Restaurants & cafés

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AI & automation for restaurants & hospitality

Less admin between services, more attention on the floor

Hospitality teams run on tight margins, long hours and a phone that rings mid-service. Reservations, event enquiries, staff schedules, supplier orders and allergen questions all compete for the same few people. We look at where the admin piles up and how carefully designed automation can prepare the groundwork, so the team can look after guests.

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AI and automation for restaurants & cafés · 49 sec

Understand the work

What a working week in hospitality really involves

An independent restaurant, bar, pub or café is several businesses at once. There is the kitchen, with its prep lists, deliveries, temperature checks and inventory; the floor, with reservations, walk-ins, covers and tables to turn; the bar, with its own stock, alcohol licensing duties and cash handling; and, for many venues, private dining, events or guest rooms. Each runs to the rhythm of service, and the admin around them is squeezed into the quiet hours before lunch or after close.

Guest safety and trust sit underneath everything, and the rules depend on where the venue is. In the EU and UK, food businesses must be able to tell guests which of 14 regulated allergens are in each dish, including food that is not prepacked, and the UK adds full ingredient labeling for food prepacked for direct sale. In the US, the FDA recognizes nine major allergens, with sesame added in 2023, and the 2022 FDA Food Code asks restaurants to tell guests in writing about major allergens wherever a state or local jurisdiction has adopted it. Canada, Australia and New Zealand set their own priority allergen lists. Food safety inspections are run by local health departments or authorities almost everywhere, and alcohol sales need a license under state, provincial or local rules.

Behind the scenes there is a steady flow of people work and paperwork. Schedules have to cover every service while respecting the working-time rules that apply: rest breaks and weekly hours under the Working Time Regulations in the UK and EU, overtime under the Fair Labor Standards Act in the US, plus state meal-break and predictive scheduling laws in some places. Tips need care too. In the US, the FLSA treats tips as the employee's property and restricts who can share in a tip pool; in the UK, employers must pass on tips in full and have a written tipping policy. Guest data from reservations and marketing lists is personal data, and marketing emails and texts must follow consent rules such as CAN-SPAM and the TCPA in the US, PECR in the UK, ePrivacy rules in the EU and CASL in Canada.

General manager

Keeps the schedule, labor costs, guest experience, licensing duties, complaints and weekly figures moving in the same direction.

Head chef / kitchen manager

Writes menus and recipes, manages allergen information, orders from suppliers, controls inventory and waste, and keeps food safety records.

Front of house / floor supervisor

Runs the floor during service, greets guests, manages the reservation book and walk-ins, and handles questions and complaints at the table.

Bar manager

Looks after bar stock, ordering, cash handling and the alcohol license conditions that apply behind the bar.

Reservations / events coordinator

Answers enquiries for tables, private dining, events and rooms, sends proposals, takes deposits and confirms final numbers and dietary needs.

Owner / operations or area manager

Weighs margins, menu pricing, staffing, refurbishments and growth across one site or a small group.

Every service

Checking reservations and covers, briefing the team on specials and allergens, managing walk-ins and no-shows, recording temperature and cleaning checks, and cashing out.

Every week

Writing and publishing the schedule, placing supplier orders, confirming upcoming events and large parties, replying to reviews and sorting the shared inbox.

Every month

Inventory count, reconciling supplier invoices, reviewing the P&L against budget, checking tip records against the venue's policy and tracking training, permit and license renewals.

Where work gets stuck

The current way of working is full of small detours.

01

The phone rings during service

Reservation calls and enquiries arrive exactly when the team is busiest. Answer them and a table waits; ignore them and the booking goes elsewhere, or a voicemail sits unheard until the next morning.

02

Event enquiries go cold

A private dining or event enquiry needs availability, menus, pricing and a deposit request. When the coordinator is also on the floor, replies slip by days and the guest has already booked another venue.

