Restaurants & pubs playbook · 5 free jobs

AI for restaurants and pubs: 5 jobs to hand to AI this week

Margins are thin and the admin never stops. These jobs use AI for costing, wording and planning, with your chef and managers making every food safety call.

Job 1 of 5Google SheetsChatGPT

Cost a dish and set a price that protects your margin

Many menus are priced by gut feel. A quick costing shows which dishes make money and which quietly lose it.

Time: 15 minutes per dishCost: free tools work

Google Sheets plus a free AI chat tool for the formulas

Steps

  1. List each ingredient, the amount per portion and your latest supplier price per unit.
  2. Paste with the prompt below.
  3. Check the maths with a calculator for one dish to be sure.
  4. Repeat for your top sellers and review the menu prices.

The exact prompt

Copy, paste, then fill in the [brackets]
Cost this dish for a [UK] restaurant.
Ingredients (amount per portion, supplier pack size and pack price): [list].
Target gross profit margin: [e.g. 70%]. VAT: menu prices include 20% VAT.
Show: cost per ingredient, total plate cost, suggested menu price inc VAT to hit the target margin, and the margin at my current price [£].
Then give me Google Sheets formulas so I can reuse this for other dishes.

✓ Check before you send

  • Supplier prices are current.
  • Portion sizes match what the kitchen actually serves.
  • VAT is handled correctly.

UK notes extra

Last reviewed Oct 2026. Free tools change. If a screen looks different, the steps still apply.Back to top ↑
Job 2 of 5ChatGPTClaudeCanva

Write a seasonal menu and the social posts to launch it

A new menu deserves more than a printed sheet. Clear descriptions and a few launch posts fill seats in the first fortnight.

Time: 45 minutesCost: free tools work

A free AI chat tool, Canva for menus and posts

Steps

  1. Get the final dish list from the chef with real ingredients and suppliers.
  2. Run the prompt below.
  3. Have the chef check every description and allergen line.
  4. Lay out the menu in Canva and schedule posts with your own food photos.

The exact prompt

Copy, paste, then fill in the [brackets]
Write menu descriptions for a [UK] [pub / restaurant]'s [autumn] menu.
Style: [e.g. relaxed, British, no pretension]. Max 15 words each.
Dishes, ingredients and named suppliers: [list].
Only mention suppliers, "local", "homemade" or provenance claims I've given.
Then write 4 short social posts to launch the menu (under 60 words each) for the first two weeks.

✓ Check before you send

  • Descriptions match the actual dishes.
  • Provenance claims are true.
  • Photos are of your food.

UK notes extra

Last reviewed Oct 2026. Free tools change. If a screen looks different, the steps still apply.Back to top ↑
Job 3 of 5ChatGPTGoogle Docs

Answer allergen questions safely, every time

Allergen mistakes can be fatal. A clear process and scripts for staff matter far more than any AI tool. AI just helps you write them.

Time: 30 minutes onceCost: free tools work

A free AI chat tool to draft scripts, your allergen matrix as the only source of truth

Steps

  1. Make sure your allergen matrix is up to date for every dish (see the cafés playbook for a matrix prompt).
  2. Use the prompt below to draft a staff script and a booking-confirmation line.
  3. Train staff: they always check the matrix and the kitchen. They never guess, and they never ask AI.
  4. Review the script whenever the menu changes.

The exact prompt

Copy, paste, then fill in the [brackets]
Write a short allergen script for front-of-house staff at a [UK] restaurant.
Cover: how to ask about allergies when taking orders and bookings, what to say ("I'll check our allergen information and with the kitchen"), how to flag the order to the kitchen, and what to do if we can't guarantee a dish is safe (say so honestly).
Also write one line for booking confirmations asking guests to tell us about allergies in advance.
Under 200 words. No medical advice.

✓ Check before you send

  • The script sends staff to the matrix and the kitchen, never to memory or AI.
  • Cross-contamination risks are honestly communicated.
  • Every staff member has been trained on it.

UK notes extra

Last reviewed Oct 2026. Free tools change. If a screen looks different, the steps still apply.Back to top ↑
Job 4 of 5ChatGPTCopilot

Cut booking no-shows with clear confirmations

An empty table for eight on a Saturday hurts. Clear confirmations and a fair deposit policy reduce no-shows.

Time: 20 minutes onceCost: free tools work

A free AI chat tool, then your booking system's confirmation and reminder messages

Steps

  1. Decide your policy: when you take deposits or card details, cancellation notice, what happens on a no-show.
  2. Run the prompt below.
  3. Paste the wording into your booking system's confirmation and reminder templates.
  4. Show the policy before guests book.

The exact prompt

Copy, paste, then fill in the [brackets]
Write booking messages for a [UK] restaurant.
Policy: [e.g. card details for groups of 6+, £10 per head charged for no-shows or cancellations with under 24 hours' notice].
1. Booking confirmation (under 80 words), including the policy in plain English and a line asking about allergies.
2. Reminder 24 hours before (under 50 words) with an easy way to cancel or change.
3. A short policy for the website.
Warm, not threatening.

✓ Check before you send

  • The policy is fair and shown before booking.
  • Charges match what your booking system actually does.
  • Cancelling is easy for guests.

UK notes extra

Last reviewed Oct 2026. Free tools change. If a screen looks different, the steps still apply.Back to top ↑
Job 5 of 5ChatGPTClaude

Write a clear tipping and service charge policy

Since the tipping law changed in 2024, staff and guests expect transparency. A clear written policy is a legal must and good for morale.

Time: 30 minutesCost: free tools work

A free AI chat tool, checked against GOV.UK

Steps

  1. Read the GOV.UK guidance on tips at work and decide how you distribute tips and service charges.
  2. Run the prompt below with your actual arrangements.
  3. Check it against GOV.UK and consult staff as the code expects.
  4. Share it with staff in writing and add a short version for guests if you like.

The exact prompt

Copy, paste, then fill in the [brackets]
Draft a tipping and service charge policy for a [UK] restaurant, under 300 words, plain English.
Our arrangements: [e.g. 12.5% discretionary service charge on tables of 6+, 100% of tips and service charge paid to staff via payroll monthly, split by hours worked, kitchen and front of house included].
Sections: what counts as tips, how they're shared, when they're paid, how staff can see records, how to raise a concern.
Mark anything I need to check with [CHECK GOV.UK]. Don't state the law yourself.

✓ Check before you send

  • It matches GOV.UK guidance and the statutory code.
  • Staff were consulted.
  • The guest-facing wording says service charges are discretionary if they are.

UK notes extra

Last reviewed Oct 2026. Free tools change. If a screen looks different, the steps still apply.Back to top ↑

Questions restaurants & pubs ask

Can AI answer customers' allergen questions?

No, never. Staff must check your allergen matrix and the kitchen. AI can only help you write the staff script and policies.

Which AI tool is free?

The free plans of ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot and Claude handle costings, menus and policies. Google Sheets is free for dish costing.

Will my menu descriptions sound generic?

Give the AI your style and a few of your current descriptions, then edit. Provenance claims like "local" must be true.

Privacy tip: don't paste customers' full names, addresses or other personal details into AI tools unless you need to and you've checked the tool's privacy settings.