Best AI receptionist for restaurants in 2026 (phone orders, reservations and after-hours picks)

Vendor data checked 15 Oct 2026. Looking for the best AI receptionist for a restaurant? This shortlist uses only the 34 vendors tagged restaurants in the AI Front Desk List directory and picks by job: phone orders into your POS, reservations, and a low published entry price. Every price is as published by the vendor and recorded in our data. Every POS and reservation platform named here is one the vendor lists on its own site; we have not tested any order or booking write-back. No listing on this page is paid.

Want every option? The AI receptionist for restaurants page lists all 34 A to Z.

How we picked

• Directory only. Every pick is a live listing tagged restaurants in our data. Of the 34, 29 publish pricing and 16 offer a free trial or free plan.
• Picked by job. Phone orders, reservations and simple answering are different products. A tool that books tables well may not take a takeout order, and the reverse.
• Systems as listed. POS and reservation platforms come from each vendor's integrations as recorded. A listing is the vendor's own claim, not a test result.
• Restaurant specialists first. Several vendors carry the restaurants tag as one use case among many, without restaurant features in their record. They are on the full list, not in the job picks below.
• Published price preferred. Quote-only products can still be picks; their price shows as Not published or Quote only.

No star ratings or reviews. See our methodology.

Quick picks for restaurants (editorial, not paid)

Best for phone orders into your POS

Pick: Loman AI. Loman AI takes pickup and delivery orders by phone and sends them to the POS, takes card payments over the phone, books reservations and lists automatic menu updates. It says it answers several calls at once; ask for the limit. Works with (as listed on its site): Toast, SpotOn, OpenTable, Resy, Clover, Shift4, Square, Aloha by NCR, Olo, Stream. Price: Not published; its pricing page asks you to request a quote.

Published price: Certus AI. Certus AI answers every call, pushes phone orders straight into the POS, confirms reservations through OpenTable and captures catering inquiries. Works with (as listed): Toast, Square, Clover, SkyTab, OpenTable. Pricing as published: $250/mo including phone ordering, per the comparison table on the vendor's homepage. No setup fee, monthly billing, 30-day money-back guarantee. A money-back guarantee is not a free trial; trial: Not stated.

Also consider:

• Kea: phone orders sent straight to the POS, with tickets printing in the kitchen when the order is placed. Works with (as listed): Toast, Square, Clover, Olo, Thanx. Price: Not published (quote on request).
• Maple (Restaurant Voice AI): phone ordering with direct POS integration is on the Pro plan only. Works with (as listed): Toast, Square, Clover, Shift4 Dine, OpenTable. Plans as published: Maple Voice $150/mo, or $85/mo billed yearly (answering, hours, FAQs, call transfer); Maple Pro $350/mo, or $220/mo billed yearly (adds ordering, reservations and supported POS integrations). No per-minute fees.
• Esplanda AI Phone: from the Esplanda POS; writes phone orders into the POS and answers in English and Spanish. Its record is retail-first (liquor, grocery, convenience), with restaurants and bars also covered. Works with (as listed): Esplanda POS, Square, Clover, Lightspeed, KORONA. Entry plan: $149 per location per month with 500 answered minutes, then 20 cents a minute.

Which POS each restaurant-tagged vendor lists, from our data:

Listing Square or Clover can mean different things. Some vendors write a ticket into the POS; Marlie, for example, texts a checkout link through Square or Shopify on its Pro plan and up, which is a payment link rather than a kitchen ticket. Ask for a live test order into your own POS.

Best for reservations and table booking

Pick: Slang.ai. Slang.ai books reservations through reservation platform integrations, routes VIP callers, makes cross-location booking suggestions and sends real-time alerts for events and lost items. Works with (as listed): OpenTable, SevenRooms, Yelp, Resy, Tripleseat, Perfect Venue. Pricing as published: Core $399/mo per location (USD); Premium $599/mo per location (USD); Enterprise custom. The CAD and AUD pricing tabs show similar numbers in their own currency. Trial: Not stated. Weighing it against others? See Slang.ai alternatives.

Flat published price: Sadie. Sadie answers every call 24/7, creates, modifies and cancels reservations, and lists unlimited simultaneous calls. Plans as published: Restaurant plans: Answers $149/mo, Reserves $349/mo, Orders $349/mo (unlimited minutes). Hotel pricing not published; multi-venue groups quoted. Its reservation plan is Reserves $349/mo. Works with (as listed): Mews, Cloudbeds, Oracle Hospitality (OPERA), RMS, roommaster, Yanolja, Seekda, OpenTable, SevenRooms, Libro.

Also consider:

• Hostie: answers calls, texts and emails in the restaurant's voice; reservation booking and modification through integrations is on its Premium plan. It names no integration partners on the pages we checked. Price: Not published. Trial: Free trial.
• Bookline: voice and WhatsApp agents that make or modify reservations in the booking engine. Works with (as listed): 25+ booking systems via API (not named). Price: Quote only.

Sadie and Bookline also serve hotels; see AI receptionist for hotels. 12 restaurant-tagged vendors are also on the hotels page.

Which reservation platforms each restaurant-tagged vendor lists, from our data:

Best published low entry price

Among restaurant-tagged vendors in our pricing snapshot, the lowest published paid entry price is $24.95/mo (Upfirst: Starter $24.95/mo (30 calls, $1.50/extra)). Upfirst answers 24/7, overflow-only or after hours, so it can catch the calls staff miss during service rather than replace the host stand. Trial: Free trial, 14 days.