03

Allergen questions need care every time

Guests ask about allergens by phone, email and at the table. The answer depends on the current recipe and supplier, and a confident but wrong answer is a serious risk, so the question often waits for the one person who knows.

04

Schedules are rebuilt from scratch

Availability arrives by text and messaging apps, shift swaps happen informally, and the manager rebuilds the week in a spreadsheet, checking breaks, hours and overtime by eye.

05

Ordering and invoices drift apart

Orders are placed by phone, app and email to many suppliers. Deliveries arrive short or substituted, prices change, and invoices are matched by hand at month end, if at all.

06

Records live in many places

Food safety checks, cleaning logs, training certificates, permits, licensing records and tip records are spread across paper logs, apps and spreadsheets, which makes gaps hard to see until an inspector or employee asks.

What could flow better

Less chasing. More of the work that matters.

AI agents, assistants, research workflows and integrations can each take on part of the load. Here is where they fit for restaurants & hospitality.

Bookings and guest communication

Answering questions, confirming reservations and keeping guests informed without pulling staff off the floor.

  • Triage of inbound emails, web forms and messages
  • Reservation confirmations and reminders
  • Answers to routine questions about hours, parking and dress code
  • Handover of complaints, allergen and accessibility questions to the team

Events and private hire

Moving enquiries for events, private dining and rooms from first message to confirmed booking.

  • Capturing event details in a consistent format
  • Drafting proposals from approved menus and packages
  • Deposit and final numbers reminders
  • Collecting dietary requirements ahead of the event

Menus and allergen information

Keeping allergen records accurate and helping staff answer guests carefully.

  • Linking recipes to the allergens regulated where the venue operates
  • Flagging recipe or supplier changes that affect allergen records
  • Preparing allergen matrices for staff review
  • Routing guest allergen questions to a trained person

Schedules and people

Building fair, workable schedules and keeping people records in order.

  • Collecting availability in one place
  • Checking draft schedules against local break, hours and overtime rules
  • Shift swap requests with manager approval
  • Training, certification and work authorization reminders

Ordering, stock and suppliers

Keeping orders, deliveries and invoices lined up so problems are found early.

  • Suggested orders from par levels and reservations
  • Matching deliveries and invoices to orders
  • Flagging price changes and substitutions
  • Preparing inventory count sheets and summaries

Compliance and reporting

Keeping food safety, licensing and tip records organized and visible.

  • Reminders for daily and weekly checks
  • Organizing food safety and cleaning records
  • Permit, license, certificate and training renewals
  • Monthly summaries for the manager and owner

Use cases in detail

From trigger to done, step by step.

How it happens today

Whoever is on shift reads messages between tasks, often late at night or the next morning. Complaints and allergen questions can sit behind simple requests.

Systems and information

  • · Shared venue inbox and website form
  • · Reservation system such as OpenTable, Resy, SevenRooms or similar (read-only availability, depending on access)
  • · Approved answer library maintained by the venue

How it could flow

  1. 1 New messages from the shared inbox, website form and reservation platform are collected into one queue.
  2. 2 Each message is classified, for example table reservation, change or cancellation, event enquiry, general question, complaint or allergen and dietary question.
  3. 3 Complaints, allergen questions and anything about accessibility or safety are flagged for a manager straight away.
  4. 4 For routine questions, a draft reply is prepared using the venue's own approved wording on hours, menus, deposits and policies.
  5. 5 A member of the team reviews, edits and sends each reply, or makes the reservation directly in the booking system.

Human oversight

Every reply is approved by a person before sending. Allergen and dietary questions are never answered automatically; they go to a trained member of staff who checks the current recipe information.

What gets easier

Messages are seen in order of importance, replies are consistent with the venue's policies, and the team can clear the queue in short focused sessions instead of constant interruptions.

How it happens today

The message is forwarded to the head chef, who checks recipes and supplier specifications from memory or a printed matrix, often between services.

