Home / Industries / Bars and pubs
AI receptionist for bars and pubs
For bars and pubs where nobody can hear the phone over the Saturday crowd.
The band is loud, the taps are busy, and the phone behind the bar lights up again. It is someone asking if trivia is still on Tuesday, then a birthday party for forty.
- TactlyThanks for calling The Copper Kettle Pub. I'm the virtual assistant, and this call may be recorded. What can I help with?
- CallerHi, I'm Jess. Is trivia still on Wednesdays?
- TactlyYes, trivia runs every Wednesday at 8, teams of up to six. Tables fill early.
- CallerNice. And could I book the back room for my brother's birthday, maybe thirty people?
- TactlyThe back room holds up to thirty-five. I'll get your details to the manager, who handles parties.
- Message for the office: Jess, birthday for 30, back room request
Can an AI receptionist work for bars and pubs?
Tactly is an AI receptionist for bars and pubs. It answers when the bar is too loud or too busy, gives hours, kitchen times, trivia and live music nights, game day plans and age policies from your notes, and takes private party requests with date, group size and occasion for the manager. It can transfer to the bar during open hours, and it never takes tabs or payments.
The problem
Missed calls are missed work.
Bar staff cannot hear a phone over a busy room, and even when they can, stepping away from a three-deep bar costs drinks. Most calls are quick questions about tonight, and an unanswered phone sends that group somewhere that picked up.
Private parties and buyouts are the calls worth chasing: a team watch party, a fortieth birthday, a company happy hour. Planners call during the day and early evening, often when only one person is behind the bar setting up.
Calls it handles
The calls bars and pubs get every day.
What's on tonight?
Trivia, karaoke, live music, game broadcasts and happy hour times, answered from the weekly lineup in your notes.
Is the kitchen open?
Kitchen close times often differ from bar hours. Tactly gives both so nobody arrives hungry at 11.
Parties and buyouts
Group size, date, occasion and whether they want the back room. It collects the details or books a call with your manager.
Lost a jacket last night
Lost and found calls become a message with a description and contact name, so staff can check behind the bar.
Setup tips
What to put in your notes.
Tactly answers only from what you tell it. These are the lines that matter most for bars and pubs.
- Keep a weekly lineup in your notes with trivia, music and game nights, and update it when the schedule changes.
- Write bar and kitchen hours separately, plus your age policy for evenings, so callers get both straight away.
- Use the every-call or after-hours mode on loud nights so the phone behind the bar does not have to compete with the room.
Plans for bars and pubs
Starter
$49/mo
For a solo owner who mostly needs the missed calls covered.
- 100 AI-answered minutes a month
- Then $0.35 a minute
- Every feature included
- Most popular
Pro
$99/mo
For a busy shop that wants nights, weekends and lunch rushes handled.
- 250 AI-answered minutes a month
- Then $0.29 a minute
- Every feature included
Growth
$199/mo
For a team that sends a large share of its calls to the receptionist.
- 600 AI-answered minutes a month
- Then $0.25 a minute
- Every feature included
FAQ
Questions, answered
Can Tactly reserve tables at the bar?
If you keep times on your booking calendar, it can book them. Otherwise it takes a message for your manager with the group and time.
Can it take a party deposit?
No. Tactly does not take card details or deposits. It collects the party details so your manager can follow up and handle the deposit.
Can I listen to what callers said?
Every call is emailed to you as a summary with the full transcript, so you can read exactly what was asked and answered.
Restaurants, food and drink
Related industries
Stop sending callers to voicemail.
Set up your receptionist, make a free test call from your own phone, and switch it on when it sounds right.