What Is Dinevate Voice AI?
Dinevate Voice AI is an assistant that answers your restaurant's phone for you. When a customer calls, the AI picks up right away, greets them by your restaurant's name, and has a natural conversation — just like a friendly employee at the counter.
It knows your menu inside and out, so it can take real orders over the phone:
- Pickup and delivery orders — added straight to your kitchen, no typing needed from your team.
- Reservations — callers can book a table by phone (when you have Dinevate Reservations turned on).
- Catering requests — big-order inquiries are captured with the caller's details so you can follow up.
- Everyday questions — hours, location, "do you have gluten-free options?", and more.
- Transfers to your staff — if a caller says "can I speak to someone?", the call is sent to your phone.
It never puts a caller on hold, never gets overwhelmed, and can handle any number of calls at the same time — even during the Friday night rush. And it works around the clock if you want it to, so late-night callers can order ahead for the next day instead of hanging up on a voicemail.
What It Can Do on a Call
Your AI assistant is built for how real people actually talk on the phone:
- Finds items from vague descriptions. A caller can say "that spicy chicken thing" and the AI finds the right item on your menu.
- Handles messy orders. Multiple items at once, changes mid-sentence, special requests — no problem.
- Knows your regulars. It recognizes repeat callers by their phone number and greets them with their name and saved details.
- Lets callers fix mistakes. Forgot the fries? A caller can ring back within a few minutes and the AI updates or cancels the order before the kitchen runs it.
- Checks order status. "Is my order ready?" — callers can check on a recent order right over the phone.
- Applies loyalty automatically. If your customer has rewards, they are applied without anyone having to ask.
- Quotes delivery on the call. Delivery fees and timing are worked out while the customer is still on the phone.
- Takes scheduled orders. Customers can order now for later today or another day.
- Tunes out background noise and stops talking when interrupted — it listens like a person, not a robot menu.
How Customers Pay
No card numbers are ever spoken over the phone. Instead:
- Card: the AI texts the caller a secure payment link. They tap it and pay with Apple Pay, Google Pay, or any card in seconds. The order is confirmed the moment they pay.
- Cash: if you allow it, callers can choose to pay cash when they pick up. (Delivery orders are always paid by card.)
You can turn cash on or off anytime — see the Voice Settings guide.
Where Orders Go
Voice orders flow into your kitchen exactly like your website orders:
- The customer finishes the call (and pays, if paying by card).
- The order appears instantly on your Dinevate Order Manager tablet and prints on your ticket printer.
- The order is clearly marked as a Dinevate Voice order, so your team knows it came in by phone. Cash orders are flagged so staff know to collect payment at pickup.
You can even watch a call in progress — an order being taken live shows up on the tablet with a pulsing LIVE badge.
Getting Started
Dinevate Voice AI is managed from your merchant dashboard, and only the restaurant owner account can set it up.
- Go to dinevate.com and log in with your owner account.
- Open your Merchant Dashboard.
- In the left sidebar, click "Dinevate Voice AI".
If Voice is not set up yet, you'll be guided through a short setup wizard:
- Restaurant — Confirm your restaurant details.
- Settings — Enter your Fallback/Forwarding Phone Number. This is the number the AI transfers calls to when someone asks for a person, so make sure it's a phone your staff actually answers.
- Phone — Choose how you want your Voice phone number: Get New Number, Port Existing Number, or Skip for Now. (More on this in the Phone Numbers guide.)
- Terms — Review and accept the service terms.
- Review — Double-check everything and click "Complete Setup".
That's it — you'll get a welcome email, and your dashboard's Dinevate Voice AI section unlocks with Home, Live Calls, Analytics, Call History, and Settings pages.
On your tablet? The Order Manager tablet also has a "Dinevate Voice AI" page in its menu. If you're not enrolled yet, the owner can tap "Start Enrollment" there and a Dinevate consultant will reach out to help set everything up.
After Setup: Point Your Callers at Voice
Once Voice is live:
- Your website updates itself. The phone number shown on your Dinevate website automatically becomes your Voice number, so web visitors who call get the AI.
- Update Google. If you got a brand-new Voice number, change the phone number on your Google Business Profile (and any other listings, menus, or flyers) so customers calling from Google reach your AI assistant.
- Or keep your old number. If you ported your existing number to Voice, nothing changes for your customers — same number, now answered instantly every time.
Good to Know
A few honest notes so there are no surprises:
- The AI is very good, but not perfect. Like any employee, it can occasionally mishear or make a mistake. Callers can always ask for a person, and calls that need help are transferred to your fallback number.
- Calls may be recorded and transcribed so you can review them in your Call History. Depending on your local laws, you may need to note this for callers.
- Keep a working staff phone. Dinevate Voice is not a phone company and can't handle emergency calls (911). Always keep a real phone line your staff answers as your fallback.
- You stay in control. You can pause the AI anytime — one switch sends all calls straight to your restaurant instead.
The Rest of the Voice Guides
- Voice Settings — choose your AI's voice, greeting, hours, cash rules, and more.
- Using Voice Day to Day — live calls, call history, transcripts, and analytics.
- Phone Numbers — get a new number or port (transfer) your existing one.
Need Help?
If something is not working or you have a question, head to your Support Center in the dashboard sidebar and create a new case. Our team will get back to you fast. The full process is covered at the bottom of the Getting Started guide.