Background: Wayfare Tavern Meets a New Location and New Questions

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In 2010, chef Tyler Florence opened Wayfare Tavern in San Francisco. Drawing inspiration from the city’s historic taverns, the venue quickly became a community staple. Since opening, Wayfare Tavern has continued to serve classic, turn-of-the-20th-century cuisine to guests.

As the team prepared to move to a new location in 2025, Chief of Brand and Sales Andrea Boyd foresaw a potential struggle: a barrage of questions about the move.

With guests wanting to know everything from why they moved to where they moved, Andrea knew her host team would not be able to keep up with the calls while still delivering the level of hospitality Wayfare Tavern is known for.

Although they explored other AI solutions, Andrea and Wayfare Tavern knew they had found the perfect solution after speaking with the Hostie team.

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“Our biggest challenge was that people just had so many questions. If the phone was ringing and ringing and ringing, we could have had 25 hostesses, and we still wouldn’t have been able to keep up with the calls,” said Andrea Boyd, Chief of Brand and Sales.‍

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Wayfare Tavern started with Hostie in May 2025. In just three months, Hostie has answered 11,000 calls, and over-the-phone bookings are up 150%.

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Challenge: Answer the Phone and Let Hosts Concentrate on In-House Hospitality

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Since onboarding in May, hosts at Wayfare Tavern no longer have to worry about answering the phone. Hostie allows them to concentrate on what matters most: delivering exceptional hospitality to their guests.

In three months, Hostie has answered 11,000 conversations, spent 154 hours on the phone, made 462 reservations, and fully resolved 66% of calls without transferring to a host.

Challenge: Manage High Call Volume While Maximizing Reservations and Covers

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With Hostie integrated into their reservation platform, Wayfare Tavern no longer worries about missed reservations when the phone goes unanswered. Bookings are made automatically, 24/7.

Just one month after onboarding Hostie, over-the-phone bookings more than doubled, reservations increased 95%, and walk-ins rose 88%.

‍Try Hostie today and never miss a call again.

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