imagery desired.
The appropriate arrangements should be made at a mutually convenient time.
It may make sense to use more than one capture window instead of compromising the quality of everything to finish during a single visit.
Different Times of Day & Seasons
Some restaurants change character considerably throughout the day or year.
For example:
brunch versus dinner;
daylight versus nighttime;
empty dining room versus a staged event;
outdoor patio season versus winter;
waterfront sunset versus midday;
holiday decorations versus normal décor.
A restaurant might only need one comprehensive Matterport model while using still photographs or video to present additional atmospheres.
Additional capture sessions or seasonal updates can be discussed when useful.
Above - Smithfield Ice Cream Parlor
Privacy, Permissions & Publication
The objective is to document the restaurant—not to make its customers the subject of a public virtual tour.
Whenever practical, I prefer to avoid clearly identifiable customers during immersive capture, especially children.
Photographs and video deliberately featuring recognizable people should be handled with appropriate authorization and publication considerations.
What Can the Restaurant Control?
Depending on the project, the owner or authorized manager can establish:
which spaces I may enter;
which spaces I may capture;
whether customers or staff may be included;
whether the imagery may be published publicly;
whether Google Maps publication is permitted;
whether drone photography may be considered;
whether the restaurant wishes to review media before publication;
whether the restaurant may reuse finished media; and
whether particular material should be excluded.
Permission to capture is not automatically permission to publish everywhere.
The restaurant can approve Matterport while declining Google Maps publication, or approve photography while declining other media formats.
For projects involving independently operated businesses inside hotels, resorts, clubs, or other larger properties, the appropriate operators or property representatives may need to grant separate authorization.
Reviewing the Tour Before It Goes Public
Before public release, important things to check can include:
recognizable customers;
private employee information;
computer or POS screens;
Wi-Fi passwords;
financial paperwork;
access codes;
security information;
confidential storage areas;
menus or pricing that may become outdated;
areas outside the approved scope; and
inaccurate labels or links.
For substantial projects, I am generally open to reasonable review of these issues before publication when agreed upon in advance.
Before Your Matterport or Other 3D Tour Goes Public: A Privacy, Security & Approval Checklist
Aerial Media for Restaurants Where Location Matters
Drone photography is not necessary for every restaurant.
However, it can be valuable for:
waterfront restaurants;
rooftop establishments;
golf-club dining facilities;
marina restaurants;
resort restaurants;
rural destination restaurants;
restaurants with extensive grounds; and
locations near significant attractions.
Aerial media can help show the restaurant's surroundings, outdoor seating, parking, water access, and relationship to nearby destinations.
I have held an FAA Part 107 Remote Pilot Certificate since 2020.
Aerial work remains subject to FAA operating requirements, airspace, weather, people on the ground, property restrictions, and other safety considerations. [11]
I prefer to discuss aerial permission separately rather than assuming it is included in authorization for ordinary photography.
One Restaurant Capture Can Support Multiple Uses
A well-planned media project can potentially support several different channels:
Restaurant Website: A full Matterport tour, photographs, video, menus, and related information.
Google Maps / Street View: Approved 360° imagery published through a supported workflow.
Google Business Profile: Conventional interior, exterior, food, and other imagery.
Private Events: Virtual inspection of private dining rooms and event spaces.
Reservation & Event Communications: Links that staff can share with potential diners or event clients.
Social Media: Photography, video, and virtual-tour links.
Neighborhood & Destination Guides: Appropriate restaurant media that helps people understand the surrounding area.
These are potential uses, not a promise that every project automatically includes every format or distribution method.
Hosting, Costs & Reuse
Matterport is different from ordinary photography because its live 3D models require ongoing hosting.
A restaurant can potentially continue using finished photographs and video without keeping a particular Matterport model active. Google Maps imagery also operates through Google's own systems rather than simply mirroring the original Matterport hosting arrangement.
Matterport Hosting & Long-Term Availability
Depending on the agreement:
I may host the tour while I am actively using it;
an initial hosting period may be included;
the restaurant may reimburse ongoing hosting costs;
the tour may eventually be archived;
an alternative account arrangement may be possible; or
a third-party presentation platform may be involved.
Indefinite complimentary Matterport hosting should not be assumed.
Google Maps imagery may remain available independently of the Matterport model, but continued publication and visibility on Google are not guaranteed.
Can the Restaurant Use the Media?
Depending on the project arrangement, I may provide photographs, video, links, or other finished media for appropriate restaurant use.
Potential uses include the restaurant's website, social media, menus, event proposals, presentations, and other agreed purposes.
If branded material is provided for reuse, attribution to "Adam Garrett w/ Garrett Realty Partners" should be maintained unless otherwise authorized.
