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Phone: the feature that connects the phone to the booking system

In this article, you will find everything you need to know about Phone: the problem it solves, how it works, its benefits, and how to configure it.

Summary

  1. Our findings
  2. Our solution
  3. How to set up Phone: two configurations
  4. What Phone can and can't do
  5. Automatic SMS when a call goes unanswered
  6. The benefits
  7. Support & Related Articles

1. Our findings

  • The phone is the main booking channel
  • 76% of restaurant owners take one out of two bookings by phone
  • Noting a reservation made over the phone takes time and can lead to errors in collecting information
  • 67% of restaurant owners note the customer's phone number during their booking

 

2. Our solution

With Phone, a patented technology exclusively offered by Zenchef and awarded the Innovation Award at the Food Hotel Tech 2019 exhibition, Zenchef users can connect their phone lines to their digital booking diary. This allows for:

  • Automatic display on the Zenchef system of the customer's contact information when they call the restaurant
  • Display of the customer's booking history (number of bookings, cancellations, no-shows...) during the call
  • History of missed calls
  • Automatic entry of the number into the reservation

Phone also includes an AI voice assistant that can answer calls automatically when your team can't pick up, take messages, and redirect to the restaurant when needed.

 

3. How to set up Phone: two configurations

You can choose between two ways to connect Phone to your restaurant's phone line:

  1. Replace your restaurant's number — Your restaurant's current phone number is replaced, and customers calling it reach the AI directly. If the AI cannot answer the guest's request, the call is automatically redirected to the restaurant.
  2. Keep your restaurant's number and redirect to the AI — Your restaurant keeps its existing number, and calls are redirected to the AI (for example when no one is available to pick up).

A dedicated AI phone number can be generated for your restaurant. This number is created either directly from the Zenchef back office, or by your Account Manager upon request — contact them to have it set up.

Note: Only one AI phone number is available per restaurant.

 

4. What Phone can and can't do

  • Included: up to 500 minutes of AI calls per month. Additional usage is subject to extra fees.
  • Phone cannot take reservations for Experiences.
  • Phone is not available for Takeaway orders.
  • Phone is available on all Zenchef plans (Reserve, Manage, Grow), as a paid usage-based feature.

 

5. Automatic SMS when a call goes unanswered

If a call cannot be answered because Phone is not connected, Zenchef can automatically send an SMS to the caller. To use this, make sure the caller's phone number is displayed and recorded in your interface — this is what allows the automatic Zenchef SMS feature to identify and reach the guest.

 

6. The benefits

  • Saves time in entering the reservation as the contact information is automatically entered.
  • Customized phone greeting based on the displayed information (e.g., if it's a customer who has had multiple no-shows, the option to not answer...).
  • Personalized customer experience (the restaurant already has information about the caller thanks to their customer profile).
  • The restaurant owner can listen to voicemail messages directly on their Zenchef system.

 

7. Support & Related Articles

Contact Our Support Team

For further assistance, feel free to contact Zenchef support via the chatbot available in your client dashboard or visit our Help Center.