Solutions · Restaurants, hotels and apartments

AI restaurant phone answering that takes the reservation.
A guest calls during dinner service. Kolio picks up.

Kolio is a phone agent for restaurants, hotels and apartments: it takes table reservations on its own by free tables and hours, answers guests about the menu, allergens, parking and opening hours from your knowledge base, and does so in the guest's language — by phone, web chat and email, including at 8:15 pm when everyone is serving.

7 days free · no credit card · your existing number

Two chefs preparing dishes in an open restaurant kitchen
©
  • table reservations
  • guests' questions
  • 14 languages

Prepared by the Kolio team · updated

What changes

What changes in hospitality with Kolio

  • No unanswered call during service

    While you serve, Kolio picks up the phone: it takes the reservation, answers the question, notes the special request — no waiting and no answering machine.

  • Tables are booked by free seats

    Kolio knows the number of tables, the reservation duration and the service hours, so it never books a table that does not exist; the reservation is in your calendar immediately.

  • Guests get an answer in their language

    A German, Italian or English guest asks about allergens, parking or opening hours and gets an answer from your knowledge base — in their own language.

A typical evening

A typical evening in a restaurant with Kolio

Friday evening: the kitchen is full, the floor staff are on their feet, and the phone keeps ringing. Kolio takes what it is allowed to take and leaves your team only what needs a decision — at the end of the night you see every reservation and note in one place.

  1. A table for four at 7:30 pm

    Kolio checks the free tables for 7:30 pm, books the table, notes the request for the terrace and sends the guest an email confirmation.

  2. A guest from Germany asks about allergens

    In the web chat Kolio lists the gluten-free dishes from your menu in the knowledge base, in German, and adds that the staff confirm allergens when ordering.

  3. “Do you still have room for eight?”

    There is no free table left for eight at 8 pm; Kolio offers the first free slot at 9:15 pm or Saturday, and the guest picks Saturday.

  4. An inquiry for an apartment for five nights

    Kolio records the dates, number of guests and contact details, confirms receipt to the guest and creates a task for reception, which confirms availability and sends the offer.

  5. The manager closes the evening

    In Conversations they see 11 calls and chats, 6 new reservations and one task for reception — every conversation with a transcript and summary.

Reservations

How does the phone agent book a table by free tables and hours?

Kolio's Phone agent books a table by checking, during the call, the free tables for the requested time and party size in your calendar: every service (table for 2, table for 4–6, tasting menu) has a duration and serving staff, and the location's opening hours have service times and holiday exceptions. When a slot is full, it offers the next free one — it never promises a table that does not exist. The guest receives an email confirmation and a reminder on the day of the reservation.

Tables, staff and duration

You set how many reservations each service accepts at once and how long it lasts (e.g. a table for 2 hours). Kolio checks overlaps within the same service and never offers a full slot.

Service hours and holidays

A weekly schedule with exceptions: lunch, dinner, closed on Mondays, holiday hours. Kolio offers only slots within the opening hours you define.

Rooms and apartments

For accommodation Kolio records the dates, number of guests and contact details and hands the inquiry to reception as a task — your team sends the confirmation and offer once it has checked availability.

Guests' questions

Which guest questions does Kolio answer from the knowledge base?

Kolio answers guests' questions from the knowledge base you build from your website and PDF menu: the menu, allergens, set-menu prices, parking and access, opening hours, high chairs, pets. Whatever is not written in the knowledge base, Kolio does not guess — it tells the guest that your team will answer and creates a task.
Excerpt from the knowledge base
MENU AND ALLERGENSGluten-free dishes: asparagus risotto, grilled trout, goat's cheese salad.Staff confirm allergens when ordering — do not promise a dish has no traces.PARKING AND ACCESSGuest car park behind the house, 12 spaces; step-free access from the courtyard.OPENING HOURSTue–Sat 11:00–15:00 and 18:00–23:00. Sunday lunch. Closed on Mondays.Holiday hours: closed on 25 Dec and 1 Jan.

Menu and allergens

From the menu in the knowledge base it states ingredients, gluten-free or lactose-free dishes and set-menu prices; following your instructions it adds that staff confirm allergens when ordering.

Parking and access

Where guests park, whether access is step-free, how to reach you by public transport — answered from the written data, in the web chat also with a link.

Opening hours and special requests

Service hours, holiday schedule, high chair, terrace, birthday cake: Kolio answers what is written down and notes the special request on the reservation for your team.

Definition

A phone agent for a restaurant is an agent that, on your existing phone number, in web chat and by email, takes table reservations by free tables and hours, answers guests' questions about the menu, allergens, parking and opening hours from the restaurant's knowledge base, and does so in the guest's language. It records room inquiries and special requests and hands them to the team.

Multilingual

Which languages does Kolio speak with guests?

Kolio speaks with guests in 14 languages and answers in the language the guest starts the conversation in: when a guest switches from English to German mid-call, Kolio switches with them — including prices, times and spelling out an email address. A hotel Phone agent therefore needs no separate number for foreign guests: the same number, the same knowledge base, and the guest chooses the language.

