On October 20, 2026, Yelp introduced a new feature called "Check for Me": an AI phone agent calls a restaurant on the user's behalf, determines the wait time, and texts back the result within a few minutes. The feature was announced as part of the company's fall product update. Wait time is the estimate of how long you would wait for a free table after arriving at a restaurant — exactly the information the agent collects by phone. The feature removes the need to call yourself: enough information to make a decision arrives by text message within minutes. Yelp's official press release says "Check for Me" will roll out in the coming months on select restaurant pages in the iOS app in the US and in Yelp Assistant.
How "Check for Me" Works
The feature appears on restaurant pages in the app. The user first enters the party size — how large a table is needed — and their phone number. The AI agent then calls the restaurant on its own, asks the staff for the wait time, and texts the answer back to the user. No calling is required on the user's part: the information needed to decide which restaurant to pick for dinner arrives in a text message within minutes. For example, a user can run "Check for Me" on several restaurant pages and compare which has the shortest wait — without calling each one separately. Once it receives the request, the agent calls the restaurant, talks to the staff member, and delivers the answer as a short text message. The user then decides whether to go. The process is fully automated — the user only sends the request; the agent handles the rest.
So on the one hand, consumers no longer have to make phone calls, while on the other, the business-facing "Smart Lead Reply" answers customer inquiries on owners' behalf and qualifies potential leads — together, the two features extend Yelp's AI capabilities for both consumers and business owners.
"Check for Me" is an AI phone agent that calls a restaurant and texts back the wait time within minutes. The feature launches in the coming months in the US on iOS — on select restaurant pages and in Yelp Assistant. (Yelp official press release, Business Wire)
Other Updates to the AI Assistant
The company also updated its AI assistant. An OpenTable integration was added: users can now book a restaurant without leaving the app — the journey from search to reservation stays inside a single app. The assistant now remembers preferences mentioned in previous conversations: personalization is stronger as a result, and recommendations increasingly match the user's past choices. The personalization angle was emphasized: because the assistant remembers preferences from earlier conversations, subsequent recommendations fit the user's tastes better. A 30-day chat history lets users revisit earlier suggestions and advice. Users can also set special reminders — for example, to receive activity ideas every Friday. Users can now build "Been Here" and "Want to Go" lists: the lists can be filtered and sorted by location, category, and cuisine, annotated with notes per entry, and shared with others.
For Business Owners: Smart Lead Reply
As part of the update, a new paid product for business owners, "Smart Lead Reply," was launched. The AI agent answers customer inquiries and, by conversing with them, qualifies serious buyers — taking over the task of sorting inbound leads. The product lets business owners automate the first contact with customers: the agent replies to inquiries, asks follow-up questions, and qualifies serious customers. The service costs $30 per month.
When and Where It Launches
"Check for Me" will not open everywhere in a single day: the feature will roll out gradually over the coming months. It will first be available to iOS users in the US — on select restaurant pages and in Yelp Assistant. The press release did not specify an exact expansion schedule — no additional dates have been announced for other regions or platforms yet. For now the feature is limited to the US; timelines for other countries have not been disclosed. The feature was presented as the centerpiece of the announced fall update.
