February 21, 2026
A single catering call can tie up your phone for 10 minutes while your team walks through headcount, menu packages, dietary restrictions, delivery timing, and payment details. During lunch rush or dinner service, that kind of back-and-forth leads to rushed conversations or missed high-ticket orders altogether. Modern restaurant catering software powered by voice AI handles these detailed calls from start to finish, capturing bulk orders, calculating pricing, and processing payments without pulling staff off the floor. The real question is which systems are built for true end-to-end catering management and which are simply basic phone answering tools, and that’s what we break down below.
TLDR:
AI phone systems for restaurant catering order management are voice AI agents that answer incoming calls, take bulk orders, process payments, and sync order details directly into restaurant systems. When a customer calls to place a catering order, the AI asks questions about headcount, menu preferences, delivery timing, and dietary restrictions. It calculates pricing on the spot, suggests add-ons, takes payment information securely, and sends the complete order ticket into your POS or kitchen management system.
Catering orders represent high-ticket transactions. A single missed call during lunch rush can mean losing a $500 corporate lunch or a $2,000 event booking. These calls often require 5-10 minutes of back-and-forth to finalize details. AI phone systems handle these time-intensive conversations without pulling staff away from dining room service, following best practices for handling high volume calls during peak periods.
We assessed each system on factors that directly impact catering order management:
This ranking relies on publicly available documentation, provider websites, and verified feature sets for each system.
| System | Full Catering Orders | Catering-Specific Features | POS Integration | Setup Time | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loman | Yes, with payment processing and complete order flow | Bulk quantities, headcount calculations, delivery scheduling, package customization | Toast, Square, Clover, SpotOn, Aloha, Olo, Stream | Under 24 hours | Restaurants where catering drives considerable revenue with high-ticket bulk orders |
| Sadie | Limited, relies on middleware for orders | Focused on reservations, lacks bulk pricing and catering workflows | Now Book It, Deliverect | Not specified | Reservation-focused restaurants using Now Book It with occasional catering |
| Maple | Takes inquiries but lacks specialized catering management | General inquiry handling, no bulk pricing engines or proposal tools | Major POS systems, OpenTable | Not specified | Independent restaurants balancing dine-in and moderate takeout volume |
| Certus AI | Yes, handles orders in multiple languages | New entrant, lacks track record for complex catering workflows | 45+ POS systems | Not specified | Pizza shops and QSRs with high phone volume needing multilingual support |
| VOICEplug AI | Yes, across phone, drive-thru, and kiosk | Focus on drive-thru automation instead of catering-specific bulk order management | 50+ restaurant tech systems | Extended testing required | Multi-location QSR chains and franchises with international operations |
| ConverseNow | Yes, for individual orders | Drive-thru optimization, lacks catering management for bulk orders and coordination | Major POS and delivery platforms | May require developer support for menu updates | Large QSR chains focused on drive-thru speed and individual meal orders |
Loman answers every call around the clock and completes full catering orders, from initial inquiry to credit card payment. The AI captures guest count, menu items, and payment details, then routes clean tickets into your POS. Setup takes less than 24 hours and integrates with Toast, Square, Clover, SpotOn, Aloha, Olo, and Stream.
The system handles unlimited concurrent calls and never places customers on hold. It identifies returning guests, supports multiple languages, and recommends add-ons that increase order values. Multi-location operators can configure shared menus with store-level overrides and review consolidated reporting across all units through hosted contact center software. Loman also syncs reservations with OpenTable, managing both walk-in bookings and catering requests through a single AI agent while helping restaurant food costs stay under control through intelligent ordering patterns.
Sadie is a proprietary AI agent built by Now Book It that answers calls for restaurant reservations, booking changes, and menu inquiries. The system focuses primarily on reservation management, offering 24/7 booking with live table availability checks and support for up to 20 concurrent calls. It integrates directly with Now Book It’s reservation system and uses Deliverect for order management while handling general guest questions.
Sadie works well for restaurants where table bookings drive the majority of revenue, particularly those already using Now Book It. However, its phone order flow relies on middleware between the AI and your POS, adding technical complexity. The system also lacks catering-specific features such as bulk pricing, advanced customization for large-group orders, and dedicated workflows for detailed catering inquiries, making it less suitable for restaurants with a considerable catering volume.
Maple reports answering over 1 million calls for restaurants with a 92% resolution rate without human intervention, handling takeout orders, catering inquiries, hours, directions, and FAQs. The New York-based company graduated from Amazon’s AWS Generative AI Accelerator and serves more than 1,000 restaurants. Its AI operates 24/7 with OpenTable integration for reservations and POS integrations for major systems, while call transcripts and captured context support staff follow-up.