Systems and information

  • · Recipe and allergen records kept by the kitchen
  • · Supplier specification sheets
  • · Reservation system notes

How it could flow

  1. 1 The allergen or dietary question is detected in the incoming message and attached to the reservation.
  2. 2 The relevant dishes are matched to the venue's own recipe and allergen records, and any dish whose ingredients or supplier changed recently is highlighted.
  3. 3 A summary is prepared for the head chef or duty manager showing what the records say and where they may be out of date.
  4. 4 The chef confirms what can be offered, including any cross-contact risk, and writes or approves the reply.
  5. 5 The confirmed requirement is added to the reservation notes so front of house and kitchen see it on the day.

Human oversight

Automation never tells a guest that a dish is safe or free from an allergen. A trained person checks current recipes and confirms every answer, and the guest is still asked to remind staff on arrival, as food safety regulators such as the FDA and the UK Food Standards Agency encourage.

What gets easier

Allergen questions reach the right person with the information already gathered, answers are recorded, and the requirement travels with the reservation to service.

How it happens today

The events coordinator checks the calendar, copies menus and prices into an email, and chases the deposit and final numbers by hand, usually around their own shifts.

Systems and information

  • · Events calendar or booking platform
  • · Approved menus, packages and terms
  • · Payment link provider already used by the venue
  • · Email

How it could flow

  1. 1 The enquiry is captured in a consistent format: date, time, numbers, space, budget, occasion and contact details.
  2. 2 Availability for the requested space is checked in the events calendar.
  3. 3 A draft proposal is assembled from the venue's approved packages, menus and terms.
  4. 4 The coordinator reviews, adjusts and sends the proposal.
  5. 5 Reminders follow for the deposit, menu choices, final numbers and dietary requirements at dates the venue sets.
  6. 6 Confirmed details are summarized for the kitchen and floor team ahead of the event.

Human oversight

The coordinator approves every proposal and sets pricing, minimum spends and any exceptions. Dietary requirements are confirmed by the kitchen, and licensing questions such as late finishes go to the person responsible for the alcohol license.

What gets easier

Enquiries get a timely, consistent reply, nothing is forgotten between first contact and the day itself, and the kitchen gets a clear brief.

How it happens today

The manager gathers availability from texts and messages, builds the schedule in a spreadsheet, and checks breaks, hours and overtime by eye before posting it.

Systems and information

  • · Scheduling or workforce app already used by the venue, such as 7shifts, Deputy or similar (depending on API access)
  • · Reservation and events calendar
  • · Time-off records

How it could flow

  1. 1 Staff submit availability and time-off requests through one form or the existing scheduling app.
  2. 2 Expected covers are pulled from reservations and events already in the calendar.
  3. 3 A draft schedule is proposed using the manager's own rules on roles, skills and minimum cover for each service.
  4. 4 The draft is checked against the rules the venue has configured for its location, such as rest breaks and weekly hours, overtime thresholds, minor work-hour limits and any advance-notice scheduling law, and possible issues are flagged.
  5. 5 The manager adjusts and publishes the schedule; swap requests then come back for approval.

Human oversight

The manager decides the final schedule, approves every swap and handles fairness, wellbeing and individual circumstances. Flags are prompts to check, not legal advice, and the rules behind them are set by the venue for its own jurisdiction.

What gets easier

Schedules take less time to assemble, break, hours and overtime problems are spotted before publication, and staff know where to send availability.

How it happens today

Delivery notes are signed at the back door and stuffed in a folder. Invoices are checked at month end, when shortages, substitutions and price rises are hard to trace.

Systems and information

  • · Accounts inbox
  • · Ordering app or order emails
  • · Bookkeeping software such as QuickBooks or Xero

How it could flow

  1. 1 Delivery notes are photographed on arrival and invoices are collected from the accounts inbox.
  2. 2 Line items are read and matched against what was ordered.
  3. 3 Shortages, substitutions and price changes against the last invoice are flagged.
  4. 4 A short list of discrepancies goes to the head chef or bar manager to confirm and request credits.
  5. 5 Approved invoices are passed to the bookkeeping system for payment.