  • Slovenian
  • English
  • German
  • Croatian
  • Serbian
  • Italian
  • Hungarian
  • French
  • Spanish
  • Portuguese
  • Dutch
  • Polish
  • Czech
  • Slovak
~40%
of appointments are booked outside working hours, between 5 pm and 9 am — when the restaurant is busiest or closedSource: Zocdoc
29%
fewer no-shows with an automated email reminder alone, without a call from the team — Kolio sends it on the day of the reservationSource: Hasvold & Wootton, J Telemed Telecare 2011
90%
of customers rate an immediate answer to a support question as important or very important — a guest asking about allergens does not wait until the end of serviceSource: HubSpot Research
Itself or your team

What does Kolio handle itself and what does it hand to your team?

Kolio handles on its own everything that is written in the calendar and the knowledge base: a reservation, a change, a cancellation, an answer about the menu or opening hours. Everything that needs your team's decision — a large group, a private event, a room, a special menu — it records and hands over as a task with everything the guest said.

Typical guest questions in hospitality: what Kolio handles itself, what it hands to your team and what the team sees
Guest's questionKolio handles itselfHands to your teamYour team sees
“A table for four at 7:30 pm”checks free tables, books, confirms by email—the reservation in the calendar with a note
“Move us to Saturday”moves to the first free slot or cancels—the change in the calendar
“Do you have gluten-free dishes?”lists dishes from the menu in the knowledge baseconfirming the allergen when orderingthe conversation with transcript
“Where can we park?”answers from the knowledge base—the conversation with transcript
“A private event for 30 people”records date, party size, requests, contactthe offer and confirmationa task with transcript
“An apartment for five nights from 12 July”records dates, guests, contact; confirms receiptavailability and the offera task for reception

Kolio does not take payments and does not issue offers; special requests (terrace, high chair, cake) are noted on the reservation.

An honest fit check

Is Kolio right for your restaurant or hotel?

Kolio is for you if …

  • you still take reservations by phone and the calls land in your busiest hour,
  • guests ask the same things: allergens, parking, opening hours, high chairs,
  • you have foreign guests and want to answer in their language without extra staff,
  • you want every reservation and every request in one place, with a confirmation and reminder.

Kolio is not for you if …

  • you take reservations only through an external platform and do not want the phone at all,
  • you expect the agent to confirm multi-night stays and take payments on its own,
  • your menu changes daily and nobody will write it into the knowledge base.
Setup

Setup in three steps — no technician needed

You set up the phone agent once and it applies to phone, web chat and email. For a hotel with several departments or several venues we recommend a consultation.
  1. 02

    Write the greeting and the rules

    In plain sentences, the instructions say what Kolio books itself, what it records (groups over 8, rooms, private events) and how it says it is an AI. You pick the voice; the guest picks the language.

  2. 03

    Test and switch the number

    Check a reservation and an allergen question in the simulator, then route your existing number to Kolio. Reservations are in the calendar immediately, conversations with transcripts in Conversations.

Other industries

Kolio in other industries

The same Kolio, different instructions: every industry has its typical questions and its own line between what the agent does itself and what it hands to your team.

FAQ

Frequently asked questions about AI restaurant phone answering

In how many languages does Kolio take reservations?

Kolio speaks 14 languages on the phone — Slovenian, English, German, Italian, Croatian, Serbian, Hungarian, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, Polish, Czech and Slovak — and answers in the language the guest starts the conversation in. In web chat and by email it answers in the language of the guest's message.

Does Kolio take special requests such as a high chair or the terrace into account?

Kolio notes a guest's special requests — terrace, high chair, birthday cake, allergy — on the reservation, where your team sees them in the calendar and on the guest's contact. Requests it cannot guarantee (for example a specific table) it records as a wish, not a promise.

How does Kolio know how many tables are still free?

Kolio checks free tables in Kolio's calendar, where every service (table for 2, table for 4–6) has a set duration and serving staff, and the location's opening hours define service times. Reservations your team enters manually count the same as those Kolio takes, so a slot is never double-booked.

Does Kolio also book rooms and apartments?

For rooms and apartments Kolio records the dates, number of guests and contact details, confirms receipt of the inquiry to the guest and creates a task for reception, which checks availability and sends the offer. It does not confirm multi-night stays on its own and does not take payments.

What does Kolio answer to a question about allergens?

Kolio lists the dishes and ingredients as written in the menu in the restaurant's knowledge base and, following your instructions, adds that staff confirm allergens when ordering. Whatever is not written in the knowledge base it does not guess — it tells the guest that your team will answer and creates a task.

Does the guest receive a confirmation and a reminder of the reservation?

A guest who gives their email address receives a reservation confirmation by email immediately and a reminder on the day of the reservation at 7:30 am. They can change or cancel with a new call or message, and Kolio enters the change in the calendar.

A guest calls during dinner service. Let Kolio pick up.

Enter your tables, hours and menu, route your existing number and try it free for 7 days. For a hotel with several departments or several venues, book a consultation.

7 days free · cancel anytime

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