Hostie’s AI phone host now takes commission-free takeout orders

Based on Hostie's Nov. 4, 2026 press release on PR Newswire, Hostie's takeout and pricing pages, and Foodservice News' write-up of the same release. As of Nov. 12, 2026.

What happened

Hostie, the San Francisco restaurant AI "Virtual Concierge," said on Nov. 4 that it can now take commission-free takeout orders by phone and text and send completed orders to the restaurant's point-of-sale (POS) system (PR Newswire).

Hostie already answered calls and texts for reservations, private events and guest questions. Takeout ordering is the new piece. The company says the product is available now and points operators to Hostie.ai/takeout.

Why it matters to you

Phone takeout often lands when the dining room is busiest. An AI that answers the line can keep staff on the floor, but only if it works with your POS, fails safely and costs what you expect. Hostie's figures for early results are the company's own claims.

What Hostie says the product does

According to Hostie's release and takeout page:

• Guests can place takeout orders by phone or text.
• Hostie handles menu questions, modifiers, upsells and order confirmation.
• It syncs with the restaurant's menu and item availability.
• Completed orders go to the POS with "no manual re-entry," Hostie says.
• Direct integrations named in the release are Toast, Olo and Square. The takeout page says "Toast, Olo, Square, and more."
• Calls, texts and orders appear in one Hostie inbox, with orders visible in real time, Hostie says.

"I started Hostie to answer every call without pulling the team off the floor," Randall Hom, co-founder and CEO of Hostie and co-owner of Back to Back in San Francisco, said in the release. "It began with questions and reservations, and as we kept listening to restaurateurs' biggest challenges during service, adding takeout became the natural next step" (PR Newswire).

Hostie's early numbers (company claims)

Hostie's release says early adoption has driven more than $200,000 in takeout orders, with a 70% order completion rate and more than 18,000 items ordered through Hostie. Hostie also says order volume peaks around 5 p.m. (PR Newswire).

Those figures are Hostie's. The release does not say how many restaurants are in the sample, over what dates, or how "completion rate" is defined. Foodservice News repeats the same numbers from the release; it does not add an independent audit.

Hostie's own takeout page repeats the $200K, 70% and 18,000 figures, and lists "6 PM" as the "Peak ordering hour," which differs from the release's "around 5 p.m."

Pricing

Hostie publishes a pricing page with three plans: Essential, Premium and Hospitality Plus. As of Nov. 12, 2026, that page describes features for each plan but does not list dollar prices in the page text we could read. Hostie does not publish a per-order takeout commission on the takeout or pricing pages we checked; the release calls the takeout capability "commission-free."

What this means for owners

Before you put an AI on your phone line, ask questions that track what Hostie has (and has not) published:

1. Which POS does it write orders into? The release names Toast, Olo and Square. If you run something else, ask whether your system is supported and whether "and more" on the takeout page includes it in writing.
2. What happens when the AI fails or a guest asks for a human? Hostie's homepage says staff can jump into conversations and see live transcripts. Ask how a failed or abandoned takeout call is handed off during a rush.
3. Who pays, and for what? Hostie calls takeout "commission-free," which addresses a per-order cut of the ticket. Ask what monthly plan you need for takeout ordering, whether there is any per-order platform fee, and get the current price in writing, since dollar amounts are not on the public pricing page we checked.

Details may change; we'll update this piece if Hostie publishes pricing dollars, a POS partner list, or independent results.