Anyone who calls a restaurant and reaches nobody calls the next one. Your agent answers immediately, takes table reservations and answers allergy questions from your menu.
Notice under EU AI Act Article 50:On the first ring, the agent says clearly: you're talking to an AI. Just ask, and the agent connects you to a human.How we use AI
What does the AI phone assistant do for restaurants?
The AI phone assistant for restaurants takes reservation calls around the clock, enters table reservations in your calendar, answers questions about menu, opening hours and allergens from your menu and escalates groups of 8+ or special requests.
EU-Sovereign · GDPR · AI Act
Made in Germany. Hosted in Europe. The AI processing stays in the EU too, without US providers.
GDPR-compliant on EU servers
All calls, transcripts and knowledge data are processed encrypted on Hetzner Cloud in Falkenstein and Nuremberg, with data processing in the EU. A DPA under Art. 28 GDPR is in place.
Hosting: Hetzner Online GmbH, Germany, ISO 27001:2022 certified (Falkenstein, Nuremberg)
AI processing runs with European providers in the EU, not with US corporations like OpenAI, Google or Amazon. No training on your data.
Speech recognition with EU processing and speech synthesis from a German provider, customers receive the named provider list in the dashboard.
Auto-deletion: 30 days default, adjustable up to 365 days depending on your package
AI Act Art. 50, met by default
From 2 August 2026 every AI system must disclose to end users at the start of the conversation that it is AI-based. rinqo makes this the default setting in every channel, from first contact.
Voice: mandatory disclosure as first audio frame, before any answer
Chat/Email: AI label in footer and subject
Synthetic audio will be machine-watermarked once Code-of-Practice (June 2026) ships
Penalty: up to €15M or 3 % global annual turnover, the lower amount for SMEs
Sources: GDPR Art. 28 + 32 · EU AI Act Regulation 2024/1689 · DSK guidance on artificial intelligence and data protection (German data protection conference, 2024). This overview does not constitute legal advice.
Why restaurants need an AI agent.
The VAT statistics count 153,545 restaurant businesses in Germany, and 206,105 across hospitality as a whole, 16,337 fewer than in 2019. Reservation calls come at lunchtime and in the early evening, exactly when the service staff are at the tables. Marketplace tools like OpenTable or Quandoo bring reach, but cost per cover plus a monthly fee. An agent that answers the phone costs nothing per reservation.
Lunch and dinner peaks: service is at the table, phone rings out
Allergy questions need menu knowledge, every new staff member must be trained
Marketplace commissions (OpenTable: €1-2/cover) add up to €200-500/month
Reservation calls after 10 PM for the next day go to voicemail
How the phone agent works for restaurants.
Your agent picks up immediately, with a natural voice, without 'please hold'. On reservation it checks availability in your calendar or, if connected, in your reservation system (such as OpenTable, Quandoo or resmio), asks party size, occasion, allergies and special requests, and enters the reservation in your calendar, with email confirmation. Allergy questions are answered from your allergen table (food information regulation, 14 main allergens). On uncertainty it escalates to you, better no risk.
153,545
food-service businesses in Germany, VAT statistics 2024
Move the sliders. The starting values are rough orientation, not a measurement — put your own numbers in.
100
25%
€250
30%
~108Missed calls per month
€8,063Lost revenue per month
€96,756Lost revenue per year
rinqo picks up every call. At night, on weekends, always.
What your agent does for restaurants
Table reservations with party size, occasion, allergies
Reservation changes (date, time, party size)
Allergy, diet and vegan questions from the menu
Opening hours, closed days, holiday service
Group inquiries 8+ with escalation
Qualify catering inquiries (date, party size, budget)
What the Phone Agent can do
Answers common questions automatically
Books appointments directly in your calendar
Qualifies inquiries and captures contact details
Routes complex cases to your team
Speaks 17+ languages
Learns from your website and documents
Honest answers to real concerns.
The four questions every practice owner asks us before they start.
How does the agent handle allergy questions?
You upload the allergen table (food information regulation, 14 main allergens). The agent reports what is definitely free (e.g. 'Risotto Funghi: gluten-free, may contain traces of celery'). On uncertainty it escalates, better no risk.
What if a caller asks about delivery?
Outside service hours the agent tells callers where they can order (your page on Lieferando or Wolt, or your own delivery), exactly as you set it up. During opening hours it clarifies whether you deliver yourself or only take table reservations.
How does the agent handle large groups or events?
Groups above a threshold you define (default 8 people) are escalated. The agent records date, time, party size, occasion, special requests, sends you an email and arranges a callback for personal terms clarification.
Frequently asked questions for restaurants.
OpenTable, Quandoo and resmio offer interfaces for availability and bookings. You set up the connection yourself via rinqo's REST API and webhooks, or we do it for you on request.
OpenTable €39-89 a month for the platform plus €1.30-2.30 per cover. At 200 reservations a month that is around €400 in cover fees plus the platform, so €450-490. No commission, unlimited reservations plus service questions, plus the phone.
Yes, the agent is 24/7. Reservation calls at 11 PM for the next day are processed directly, not pushed into voicemail.
Multi-channel for your industry
rinqo for Restaurants, all channels
Telephone, chat and email from one platform: business case, ROI, GDPR and integrations.
Founder of rinqo. Builds a company memory where an organisation's knowledge comes together and stays available, and the AI agents that work from it: on the phone, in the inbox, in chat, in marketing and in further roles. Writes here about bringing AI into companies, about data protection, and about what holds up in daily operation. Developed in Germany, processed in the EU, no US providers.