Human oversight

The chef or manager confirms every discrepancy and decides whether to chase credits. Payments are approved by the owner or bookkeeper as usual.

What gets easier

Problems with deliveries are found while they can still be fixed, and month-end reconciliation becomes a review instead of a hunt.

How it happens today

Staff phone large parties the day before when they have time, and smaller reservations rarely hear from the venue until they arrive.

Systems and information

  • · Reservation system and its messaging features
  • · Guest contact preferences and consent records
  • · Waitlist

How it could flow

  1. 1 Upcoming reservations are listed from the booking system.
  2. 2 Guests receive a confirmation message at a time the venue chooses, with a simple way to confirm, change or cancel.
  3. 3 Cancellations release the table back into the booking system or to a waitlist.
  4. 4 Larger or unconfirmed reservations are added to a short call list for the team.
  5. 5 The team sees who has confirmed when planning the floor and the schedule.

Human oversight

The venue sets its deposit and cancellation policy and decides how to treat late changes. Staff handle any guest who is unhappy or asks for an exception, and text messages follow the consent rules where the venue operates.

What gets easier

Guests have an easy way to tell the venue about changes, tables can be re-offered sooner, and the team plans service with a clearer picture.

How it happens today

Temperature logs sit in paper binders, food handler certificates in a drawer, and the tips spreadsheet on one person's laptop. Pulling it together for an inspection takes an afternoon.

Systems and information

  • · Food safety app or digital checklist
  • · Shared document storage
  • · Payroll, POS or tips platform
  • · Task and calendar tools

How it could flow

  1. 1 Daily and weekly checks such as refrigeration temperatures, cleaning schedules and opening and closing checks are scheduled with named owners.
  2. 2 Reminders go to the responsible person, and missed checks are flagged to the duty manager.
  3. 3 Food handler and manager certificates, health permits, alcohol license documents and the written tip policy are filed in one consistent structure with renewal dates.
  4. 4 Tip pool or allocation records are kept alongside the policy so the venue can show how tips were handled, as rules such as the FLSA in the US and the UK's tipping code of practice expect.
  5. 5 A weekly summary shows the manager overdue checks, upcoming renewals and open actions.

Human oversight

The manager and owner decide what is compliant, sign off corrective actions and remain responsible for food safety, license conditions and the lawful, fair handling of tips.

What gets easier

Records are easier to find, gaps show up before an inspection, and staff can see that tips are handled transparently.

From one task to a connected system

From first enquiry to the thank-you after the event

Here is how separate pieces can join up around one private dining booking, with people in charge at each point that matters.
  1. 01 Automated

    Enquiry

    An event enquiry is captured and checked against the events calendar.

  2. 02 A person reviews

    Proposal

    A proposal is drafted from approved menus and packages for the coordinator to send.

  3. 03 People decide

    Deposit

    The coordinator confirms terms and the guest pays the deposit through the venue's usual payment link.

  4. 04 Automated

    Reminders

    Reminders for menu choices, final numbers and dietary needs go out at agreed dates.

  5. 05 People decide

    Allergens confirmed

    The head chef checks dietary needs against current recipes and confirms what can be served.

  6. 06 A person reviews

    Event brief

    A brief is prepared for the kitchen and floor team and checked by the manager.

  7. 07 People decide

    On the night

    The team hosts the event, handles changes and looks after the guests.

  8. 08 A person reviews

    Follow-up

    A thank-you message is drafted, with a feedback link, for the coordinator to approve.

Responsible by design

What gets automated, what stays with people.