Unbranded files, expanded commercial licensing, raw files, ownership transfers, additional editing, or chain-wide use can be addressed separately.
Does the Restaurant Have to Pay?
The specific arrangement depends on the project.
Some restaurant media may be useful enough to my own real-estate, relocation, neighborhood, travel, or destination resources that I may propose a complimentary or mutually beneficial arrangement.
Other projects may involve charges for extensive capture, specialized editing, food photography, long-term hosting, additional visits, video production, or restaurant-requested deliverables.
Any costs applicable to a particular proposal should be discussed before the restaurant commits.
This article is not a blanket promise of unlimited complimentary media, hosting, or future updates.
Why Would I Create Restaurant Media as a Realtor?
Restaurants are part of understanding a neighborhood or destination.
People I work with may be relocating, researching unfamiliar communities, visiting the area to look at homes, hosting family, or considering what amenities and businesses are near a prospective property.
A restaurant may also be an important feature within a waterfront community, mixed-use development, resort, golf community, or downtown district.
Creating restaurant media can therefore support the broader community and area-information resources I produce.
However, permission to document a restaurant should not imply that the restaurant endorses me, Garrett Realty Partners, or any real-estate transaction.
Likewise, my documenting a restaurant does not constitute an endorsement of its food, service, prices, current menu, or future operations.
Interested in Discussing Your Restaurant?
A restaurant project can begin with a small scope or include several media types and spaces.
Helpful starting information includes the restaurant's location, primary contact, guest-facing spaces worth highlighting, any areas to exclude, potential capture windows, and whether Google Maps publication, private-event media, conventional photography, video, or aerial imagery would be useful.
I am happy to discuss whether there is a mutually beneficial project and what permissions, access, and publication arrangements would be appropriate.
About Adam Garrett
I am a third-generation REALTOR® with Garrett Realty Partners, serving substantial portions of Central and Eastern Virginia.
I have created Matterport tours since 2020 and use a Matterport Pro3 for my current professional 3D capture.
My other media capabilities include conventional photography, video, 360° imagery, and aerial photography, video, and 360° panoramas where authorized and appropriate.
I have held an FAA Part 107 Remote Pilot Certificate since 2020.
My objective is to create useful media that helps people understand a place while respecting business operations, customers, employees, privacy, safety, and the limits established for each project.
AI Disclosure
AI tools assisted with portions of the research, organization, and drafting of this article. The article also incorporates my own experience with real estate, Matterport, photography, video, drone operations, and documenting local amenities and destinations.
For more information, see my article How I Use AI in Real Estate.
Sources Cited
[1] Second Street American Bistro — Official Locations and Virtual Tours. The restaurant links to Google Maps 360° virtual tours for both its Williamsburg and Newport News locations. Second Street locations and virtual tours.
[2] Park Lane Tavern — Hampton Location. The restaurant's official location page links to an indoor Google Maps 360° virtual tour. Park Lane Tavern Hampton.
[3] Matterport — The Ivy Collection and Caprice Holdings Case Study. Documents Matterport capture of 50 private dining rooms and the group's use of the tours in event sales. Matterport Ivy Collection case study.
[4] Hard Rock Cafe — Kraków. The official restaurant website includes a 3D Interior Tour linked through MPEmbed. Hard Rock Cafe Kraków.
[5] TAO Group Hospitality — 360° Restaurant Tours. Examples include TAO Uptown and TAO Downtown in New York. TAO Uptown 360° tour.
[6] TAO Group Hospitality — Cathédrale 360° Tour. The restaurant's official website presents a virtual tour of its restaurant and event spaces. Cathédrale New York virtual tour.
[7] Matterport — Estefan Kitchen Restaurant Case Study (2022). Describes an interactive restaurant model featuring menus, multimedia, and Mattertags. Matterport Estefan Kitchen example.
[8] Google Street View — Business Virtual Tours. Google explains how photographs and virtual tours can help customers explore businesses and understand entrances and interiors. Google Street View for Businesses.
[9] Google Maps Help — Create & Publish Photo Spheres. Explains supported panorama publication and third-party tools for connecting indoor and outdoor virtual tours. Google Maps Photo Spheres.
[10] Google Business Profile — Local Ranking Guidance. Identifies relevance, distance, and prominence as primary local-ranking considerations, without guaranteeing ranking improvements from virtual tours. Google local ranking guidance.
[11] Federal Aviation Administration — Part 107 Commercial Operations. Describes FAA requirements for applicable non-recreational small-drone operations. FAA commercial drone guidance.
[12] Google Business Profile — Restaurant Photography. Google's recommendations describe the usefulness of representative interior photographs, including restaurant ambiance and décor. Google business photography guidance.
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