At 7:00 PM on a Friday, your host is seating a party of six, the kitchen is full and the phone is ringing again. That's the problem with restaurant calls: they come when your staff is busiest. Either someone leaves the floor to answer, or the caller hears ringing and gives up. So what does a restaurant answering service have to do, what should you ask before you sign up, and what does it cost?
The calls a restaurant gets
Most calls are quick questions: your hours, the address, parking, whether the patio is open, whether you have a kids' menu. Then come table requests, and a smaller number of large parties and events, which are often the most valuable calls of the week. Now and then someone wants to order food or asks about allergies.
Each kind needs a different answer. Quick questions can be handled in seconds, table requests should follow the way you already take reservations, and allergy questions belong with your staff. On a busy night, several of these calls arrive at the same time.
What it has to do
- Answer the common questions: hours, address, parking, patio, kids' menu.
- Handle table requests your way: book, take a request, or point to your website.
- Take large party and event details and send them to you.
- Answer several calls at once at 7:00 PM on a Friday.
- Pass allergy questions to staff.
- Speak Spanish, if your guests do.
$99 a month. Cancel anytime.
Questions to ask before you buy
- Does it work with how we take reservations today?
- Can it learn our menu and hours from our website?
- How many calls can it answer at the same time?
- How are large party details sent to us?
- What does a busy holiday month cost?
- Can we keep our number?
What it costs
Live answering services charge for people's time, so they cost more per minute. AI services cost less and can answer many calls at once, so your staff stays on the floor. Most restaurant calls are short questions, and that usually favors per-minute pricing over per-call pricing. Here are the public prices of the best-known options:
| Service | Who answers | Starts at | Books into your calendar |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cally24 | AI | $99 a month, 240 minutes | Yes |
| Ruby | Live people | $250 a month, 50 minutes ($395 for 100) | Optional scheduling |
| Smith.ai | AI, live backup | $0 for 25 calls; Pro $150 for 75 calls | Calendly and more |
| Rosie | AI | $49 a month, 250 minutes | From the $149 plan |
| Dialzara | AI | $29 a month, 60 minutes | From the $99 plan |
| Goodcall | AI | $79 a month, 100 callers | Google Calendar |
Prices checked October 25, 2026 on each company's public pricing page. Prices change. Sources and the math for 100 minutes are in what an AI receptionist costs.
A Friday night with Cally
It's 7:05 PM and three calls come in at once. Cally answers all of them in your restaurant's name. The first caller wants to know if the patio is open, and Cally answers from your website. The second wants a table for four at 8:00 PM, and Cally handles it the way you set it up: it books the table or takes the request.
The third caller is planning a birthday dinner for 18 people next month. Cally takes the date, the size of the group, her name and number, and sends you the details as a lead. When she asks whether a dish has nuts, Cally passes the question to your staff.
Your host didn't touch the phone once.
How Cally24 handles restaurant calls
Cally answers in your restaurant's name, answers questions from your website, and takes table requests or books them into your calendar. Large party details are sent to you as a lead. For food orders, it can point callers to your online ordering page. It answers up to 20 calls at once and costs $99 a month with 240 minutes included.
Restaurant setup checklist
- Hours, including holidays
- Menu link on your website
- How to handle table requests
- What to do with large parties and events
- Parking, patio and accessibility notes
- Forwarding on for busy and unanswered calls
See Cally for restaurants, pricing, or hear your own receptionist, built from your website in 30 seconds.
Common questions
Can Cally take food orders?
Cally is built for questions, reservations and party bookings. For orders, it can point callers to your online ordering page.
What does Cally tell callers when we're fully booked?
Tell Cally, and it lets callers know kindly, then takes their details if you keep a waitlist.
Can Cally tell callers about allergens?
It can share what's on your website. For allergies, it's best to have Cally pass the question to your staff.
