AI Chatbot for Restaurants
Free up your hosts for the guests in the dining room. The AI answers hours, menu, allergen, parking and private-event questions, and sends guests to your reservation link.
Free plan. Pro $19/month, Business $59/month, 30-day trial on paid plans. Setup takes about 2 minutes from your website URL.
What does an AI chatbot do for a restaurant?
An AI chatbot for a restaurant answers "are you open Sunday", "do you take reservations", "is this gluten-free" and "do you do private events" from your own menu and hours, and sends guests to your reservation or ordering link instead of your host stand.
Restaurants get the same questions over and over: "Are you open Sundays? Do you have vegetarian options? Do you do private events? Is there parking? Can I make a reservation for 8?" Your hosts answer these dozens of times a day while guests in the dining room wait to be seated. Meanwhile, after-hours visitors browse your website, find no answers, and book somewhere else. Chatonbo gives your restaurant website an AI assistant that answers all of these instantly from your menu, hours and policies, sends guests to your reservation or online ordering link, screens catering and private-event inquiries, and handles menu questions like "What is in the lobster ravioli?" or "Which dishes are gluten-free?" from the allergen sheet you give it. It replies in 50+ languages, which matters in tourist areas and mixed neighborhoods. Your hosts focus on the guests who are actually in the room, and your website becomes a concierge that works while the kitchen is closed.
Questions people ask on a restaurant website
The real questions, and how the assistant should answer each one once it has your pages.
1.Do you take reservations?
Ideal answer: Says yes or no, states party-size rules and walk-in policy, and sends the guest to your reservation link (OpenTable, Resy, your own form).
2.Are you open on Sunday?
Ideal answer: Gives the exact hours for the day asked, including kitchen closing time and any holiday exceptions you have published.
3.Do you have gluten-free or vegan options?
Ideal answer: Names the dishes from your allergen sheet, notes shared-kitchen caveats exactly as you wrote them, and suggests telling the server on arrival.
4.Do you do private events or large groups?
Ideal answer: Describes the private room capacity, minimums and menu options, then captures date, headcount and contact details for your events person.
5.Is there parking?
Ideal answer: Gives the parking options, validation and nearest lot or transit you have listed.
6.Is there a dress code?
Ideal answer: States your published dress code or that there is none, in one line.
7.Can I order online for pickup or delivery?
Ideal answer: Links to your ordering page or delivery partners and gives pickup hours.
8.Do you have a kids menu or high chairs?
Ideal answer: Answers from your family policy and menu, and mentions best times for families if you have listed them.
What a good answer looks like
Three example exchanges from a restaurant assistant. Prices and names are illustrative; yours come from your own pages.
Do you take reservations for Saturday at 7?
Yes, we take reservations 7 days a week. You can book Saturday at 7:00 PM directly through our reservation link here, which shows live availability. We also accept walk-ins, and Saturday evenings around 7pm usually have a wait. How many people are in your party? Groups of 8 or more should book through our events team, and I can take your details for that.
Is your pasta gluten-free?
Most of our pasta dishes are made with wheat pasta, but we offer gluten-free penne and gluten-free gnocchi as substitutes for any pasta dish at no extra charge. Our risottos and most starters are naturally gluten-free. If you have a serious gluten allergy, please tell your server when you arrive so the kitchen can take extra care.
Can you do a private party for 30 people?
Yes. Our private dining room seats up to 35 guests and is popular for birthdays, rehearsal dinners and company events. We offer a custom prix-fixe menu from $55 per person plus optional bar packages. Can I take your name, email, preferred date and headcount? Our events coordinator will send the private events package and follow up.
What to feed the assistant
It only answers from what you give it. For a restaurant, these are the pages and documents that matter.
- 1
Current menu with prices, plus a gluten-free, vegan and allergen sheet
- 2
Hours by day, kitchen closing time and holiday hours
- 3
Reservation link and walk-in policy, including large-party rules
- 4
Private dining and catering page with capacity, minimums and a contact for events
- 5
Parking, dress code, kids policy and online ordering links
Paste your website URL and the pages are crawled automatically. Anything not on the site (a price sheet, a policy document) can be uploaded as a PDF or typed in as a Q&A. If a price or policy is missing, the assistant says it does not know and offers to take the visitor's details instead of guessing.
What 5,470 real website chats show
From our study of website chat conversations across 246 live assistants, June to September 2026.
In 5,470 real website chats, 24.7% happened on a weekend and 39% started outside 9 to 18 local time, which for a restaurant is service, when nobody at the host stand can take a call about Sunday hours.
Source: What shoppers ask an AI chat assistant: 5,470 conversations analyzed (2026)
Where a restaurant loses enquiries
Hosts Stuck on the Phone
Your hosts answer the same questions all day instead of greeting guests, managing waitlists, and turning tables.
After-Hours Dead Zone
People plan dinner at 11pm for the weekend. Without instant answers, the reservation goes to a restaurant that had them.
Allergen and Diet Questions
Most parties include someone with a dietary restriction. The bot answers from your allergen sheet without interrupting the kitchen.
What it will not do
The assistant does not see your table availability and cannot hold or confirm a reservation. It sends guests to the reservation link you provide (OpenTable, Resy, Tock or your own form) or, if you prefer, captures the request for your host to confirm. It answers allergen questions only from the sheet you give it and will always tell guests with a serious allergy to inform the server. It does not take orders or payments.
AI chatbot questions from restaurants
Can it book tables on OpenTable, Resy or Tock?+
It sends guests to your reservation link so they book on your live availability, or it captures the request (date, time, party size, phone) for your host to confirm. It does not hold tables itself.
Can it answer menu and allergen questions accurately?+
Yes, from what you give it. Upload your menu and an allergen sheet (PDF, page URL or pasted text) and the assistant answers ingredient, allergen and price questions from that only. Update the menu and the answers change with it.
Does it work for tourists who do not speak English?+
Yes. The assistant detects the visitor's language and replies in 50+ languages, using the same menu and hours you gave it in English.
How does it handle catering and private events?+
It describes your private dining and catering options, captures date, headcount, menu preferences and contact details, and sends the inquiry to your events team by email or webhook.
What does it cost for a single restaurant?+
There is a free plan. Pro is $19/month and Business is $59/month, both with a 30-day trial. Setup takes about 2 minutes from your website URL, and it works on Wix, Squarespace, WordPress and plain HTML sites.
Related for restaurants
Chatonbo for restaurants and hospitality
The wider picture for restaurants, cafes and bars, including multi-location setups.
Multilingual Agent
Tourist and mixed-language neighborhoods get menu and hours answers in their own language.
Not a restaurant? See all industries or the small business overview.
Put an AI assistant on your restaurant website
Paste your URL, check the answers, add the one-line embed. About 2 minutes. Free plan to start, 30-day trial on Pro and Business.
Build your restaurant assistant