Voice AI for Restaurants
2 min read · Bolcho
A restaurant's phone rings hardest exactly when the staff are busiest — the dinner rush — so bookings and takeaway orders slip to voicemail and walk to a competitor. A Bolcho voice agent answers every call 24×7, takes reservations and takeaway orders in Hindi, Hinglish or the local language, and confirms by WhatsApp. Sub-800ms replies keep a hungry caller from hanging up mid-order.
By the numbers
The levers a voice agent moves here are concrete — answer every call, act faster, and add capacity without headcount.
0
Missed calls during the rush
24×7
Reservations & takeaway, always answered
Sub-800ms
Reply latency — no awkward pause
Auto-confirmations with the menu
Why a voice host beats voicemail
Diners don't leave voicemails — they call the next place. Bolcho picks up instantly, understands 'table for four at eight tonight,' checks availability, and books it. It mirrors the caller's language and switches the moment they do.
Upsell without being pushy
The agent can suggest today's special or a dessert add-on when taking a takeaway order — one line, never a hard sell.
The call workflow
What the agent handles end to end, without a human touching the phone:
- 1
Answer instantly, 24×7
Every call is picked up — no busy tone during the rush, no lost booking.
- 2
Reservation or takeaway
Capture date, time, party size and seating — or items, quantity and pickup time, read back once.
- 3
Check availability
Offer the requested slot, the nearest alternate, or a waitlist if full.
- 4
Confirm by WhatsApp
Send a confirmation with the menu/location the moment the call ends.
- 5
Route large parties
Events and big groups are captured and handed to a manager for a callback.
Your production system prompt
Paste this into a Bolcho agent and set {{restaurant_name}}. It enforces two-sentence replies, digit read-back, no invented dishes or prices, and graceful fully-booked handling.
# ROLE
You are the phone host for {{restaurant_name}}. You take table reservations, takeaway orders, and answer basic queries (timings, location, veg/non-veg).
# LANGUAGE
Mirror the caller — Hindi, Hinglish, Marathi, Tamil or English. Follow mid-call switches instantly.
# STYLE (hard rules)
- Max 2 short sentences per reply. Warm and quick.
- Never invent dishes, prices or availability you weren't given. If unsure, offer a manager callback.
# GOAL
1. Reservation: date, time, party size, seating preference, occasion.
2. Takeaway: items, quantity, pickup time — read the order back once.
3. Confirm by SMS/WhatsApp; capture name + mobile.
# HANDLING
- Fully booked: offer the nearest slot or a waitlist.
- Large party / event: capture details and offer a manager callback.
- Digits: read the mobile number back one digit at a time.
- Busy caller: offer to text the menu/booking link and end politely.
# TOOLS
- check_table(date, time, party_size)
- book_reservation(name, phone, date, time, party_size, notes)
- place_takeaway(name, phone, items, pickup_time)
- send_confirmation(phone)
# CLOSING
Confirm the booking or order in one sentence and thank the guest by name.What's included
Everything you need to run the play is in the box — no stitching five vendors together.
- Local +91 numbers via Plivo with TRAI KYC routing and automated DND scrubbing.
- Built-in AI CRM: transcripts, call summaries and recordings for every call.
- WhatsApp confirmations with menu and location after every call.
- Website WebRTC call widget so visitors can talk to the agent from your page.
- Mid-call language switching across 8+ Indian languages in under 200ms.
- Rupee billing near provider cost — ₹1.80–3.00/min, GST invoices.
Put this playbook live
Launch a phone + website agent for your business in Indian languages. No credit card to start.
Frequently asked questions
Can it take takeaway orders, not just reservations?
Yes. It captures items, quantity and pickup time, reads the order back to confirm, and sends a WhatsApp confirmation — all in the caller's language.
What happens when we're fully booked?
The agent offers the nearest available slot or adds the guest to a waitlist, so a full night doesn't mean a lost customer.
Will it invent dishes or prices?
No — the system prompt forbids inventing menu items, prices or availability it wasn't given. When unsure it offers a manager callback.
Does it work during the dinner rush?
That's the point — it answers every call in parallel, 24×7, so the rush never sends a booking to voicemail.