Can be automated

  • Reservation confirmations and reminders
  • Event deposit, menu choice and final numbers reminders
  • Collecting staff availability and time-off requests
  • Scheduling food safety checks and renewal reminders
  • Collecting delivery notes and invoices in one place

AI prepares, a person checks

  • Replies to guest enquiries
  • Event proposals and event briefs
  • Draft schedules and break, hours or overtime flags
  • Delivery and invoice discrepancy lists

Stays with qualified people

  • Every allergen and dietary answer given to a guest
  • Complaints, refunds and difficult conversations
  • Final schedules, pay and how tips are pooled or allocated
  • Alcohol service decisions, including refusing service
  • Food safety corrective actions and menu changes

Guest reservation data and marketing lists are personal data under laws such as GDPR in the UK and EU, state privacy laws in the US and PIPEDA in Canada, and marketing emails and texts must follow rules such as CAN-SPAM and the TCPA in the US, PECR in the UK and CASL in Canada. Allergen, food safety, alcohol licensing, working-time and tip rules differ by country, state and city, so check the rules where you operate; allergen answers must always be confirmed by trained staff using current recipes.

What this gives people back

Less managing the process. More doing the work.

The floor team can look up

When routine messages and confirmations are handled consistently, there is more room to welcome the guest who has just walked in.

The kitchen starts informed

Dietary needs and event details arrive in a clear brief rather than a forwarded email thread at the start of service.

Guests feel looked after

Prompt, accurate replies and a requirement that travels with the reservation tell guests the venue is paying attention.

Managers see the whole picture

Organized records, visible discrepancies and earlier schedule checks make it easier to run the venue rather than chase it.

Built around how you work

Your process first. Technology second.

No two venues work the same way. A neighborhood café has different pressures from a bar with guest rooms, a busy city restaurant or a small group with a central events team, and a venue in one city may face scheduling, tip or allergen rules that a venue in another country does not. What is possible also depends on the reservation, POS, scheduling and ordering systems in use, whether they offer an API or export, the quality of existing recipe and allergen records, who is allowed to see what, and how much risk the business is willing to accept with guest information.

Make It Flow starts by mapping how work moves through your venue today, from the first enquiry to cashing out. We research which options fit your systems and local obligations, design small, contained workflows with clear human checkpoints, and improve them over time as the team tells us what helps and what gets in the way during real services.

  1. 01Map the work as it really happens
  2. 02Find the steps worth automating
  3. 03Design with checks and approvals
  4. 04Connect, measure and improve

FAQ

Common questions from restaurants & hospitality.

Still have a question?

Talk to us

No. Automation can spot allergen questions, gather what your recipe records say and route them to a trained person, but it never tells a guest a dish is safe. Your staff confirm every answer using current recipes, in line with the allergen rules where you operate, whether that is a state that has adopted the FDA Food Code, EU or UK allergen law, or your own national rules.

It depends on the systems and your access. Some reservation, POS and scheduling platforms offer an API or export, others have built-in reminders that are better used as they are. We check what your systems genuinely support before suggesting anything.

No. Tip rules vary widely: in the US the FLSA limits who can join a tip pool and bars employers and managers from keeping tips, while in the UK employers must pass on tips in full under a written policy. Automation can keep records organized and help prepare information, but the policy and decisions stay with you and your advisers.

Only within the privacy and marketing rules that apply to you, such as GDPR and PECR in the UK, ePrivacy rules in the EU, CAN-SPAM and the TCPA in the US, or CASL in Canada. Marketing emails and texts generally need clear consent, and guests must be able to opt out easily. We design workflows that respect recorded consent and keep marketing separate from reservation messages.

Allergen answers, complaints, refunds, alcohol service decisions, final schedules, pay and tips, and anything involving food safety. Automation prepares information and handles routine messages so people have more time for guests and the team.

Usually with one area that causes friction every week, such as the enquiry inbox, event follow-up or invoice matching. Starting small makes it easier to test during real services, adjust and build confidence before connecting anything else.

Free tools

Tools picked for restaurants & cafés.