Maple works well for independent restaurants and small chains that need dependable phone coverage while balancing dine-in reservations with moderate takeout and catering volume. However, it lacks specialized catering management features such as bulk pricing engines, advanced customization for large orders, and dedicated proposal tools. Restaurants where catering is a primary revenue stream will likely need more purpose-built catering order management capabilities beyond general inquiry handling.
Certus is an AI voice agent built for restaurants that answers calls 24/7, handling orders, deliveries, reservations, and complaints in multiple languages. The Y Combinator-backed startup is a recent entrant to the market and serves restaurants across the US, UK, and Canada with POS integration for 45+ systems and phone payment processing.
The system suits pizza shops and QSRs with high phone volume needing multilingual support. However, as a new entrant to the market, Certus lacks a functional track record and purpose-built catering features like bulk order management, proposal generation, or specialized workflows for complex multi-item catering orders requiring detailed customization and delivery coordination.
VOICEplug AI automates food ordering across phone, drive-thru, and kiosk channels for restaurants in 20 countries, including the USA, Canada, UK, and Australia. The system offers multilingual voice AI in regional languages and features PizzaVOICE, a specialized solution for pizza ordering, while supporting simultaneous call handling and real-time availability sync across channels. It works well for multi-location chains and franchises that need consistent voice AI across international markets, especially pizza brands and QSR operators focused on drive-thru volume.
However, VOICEplug’s integration ecosystem spans more than 50 restaurant tech systems, which can add setup complexity and require extended testing. Its focus is on multi-channel and drive-thru automation instead of catering-specific workflows, making it a stronger fit for large QSR brands with IT resources than for restaurants that rely heavily on bulk catering order management.
ConverseNow provides voice AI ordering assistants that automate drive-thru and phone orders for restaurants. Founded in 2018, the company serves more than 1,200 restaurants across 40+ states and expanded its drive-thru capabilities through the acquisition of Valyant AI. The system is designed to handle high volumes of simultaneous orders through conversational AI, includes upselling during calls, and integrates with POS systems and major delivery brands.
ConverseNow works well for large QSR chains and national pizza brands focused on drive-thru speed and individual meal orders. However, adding new menu items or managing off-script requests can require developer support, and the company’s focus on quick-service ordering means it lacks specialized catering management features for handling bulk orders, complex customizations, and detailed delivery coordination.
Loman AI is purpose-built for restaurants that rely on phone orders, reservations, and high-ticket catering. It manages complete catering conversations from start to finish, capturing headcount, menu selections, dietary restrictions, delivery timing, and secure payments in a single call. Orders sync directly with major POS systems like Toast, Square, Clover, SpotOn, Aloha, Olo and Stream, and reservations connect with OpenTable. Most restaurants can go live in under 24 hours with guided onboarding.
Loman acts as a 24/7 voice AI team member that answers every call, takes pickup and delivery orders, books reservations, quotes wait times, and handles catering inquiries without placing guests on hold. It recognizes repeat callers, supports multiple languages, and suggests add-ons to increase ticket size. A built-in dashboard shows call transcripts, revenue from phone orders, peak call times, and store-level reporting.
For restaurants where catering drives meaningful revenue, Loman replaces disconnected tools with one system for calls, orders, payments, and reservations. Independent operators, multi-unit groups, and enterprise brands can manage shared menus, per-location overrides, and roll-up analytics in one place, helping recapture missed revenue and reduce phone-related labor costs.
Systems with fast setup and simple workflows work best for beginners. Loman deploys in under 24 hours with full catering order capabilities, while options like Maple suit smaller operations with occasional catering requests that don't need specialized bulk order features.
Drive-thru AI like ConverseNow optimizes speed for individual quick-service meals, while catering AI needs to manage 5-10 minute conversations covering headcount, delivery timing, bulk quantities, and complex multi-item coordination. Few systems handle both well.
If you're missing calls during peak hours, spending more than 30 minutes daily on catering phone work, or losing high-ticket orders because staff can't leave the dining room, AI phone systems recapture that revenue immediately.
The best restaurant catering software should capture every high-ticket opportunity without slowing down service or tying up your team on long phone calls. When bulk orders, dietary restrictions, delivery logistics, and payments are handled automatically, your staff stays focused on guests in front of them while catering revenue continues to grow in the background. The difference comes down to whether your system can manage full end-to-end catering conversations or simply take messages. If you want restaurant catering software that answers every call, processes payments, syncs directly with your POS, and manages complex bulk orders in one place, see how Loman handles real catering scenarios by booking a demo.
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