What does a reservation system do?
A reservation system is your restaurant’s table plan. Guests book through a button on your site or on your Google profile, the system checks whether there is room and puts the reservation in your overview. You see per evening who is coming, how many people, and which table is free.
- Online booking, day and night, without anyone picking up.
- A table plan with the occupancy per time slot.
- Confirmations and reminders by email or text, sometimes a deposit against no-shows.
- A guest list: who came when, and what they asked for.
What a reservation system does not do: answer the phone. Most systems offer at best a recorded message or a menu that sends the caller to the online booking. A guest who calls usually calls precisely because they do not want to book online, or has a question that does not fit a form: a high chair, an allergy, a group.
What does an AI phone assistant do?
An AI phone assistant, also called an AI receptionist or virtual receptionist, picks up while you are on the floor and holds the conversation the way a colleague would. Joep, the AI phone assistant for restaurants, asks one thing at a time: name, date and time, number of people, lunch, drinks or dinner, and allergies or special requests. He sums up, asks for agreement and only then books. The guest gets a confirmation by email.
- Knows your opening and kitchen hours: a guest who asks for dinner at three gets a time that does work.
- Takes several calls at the same time, so on a full Friday evening nobody hears a busy tone.
- Follows your house rules: from ten people a menu choice applies and a colleague gets in touch; changing or cancelling Joep does himself, or he refers to your email if you prefer.
- Says on every call that he is an AI assistant, as the EU AI Act requires.
- Speaks Dutch and English; German and French on request.
An AI phone assistant is not a reservation system: Joep makes no table plan and puts no booking button on your site. He does the part a system cannot: the phone.
How can you automate phone reservations?
A venue that can no longer answer the phone during service has three ways to handle it. They differ in what happens to the caller.
| Way | Who picks up | What happens to the reservation | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Recorded message or menu | Who picks up: Nobody; the caller hears a message | What happens to the reservation: The guest still has to book online, or calls back later | Cost: Often included with the reservation system |
| Receptionist or answering service | Who picks up: A person, during the hours you agree | What happens to the reservation: A note or an email that you process and call back yourself | Cost: Wages per hour, or per call or per minute |
| AI phone assistant | Who picks up: The assistant, always, several callers at once | What happens to the reservation: Booked and confirmed before you look at it | Cost: A fixed amount per month |
The difference between the second and the third is set out in full in Joep compared with a receptionist and an answering service.
When do you need which?
- Most guests book online and the phone is quiet: a reservation system is enough. Put a message on the number that points to online booking, and pick up yourself when you can.
- The phone rings mostly during service, and you need no table plan because you keep the occupancy in your head or in a diary: an AI phone assistant. Joep books the reservation and you stay with your guests.
- Many online bookings and a phone that keeps ringing: both. The system manages the tables, the assistant picks up. How the two work together is agreed at setup.
The question that decides it: how many reservations a week come in by phone, and how many of those do you miss now? A missed reservation during service is a table that stays empty, or a guest who calls the place next door.
What do a reservation system and an AI phone assistant cost?
Joep costs €100 per month, with no per-call charges, cancellable monthly; a year in advance is €1,080. There is no setup fee: we set Joep up together with you at no cost, with your opening and kitchen hours, your menus and set menus, the email addresses for changes and job applications, and your reservations.
A reservation system usually charges a monthly fee, sometimes with an amount per booking; the price differs per provider. An answering service usually charges per call or per minute, a receptionist costs wages per hour. Work out for your venue what a month of phone reservations costs you now in time on the floor, and what a missed reservation costs in revenue.
How does Joep work alongside your reservation system?
At setup we agree where Joep puts a reservation and what he does with what he may not decide. Joep sums up every reservation, books it as agreed and sends the guest a confirmation by email. A group of ten or more, a question outside the rules or a guest who wants to speak to a colleague, he passes on to you. You keep your own phone number: you forward it to Joep, in a few minutes with your phone provider.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a reservation system and an AI phone assistant?
A reservation system is software in which guests book online themselves and in which you plan your tables. An AI phone assistant is a service that answers the phone and books the reservation in a conversation. The system handles the online traffic, the assistant the phone traffic.
Does an AI phone assistant replace my reservation system?
No. A reservation system manages your tables and lets guests book online; an AI phone assistant answers the phone and books the reservation. If you need both, they work side by side.
Does Joep work with my reservation system?
That is discussed at setup: Joep books reservations the way we agree with you, and the guest gets the confirmation by email. What is possible depends on your system. Book a call and we look at your situation.
What does Joep do when the kitchen is closed or a slot is full?
Joep knows your opening and kitchen hours and suggests a suitable time himself. If a slot is full, he names the alternatives. He never books anything outside the hours you have set.
Does a guest hear that they are talking to an AI?
Yes. Joep says on every call that he is an AI assistant, as the EU AI Act requires. He speaks in ordinary sentences and asks one question at a time; you choose whether he sounds formal, neutral or informal.