Saying what you want

There is no syntax to learn. Layout is built to take the sentence you would text a friend and turn it into a real order, so the best thing you can do is stop composing and just say it.

Things that work

• "a large iced coffee from Dutch Bros"
• "two chicken burritos from Chipotle, no beans, extra guac"
• "my usual from the Starbucks by work"
• "a bag of chips from Don Quixote near me"
• "whatever I got last time at Cane's"
• "something vegetarian from the Thai place on Grand"

Quantities, sizes, substitutions, extras, a specific location, or none of the above. All of it is fair game in one sentence.

When Layout asks you something

Layout only asks when the restaurant makes it ask. If a burrito requires you to pick a tortilla, that is their menu demanding a choice, and you will be offered exactly the options they list.

What you should not get is a made up question. Your assistant is told not to invent sizes or ask about variants out of its own head, because it does not know what this restaurant actually offers, and a question about something imaginary costs you a turn. If you ever get asked about an option that turns out not to exist, that is a bug worth telling us about.

Timing

Every order goes in as soon as possible, which is how a counter order works. Layout does not schedule one for later, so "in twenty minutes" tells us when you are coming rather than when to send it.

There is one time question Layout will ask you. If the earliest slot a restaurant offers falls on a different day, the order stops there and asks, rather than quietly booking you in for tomorrow morning.

Changing your mind

Before you confirm, change anything. Size, item, quantity, store, all of it, in plain words. Layout rebuilds the order and shows you a new total.

After you confirm, the order is with the restaurant and it is final on our side. That is not us being strict, it is what happens when a real kitchen starts making food. The help center covers what to do in that case: change or cancel an order.

Asking what a place has

You do not have to know the menu. Ask "what does the Thai place on Grand have that is vegetarian" and Layout reads their current menu and tells you, with real prices.

That read costs us a little money each time, so there is a daily allowance on it and a short cooldown before we will re-read the same restaurant. In normal use you will never touch either. If you are comparing menus all afternoon, you might, and Layout will say so plainly rather than pretending the restaurant has nothing.

A word on what Layout will not do

It will not sign in to your loyalty account to redeem points, add a tip on your behalf, apply a promo code, schedule an order for later, or deliver. It also will not spend money without your confirmation, which is worth saying twice because it is the thing people assume an AI ordering tool gets wrong.