Other low entry points as published: Dialzara Business Lite $29/mo (60 min, $0.48/min over), Reception.ai Basic $29/mo (75 phone min, $0.45/min overage), Marlie Basic $49/mo (250 min, then $0.35/min) and CallBird AI Starter $99/mo (up to 50 calls). These are general small-business receptionists, and none of them lists POS order taking. The entry plan is not always the plan that books: Marlie lists calendar booking from Standard $99/mo (500 min, then $0.35/min), so check which plan includes the features you need. CallBird AI lists Square, Shopify POS, Lightspeed, Clover, Google Calendar, Outlook, Apple Calendar; its own page frames the POS link around inventory checks for retail.

Per-call and per-minute plans behave differently on a busy Friday, so check your call log for volume and average call length before you choose. Compare models in the cost guide, or see Dialzara alternatives, Upfirst alternatives and Marlie alternatives.

Free trial without a card

Restaurant-tagged vendors whose record holds a free trial or free plan with no card required: CallBird AI (7 days), Callrix (7 days), Fork Time (14 days), Newo.ai (Pay As You Go plan is $0/month with 50 free units once per account; no payment method to start), Phone Phoebe (7 days), Reception.ai (14 days) and Solwees (7 days). These start without a card but need one later, per their records: Operator (14-day free trial, no card to start; card added when claiming the business line; first charge refunded within 7 days on request). Test each one on your hours, menu and booking questions before you rely on it.

Hostie offers a free trial too; our data does not record its length or card terms. More options: AI receptionists with a free trial.

What to ask before you buy

1. Does the order complete, or does it text a link? A ticket in the POS with payment captured is different from a message or a checkout link.
2. Can it take payment on the call? Ask how cards are handled and who carries the risk.
3. How does the menu stay in sync? Modifiers, combos, 86'd items and holiday hours go stale fast.
4. What happens at peak? Ask how many calls it answers at once and what callers hear when that limit is hit.
5. How does it hand off to staff? Allergies, large parties, events and complaints should reach a person, with a transcript.
6. Which languages? Ask for the languages it answers in, and test the ones your guests use.

AI receptionist vs answering service vs human host

A classic answering service takes messages through human agents. An AI receptionist answers, books and sometimes takes the order itself. A human host knows the room and the regulars. Most restaurants that buy AI keep staff on the floor and send overflow, after-hours and routine calls to the AI. Read AI answering service vs AI receptionist and AI receptionist vs human receptionist for the trade-offs.

When to use the full list

This page is a shortlist. For every restaurant-tagged vendor with pricing, trials and sources, use the AI receptionist for restaurants page. Selling retail as well? See AI receptionist for retail. Comparing across every category? See the best AI receptionist by use case.

FAQ

What is the best AI receptionist for restaurants?

It depends on the job. For phone orders into the POS, Loman AI lists the widest POS set (price not published), and Certus AI publishes a price ($250/mo). For reservations, Slang.ai lists the widest platform set ($399/mo per location), and Sadie's reservation plan is Reserves $349/mo. For simple answering at a low price, Upfirst starts at $24.95/mo.

Can an AI receptionist take phone orders straight into Toast, Square or Clover?

Some vendors say they can. Among restaurant-tagged vendors in our data, 5 list Toast, 12 list Square and 8 list Clover. Loman AI, Kea, Certus AI and Maple (on its Pro plan) say orders go straight into the POS. Some others list Square for payment links or deposits rather than POS orders, so ask for a live test order.

Which AI phone answering tools book tables on OpenTable or SevenRooms?

Among restaurant-tagged vendors, 7 list OpenTable and 3 list SevenRooms. Slang.ai and Sadie list both; Slang.ai also lists Resy, Yelp, Tripleseat and Perfect Venue. Ask for a live test booking into your own account.

How much does an AI receptionist for a restaurant cost per month?

The lowest published paid entry among restaurant-tagged vendors is $24.95/mo (Upfirst: Starter $24.95/mo (30 calls, $1.50/extra)). Restaurant specialists publish more: Certus AI $250/mo, Sadie from $149/mo and Slang.ai $399/mo per location. Loman AI, Kea, Hostie and Bookline do not publish a price. See AI receptionist cost.

Is there a restaurant AI phone answering service with a free trial and no credit card?

Yes. Restaurant-tagged vendors with a no-card free trial or free plan in our data: CallBird AI (7 days), Callrix (7 days), Fork Time (14 days), Newo.ai (Pay As You Go plan is $0/month with 50 free units once per account; no payment method to start), Phone Phoebe (7 days), Reception.ai (14 days) and Solwees (7 days). These start without a card but need one later, per their records: Operator (14-day free trial, no card to start; card added when claiming the business line; first charge refunded within 7 days on request). Hostie offers a free trial, but our data does not record its length or card terms.

Will an AI host still pass calls to staff during a busy service?

The specialists say so: Sadie lists automatic transfers, Slang.ai routes VIP callers, and Esplanda AI Phone hands complaints and refunds to a person with a transcript. Ask each vendor what happens when no one is free to pick up.

Related

• AI receptionist for restaurants: all 34 vendors A to Z, and hotels
• Slang.ai alternatives, or every side-by-side comparison
• Best AI receptionist, AI receptionist cost and free trials

Sources and method: vendor facts, prices, trials and integrations render from AI Front Desk List data (229 vendors, 34 tagged restaurants) and normalized pricing, checked 15 Oct 2026. Picks are editorial; directory order is A to Z and never sold. Found an error? Tell us. Vendors can buy clearly labelled placements on Advertise; they never change picks or order.