Square AI adds local intelligence and voice ordering to keep hospitality teams moving
Square just expanded its AI tools with data your venue actually uses: weather, local events, news, and reviews. That context now sits next to your sales, labor, and inventory metrics inside Square Dashboard - on desktop and mobile.
For restaurants, bars, cafes, caterers, and venues, this means faster decisions on menus, staff, and stock. Less guesswork. More on-time service during rush and pre-event surges.
What's new and useful for hospitality
- Neighborhood-aware insights: Ask questions like "Will Saturday's street fair spike evening covers?" or "Is this July hotter than last year?" Square AI returns specific recommendations for staffing, prep, and purchasing.
- Pinned widgets on Dashboard: Save AI-generated charts (e.g., projected covers by hour vs. last year's heat wave) to track them at a glance.
- Conversation history: Revisit questions, refine them, and build on context over time.
- Mobile + voice control: Use Square AI in the Square Dashboard App so you can make calls on the floor, at offsite events, or between supplier stops.
Why this matters for restaurants and bars
Weather and events drive traffic more than most marketing. Now you can see that signal and act on it in minutes. Boost staffing when a heat spike means frozen drinks will fly. Trim prep when rain will drop patio covers.
Use local trends to fine-tune menu placement: promote high-margin items when footfall rises, and push bundles or family-style options when event schedules indicate group traffic.
Voice AI Ordering keeps the line moving
Square's AI answers 100% of incoming calls, even during the rush. Guests order by phone as they would with a staff member, customize items, and get their orders sent straight to the kitchen or POS.
Benefits: fewer missed calls, less double entry, fewer errors, and staff freed up for hospitality where it matters - greeting, running food, and solving problems on the floor.
Smarter purchasing with Order Guide
Order Guide pulls vendor data into one place and converts menus into ingredient lists automatically. You get SKU-level insight across suppliers to spot price creep, compare options, and tighten margins.
Result: fewer stockouts, less over-ordering, and faster weekly ordering cycles.
Proven results from sellers
- Multi-location smoothie brand: Used Square AI to identify top sellers, feature them online, and streamline ordering. They saw higher profitability and better repeat business.
- Regional retailer: Replaced hours of spreadsheet work with AI-driven projections and insights - saving an estimated 100 hours in a year.
Playbook: put Square AI to work this week
- Menu and prep: Ask, "Which menu items will trend up this weekend based on weather and nearby events?" Pin the chart. Adjust batches and par levels.
- Staffing: Ask, "Forecast covers by hour for Friday and Saturday vs. last year, factoring local events." Set shifts and cross-train to hit projected peaks.
- Inventory: Ask, "What SKUs risk stockout if patio traffic increases 20%?" Place orders through Order Guide with substitutions ready.
- Phone orders: Turn on Voice AI Ordering. Update your phone greeting and make sure POS routing rules send orders to the right stations.
- Reputation: Ask, "What are the top themes in recent reviews near my location?" Fix issues and feature the winners in your next promo.
- Pin it: Save your key charts to Dashboard: projected covers, item mix, labor-to-sales ratio, and weather impact.
For event venues and caterers
- Event-aware staffing: Pull local event schedules and weather to forecast arrivals by hour. Staff check-in, bar, and FOH accordingly.
- Pre-batch planning: If heat rises, plan more spritzers and mocktails; if cold, shift to warm cocktails and coffee stations. Adjust purchase orders mid-week.
- Guest experience: Use Voice AI Ordering to capture last-minute pickup orders while teams focus on onsite service.
Where to learn more
See how Square AI supports local businesses: square.com/ai-for-business. Explore the latest Square Releases: squareup.com/releases.
If you're upskilling your team on practical AI for operations, explore role-based programs: Complete AI Training - Courses by Job.
Bottom line
Square AI now blends your real business data with neighborhood cues and gives you voice-driven tools to keep orders moving. That's a direct path to better staffing, smarter purchasing, and smoother service - especially when it's busy.
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