How to take restaurant orders on WhatsApp
Most restaurants start by answering WhatsApp orders by hand, and it breaks at the dinner rush: messages pile up, orders get written down wrong, and hungry customers order from someone else. The fix is to make every order arrive the same way, complete, with the total confirmed and the payment link sent, whether a person or an AI agent answers.
Four ways to take orders on WhatsApp
- Answer by hand: Free and fine for a few orders a day. It stops working when two people message at once.
- The WhatsApp catalogue: Customers see your menu in WhatsApp, but changes to a meal and the delivery details still need a person.
- A link to an ordering website: Works for some customers, but many leave when they are sent out of the chat.
- An AI agent in the chat: It shows the menu, takes the order with the changes, confirms the total and the address, and sends the payment link without leaving WhatsApp.
What a complete order needs
The items and quantities, any changes ("no onions", "extra sauce"), delivery or pickup, the address and a time, the customer's name and number, and the total. If any of these is missing, someone has to message back, and that is where orders are lost.
Setting it up with Inboxi
- 1. Give it your menu: Your website, a PDF of the menu, or the items as products with prices.
- 2. Connect your WhatsApp number: From Settings, then Channels. Instagram and Messenger can share the same inbox.
- 3. Order from yourself: Test the dishes customers usually ask about and the changes they make.
- 4. Decide what goes to a person: Allergies, complaints and large catering orders go to your team with the chat attached.
Tips from restaurants that do it well
- Put a WhatsApp QR code on the menu and the bag: Repeat orders come straight back to the chat.
- Send the order back for confirmation: One clear summary prevents most wrong orders.
- Answer in the customer's dialect: People order more when the reply sounds like someone from their city.
Questions
Can the agent read a menu PDF?
Yes. Upload the menu as a PDF or add the items as products, and it answers from them.
Can it take payment?
It sends a payment link in the chat, so the customer pays before the kitchen starts.
What about busy nights?
The agent answers every chat at the same time, so nobody waits in a queue.
How much does it cost?
Inboxi starts at $49 a month with a 7 day free trial, plus Meta's WhatsApp message charges.
Try it on your own menu
Let Inboxi read your menu, then order from yourself on WhatsApp. Seven days free.