Free, quick and mostly sign-up free. Each one opens on the main Make It Flow site.
All free tools for this industry
Holiday Entitlement Calculator UK Work out statutory holiday for full-time, part-time and irregular-hours staff, including the 12.07% accrual method. Profit Margin Calculator Check gross margin on dishes and drinks, with or without VAT included in the menu price. QR Code Generator Print a QR code on table cards, window stickers and takeaway bags that links to your live menu page rather than a file. The codes are static with no tracking or redirect... Image Compressor Run a whole shoot of dish photos through in one batch, set a max width of around 1600 px and switch the output to WebP. A gallery that weighed 60 MB can usually drop to a... Image Resizer Use the presets to make an Instagram post (1080×1080), a story (1080×1920) and a Facebook share image (1200×630) of the same Sunday roast from one original. Nothing is up... HEIC to JPG Converter Staff who shoot specials on an iPhone often send HEIC files that your website builder will not accept. Convert them to JPG in seconds; location data is not copied, so the... Image to PDF Photograph or design each menu page, then combine them into one A4 PDF with small margins for customers who want to download or print the menu. Drag the pages into the ri... Compress PDF Scanned menus and designer PDFs are often 10–20 MB, which is painful on mobile data. The Medium preset usually cuts a scanned menu down dramatically; keep a text version... Schema Markup Validator Check that your Restaurant structured data includes opening hours, address, cuisine and a menu link without errors. Clean markup helps search engines understand you are a... Open Graph Checker See exactly how your page looks when someone shares it in WhatsApp or on Facebook. A missing og:image means a grey box instead of a tempting dish photo when a friend sugg... Meta Tag Checker Make sure your title and description mention what you serve and where, such as "Neapolitan pizza in Bristol – order or book". Generic titles like "Home" waste the most va... Email Deliverability Checker Confirm the domain your booking system sends from has working SPF, DKIM and DMARC. If confirmations are bouncing or going to junk, this shows which record is missing befo... Website Down Checker Find out in seconds whether a website is down for everyone or only on your connection, and what kind of failure it is Google Review Link Generator Paste your Place ID, a Google Maps link or your g Local Business Schema Generator Pick your exact business type, add your address, hours and service area, and get validated LocalBusiness JSON-LD ready to paste and test in Google Google Maps Embed Generator Turn your business address into a responsive, accessible Google Map for your website, plus Get directions and Apple Maps links NAP Consistency Checker Enter your website to compare the business name, address and phone number on your homepage, contact, about and location pages, and in your LocalBusiness schema WhatsApp Link Generator Type your number the way you normally write it, add an optional message, and get a working wa Spin the Wheel – Random Name Picker Turn any list into a colorful wheel, spin it to pick a random name or option, and draw several winners or split everyone into random groups in one click Privacy Policy Generator Answer five short questions about your business, the data you collect and the tools you use, and get a starting-point privacy policy you can review, edit and publish

Free workflow template

Missed call text-back workflow (n8n)

The n8n workflow from our video: when a call is missed it texts the caller back within seconds (with different wording after hours), sorts the reply into urgent, booking, question or spam, alerts you straight away for urgent jobs, sends a booking link, and puts anyone who does not reply on a call-back list.

  • Imports into n8n in one click (Import from file)
  • Runs on demo calls first, then connect your phone system and SMS provider
  • Text-back wording for open hours and after hours included

We email you the download link and nothing else unless you tick the box. See the privacy policy.

Want it connected to your own phone line, SMS and calendar? Book a free 20-minute setup call. Book a setup call

Free checklist (PDF)

Free restaurants & cafés website checklist

29 practical checks for restaurants & cafés: website speed and mobile, Google Business Profile and reviews, email security, booking and enquiry handling, and AI search visibility. Each one says why it matters, and many link to a free tool that checks it.

We email you the PDF and nothing else unless you tick the box. See the privacy policy.

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