Seven locations. One number that never goes to voicemail.
A multi-branch restaurant group was losing orders every time the phone rang during a rush. Code Encoders built a network of AI call agents, one per branch, that answer instantly, take the order, and hand the caller to the nearest open location when a branch can't.
Every branch runs its own agent. One routing layer sits behind all seven, so when a branch can't take the call, the network finds the nearest one that can, live, without the caller hanging up and dialing someone else.
Industry
Restaurant / quick-service
Locations
7 branches, United States
Agents deployed
7 (one per branch)
POS integration
Square
Coverage
24/7, calls and orders
The Challenge
Every unanswered call was a customer choosing somewhere else.
Across all seven branches, staff were doing exactly what they were supposed to be doing: running food, managing the line, seating tables. The phone rang anyway, and during lunch and dinner service there was no one free to answer it. Before Code Encoders got involved, the group was missing an estimated 150 to 250 calls per location, every month, almost all of them during the two windows that matter most to a restaurant's revenue.
That pattern isn't unique to this client. Industry research attributes close to $20 billion a year in lost revenue across the U.S. restaurant industry to unanswered phone calls, with roughly 60 to 81 percent of those calls representing real orders or reservations rather than spam. Once a caller hits a voicemail, about 85 percent never call back. They order from a competitor, or they open a delivery app and hand over 15 to 30 percent of the ticket in commission instead.
Adding a dedicated phone employee doesn't fix it either. Full-service restaurant labor already runs at a median of 36.5 percent of revenue, and a part-time hire who only covers two rush windows a day still draws a full wage in between. Across seven branches, that math gets worse, not better.
Branch 4, incoming line, Friday dinner service
The Solution
One agent per branch. One network that knows where to send the call.
Code Encoders built a dedicated AI voice agent for each of the seven branches, not one shared agent trying to speak for all of them. Each agent is trained on its own location's menu, pricing, hours, and policies, fed through uploaded PDFs and a structured knowledge base so answers stay accurate branch by branch instead of blending into one generic script.
The agents sit on a shared routing layer. If a branch's line is already busy, the location is closed, or no one picks up on the AI's own end for an operational reason, the caller isn't dropped to voicemail. The network checks which branch is nearest and open, and transfers the call there live, mid-conversation, with context intact.
Per-branch knowledge base
Every location's menu, pricing, hours, and policies are loaded individually, so the agent never gives a caller the wrong branch's information.
Cross-branch call transfer
When one branch can't take the call, the routing layer finds the nearest branch that can and hands the caller over in real time.
Live Square integration
Finished orders are pushed straight into Square. No one is re-typing an order that was already taken correctly once.
Always answered
Every branch now has 24/7 phone coverage, including outside operating hours, without adding a single shift.
How It Works
What actually happens when the phone rings now.
01
Call comes in
The branch's own AI agent answers immediately, using that location's menu and voice, with no hold music and no menu tree.
02
Order or request is handled
The agent takes the order, answers a menu or hours question, or logs a request, the same way a trained host would.
03
Capacity check
If that branch can't take the call right now, the network checks which other branch is open and closest to the caller.
04
Transfer or order push
The caller is transferred live to the nearest branch, or the finished order is sent straight into Square. Either way, nothing gets missed.
The Results
What changed once every call got answered.
Before
150-250
missed calls per branch, per month
Voicemail
outside peak hours and after close, across all seven branches
Manual coverage
staff pulled off the floor to catch calls during rush
After
70-80% fewer
missed calls, across all seven branches
20-30% more
phone orders taken
70-80% lower
staffing cost tied to phone coverage
The Economics
What the client is paying, against what a missed call actually costs.
$3,500/mo
Full deployment cost: 7 AI voice agents at $500 per branch, per month.
$5,000-$21,000/mo
Estimated at-risk revenue, per branch, based on the client's own reported call volume (150-250 missed calls) at an industry-average missed-call value of $35 to $85.
That range is a single branch. Multiply it by seven, and the exposure the client was carrying before deployment was well into six figures a month, against a flat $3,500 to cover every location. This estimate uses published industry averages applied to the client's own call volume, not an audited client P&L, and is included to size the problem rather than to claim an exact dollar return.
From the Client
Phone coverage stopped being a daily fire to put out. Every branch now answers every call, and nobody has to pull a server off the floor to do it. A full on-record testimonial is pending the client's sign-off and will be added here once approved.
Reported by the client's operations team
FAQ's
Frequently Asked Questions
Seven, one dedicated agent per branch, each trained on that location's own menu, pricing, hours, and policies rather than one shared script across all locations.
The shared routing layer checks which other branch is open and nearest, then transfers the caller there live, mid-conversation, instead of sending them to voicemail.
Square. Finished orders are pushed directly into Square, so staff never have to re-enter an order the AI agent already took correctly.
$3,500 a month in total, covering all seven AI voice agents at $500 per branch, per month.
A 70-80% reduction in missed calls, a 20-30% increase in phone orders, and a 70-80% reduction in staffing cost previously tied to phone coverage, across all seven branches.
Yes, though the client's name and location are withheld at their request. The figures reported are as provided by the client, not an audited P&L.
The Outcome
What seven AI voice agents and one routing layer changed
70-80%
Reduction in missed calls across all seven branches
20-30%
Increase in phone orders taken
70-80%
Reduction in staffing cost tied to phone coverage
24/7
Phone coverage at every branch, with no added shifts
$3,500/mo
Total cost to cover all seven branches
Sources
QSR Magazine, "While the Phone Rings, Restaurants Are Losing $20 Billion," 2026.
Loman.ai, missed restaurant call revenue analysis, 2026.
Restaurant industry labor cost benchmarks, full-service median wages and benefits as a share of revenue, 2024-2026 data.
Missed call value range compiled from restaurant industry missed-call cost research, 2026.
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