guide
RGAA for restaurants & hospitality: requirements, priorities, and audit checklist
RGAA compliance for restaurant sites requires applying Référentiel général d'amélioration de l'accessibilité to the specific failure points typical of the restaurants & hospitality industry — including image-only menus (pdf or png), inaccessible online ordering flows, reservation widgets without keyboard support.
Does RGAA apply to restaurant sites?
France's Référentiel général d'amélioration de l'accessibilité (RGAA) is the French government's national web accessibility methodology, currently at version 4.1, that operationalises EN 301 549 / WCAG 2.1 AA with 106 control tests and is mandatory for public-sector and (since the EAA transposition) large-private-sector French websites.
Restaurants & Hospitality accessibility — the lay of the land
Restaurants are a frequent ADA Title III target — particularly small operators relying on third-party menus and online ordering platforms (Toast, Square, DoorDash white-label) without verifying accessibility. The 2023 Eleventh Circuit ruling in Gil v. Winn-Dixie reaffirmed website coverage.
Where RGAA bites hardest in restaurant sites
• Image-only menus (PDF or PNG)
• Inaccessible online ordering flows
• Reservation widgets without keyboard support
• Inaccessible loyalty-program PDFs
• Cookie banners trapping focus
Remediation priorities
• Menu (HTML, semantic structure)
• Online ordering and customisation flow
• Reservation widget
• Loyalty programme account management
• Payment flow
How to comply with RGAA on a Restaurants & Hospitality site
1. Audit per RGAA 4.1 control list: 106 control tests across WCAG 2.1 AA.
2. Publish conformance statement: Mandatory; templated by DINUM.
3. Multi-year plan + annual schedule: Required for public sector.
Sources
- RGAA 4.1 — DINUM
- ADA Title III Lawsuit Tracker — Seyfarth Shaw
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Cited answers. Sourced. Updated as standards and case law change.
Does RGAA apply to restaurants & hospitality websites?
France's Référentiel général d'amélioration de l'accessibilité (RGAA) is the French government's national web accessibility methodology, currently at version 4.1, that operationalises EN 301 549 / WCAG 2.1 AA with 106 control tests and is mandatory for public-sector and (since the EAA transposition) large-private-sector French websites.
What are the most common RGAA failures in restaurant sites?
Image-only menus (PDF or PNG) Inaccessible online ordering flows Reservation widgets without keyboard support
What conformance level should a restaurants & hospitality site target?
WCAG 2.2 Level AA is the consensus target for legal compliance and the level referenced by virtually every national accessibility law.
Why are restaurant menus a frequent ADA target?
PDFs and JPG menus are the most common single failure mode — uploaded without tags or alt text, they are inaccessible to screen-reader users. The fix (HTML semantic menus) is straightforward but requires the operator to maintain content in an accessible format.
Does a small restaurant need to comply with the ADA?
Yes. ADA Title III has no employee minimum, no revenue floor, and no exemption for small operators. A two-person taqueria with a website is in scope.
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