Your phone rings. AI answers for you.
Restaurant phone lines are busiest precisely when your team has the least time to answer them. During a Friday dinner rush, the kitchen is at full capacity, the floor staff is stretched thin and the phone is ringing off the hook. Industry research shows that restaurants miss between 30% and 60% of incoming calls during peak hours — and each missed call is a potential reservation or delivery order that goes to a competitor. Ordresto's AI voice agent ensures that every single call is answered, every time.
The hidden cost of missed calls
A missed call is not just a minor inconvenience — it is a quantifiable revenue loss. If your average reservation is for 3 people spending 35 GBP each, a single missed reservation call costs you 105 GBP. If you miss five calls a week, that is over 27,000 GBP in lost annual revenue from phone calls alone. And that figure does not include delivery orders, catering enquiries or event bookings.
The problem is structural, not a staffing failure. You cannot have a dedicated receptionist during every service hour, and you cannot ask your chef to stop plating dishes to answer the phone. The traditional solution — voicemail — has a completion rate below 20%. Most callers simply hang up and call the next restaurant on their list.
An AI voice agent solves this by answering instantly — within two rings — regardless of how busy your restaurant is. It handles the most common call types (reservations, opening hours, menu questions, directions) without any human involvement. For complex requests, it transfers the call to a staff member with a brief summary of what the caller needs.
What the voice agent can do
The Ordresto voice agent is built to handle the call types that represent 80% of incoming restaurant phone traffic. Reservation requests are the most common: the AI asks for the party size, preferred date and time, checks your availability (synced with your Ordresto reservation system) and confirms the booking — all in a natural, conversational voice.
For callers asking about your opening hours, the AI provides accurate, up-to-date information pulled from your Ordresto settings. If your hours change for a holiday or special event, the voice agent reflects the change immediately. The same applies to your address, parking information and menu questions — the AI has access to your full restaurant profile.
Order-taking by phone is also supported. The voice agent can walk a caller through your menu, take their order, collect a delivery address and send a payment link by SMS. This is particularly valuable for older customers who prefer calling over using a website or app.
Multilingual — your phone speaks 11 languages
In cities with diverse populations and tourist traffic, language barriers on the phone are a real problem. A caller who speaks only Spanish calling a restaurant with English-speaking staff will struggle to make a reservation. The Ordresto voice agent detects the caller's language automatically and responds in kind, supporting 11 languages including English, French, Spanish, German, Dutch, Portuguese, Italian, Turkish, Arabic, Chinese and Japanese.
This capability is transformative for restaurants in international districts, near airports or in tourist-heavy areas. A single phone number can now serve customers in any of 11 languages without needing multilingual staff.
Seamless handover to your team
The voice agent is not designed to replace your team — it is designed to handle the routine calls so your team can focus on the customers in front of them. For any call that falls outside the AI's capabilities (complaints, special event planning, complex dietary discussions), the agent transfers the call to a staff member with a one-sentence summary: 'Transferring a call about a 30-person birthday dinner on March 15th.'
You configure which call types get handled by AI and which get transferred immediately. If you prefer that all reservation calls go to AI but all complaint calls go to a manager, that is a simple toggle in your settings.
Key features
Instant call answering
The AI picks up within two rings, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. No voicemail, no hold music, no missed calls.
AI-powered reservations
The voice agent checks availability, books the table and confirms with the caller — all in a natural conversational flow.
Phone order taking
Walk callers through your menu, collect their order, delivery address and send a Stripe payment link by SMS.
11-language support
Automatic language detection. The AI responds in the caller's language. No multilingual staff required.
Smart call transfer
Complex requests are transferred to your team with a brief summary. You configure which call types go to AI and which go to staff.
Real-time info sync
Opening hours, menu, address and availability are always up to date. Change them in the dashboard and the voice agent reflects it instantly.
Frequently asked questions
Does the voice agent sound natural?
Yes. The agent uses advanced text-to-speech technology that produces natural, human-like speech. Callers interact with it as they would with a real person.
Can the AI handle multiple calls at the same time?
Yes. Unlike a human receptionist, the AI voice agent can handle unlimited simultaneous calls. Even if 10 people call at the same time, every caller is answered within two rings.
What if a caller wants to speak to a human?
The caller can request a transfer at any time, and the AI will route the call to your designated staff member with a brief summary of the conversation.
Do I need special phone hardware?
No. The voice agent works with your existing phone number. Configuration is done in your Ordresto dashboard — no hardware installation required.
Is this available on all plans?
The AI voice agent is available on the Apex plan. Boost plan users can add it as an optional module. It is not available on the free Starter plan.
Never miss a restaurant call again
Connect your phone number and the AI starts answering immediately. Reservations, orders and FAQs — handled 24/7.
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