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When Customers Don't Show Up


Ferhat Yalcin

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I always wondered why when you call a restaurant to cancel, they almost always sound so grateful. It sounds like a lot of people just don't show up.

It's true - it seems like every single time I do this, the host will say something like, "Thanks so much for calling - we really appreciate it."

Sad, actually, that such a basic act of courtesy is appreciated to this extent.

We have found the same thing for other various businesses.  I suspect many people input emails they rarely visit or don't use, and either old or faked phone numbers.

They don't want to be bothered.  We have found this phenomena on small business types with a wide variety of demographics.  People who sign up for things seem not to want to be bothered or subsequently contacted.

Dave is correct about using secondary or tertiary emails and fake phone numbers - the public is (justifiably) worried that their information will be sold or shared, and that using real information will only contribute to junk email and telemarketers.

Sorry for the plug, but this is why I stress so often, and so adamantly, that we (at dr.com) do not share, sell, or use member information in any way - I send out a mass email maybe once a twice a year, but it's only to announce something (a charity event, etc.), and if people write back asking to be removed, I *always* write them a personal note (which, like the phone calls canceling reservations, seems to be appreciated disproportionately).

If only people thought of the individual, rather than the entity, politeness in our society would increase dramatically.

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For brunch, we do not confirm.  For Friday and Saturday, we do but it makes no difference.  One interesting phenomenon is how many people have out of date emails and phone numbers on their open table profiles.  

We have found the same thing for other various businesses.  I suspect many people input emails they rarely visit or don't use, and either old or faked phone numbers.

They don't want to be bothered.  We have found this phenomena on small business types with a wide variety of demographics.  People who sign up for things seem not to want to be bothered or subsequently contacted.

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I wonder if there's a way to create scarcity here as a tool to combat this.

Any one of these could be really suicidal to the business, and I don't pretend to know the restaurant business.  But I've always been interested in how some places seem to transcend the norm, and how they tipped the scales that way.   For instance:

- Like the place in AC, NJ...maybe ask people a question when they reserve "who do you know that comes here?"   There's no wrong answer...but now people are less anonymous and (more importantly) - they either tell the truth and have a friend "on the hook" OR, they lie and risk being called out for lying.  If I were to make a reservation and was asked, I might say "Don Rockwell" or "DR. com" suggested me and thus I'd feel like I might be ratted out if I didn't show.   Suddenly I've got some skin in the game.

- Maybe a few rules, like "new guests must reserve at least 3 weeks ahead, people who previously no showed must leave a deposit" - of course you have the same number of tables and reservations, but the rule makes people think that they have to prove themselves or they lose their right to come to the restaurant.   People generally want to be "in with the in crowd" and by encouraging good behavior on their part, you're giving them a kind of 'perk'

- Maybe you take Open Table reservations but contingent on a live conversation.  That's work on your side, I get that...but again, it introduces some scarcity for the person making the reservation and a heads-up that they better be real.  I don't know if OT allows that...but I'd consider something like that.

- Maybe you take a credit card hold and have a no-show fee.   That's last resort kind of stuff but...if combined with some of the approaches above, it might hammer home the importance of timeliness.  Doctors do this routinely now.

- Maybe you have a frequent diners club and a no-show is cause for loss of points (or something like that).  That won't help with the one-off person who's never eaten with you before except that it just paints the picture that you take it very seriously. 

I think a combination of the impression of scarcity, some carrots and some sticks might be the ticket here, with scarcity being the hardest but ultimately most effective means. 

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I would never intentionally do this with a restaurant or a website like Open Table, but there are other areas where I might consider using a bad phone number (especially) or email address. Such as when from what I flatter myself is the goodness of my heart I give money to a charity, say, for disaster relief, and then they hound me what looks like all the way to my grave for more. I have a very high regard for the work that Médecins sans Frontières does in the world, but that doesn't mean I want them or their fundraisers to call me three times a week. For the rest of my life.

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If you have an OpenTable reservation and don't show up without cancelling it, you get an e-mail from them.  Do it often enough and they will cancel your account.  Of course, the two times I got the e-mail, I had honored my reservation, the restaurant just didn't bother to indicate that I had done so.  Of course, I never had that problem with Dean.

Failing to call to cancel, and just not showing up is immature behavior of the highest degree.  Of course there are too many folks that make a reservation at two or three places then decide which one to go to at the last moment.  (again, not something you can do on OpenTable)

If you ever wondered why some restaurants require you to give them a credit card to secure a reservation now you know why.

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If you have an OpenTable reservation and don't show up without cancelling it, you get an e-mail from them.  Do it often enough and they will cancel your account.  Of course, the two times I got the e-mail, I had honored my reservation, the restaurant just didn't bother to indicate that I had done so.  Of course, I never had that problem with Dean.

The only time I ever got an Open Table nastygram about a no-show reservation was for a reservation I honored, at Dino. Not that I hold a grudge against Dean.

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Failing to call to cancel, and just not showing up is immature behavior of the highest degree.  Of course there are too many folks that make a reservation at two or three places then decide which one to go to at the last moment.  (again, not something you can do on OpenTable)

I always cancel reservations I do not intend to honor as early as I possibly can. If it is an online reservation thing like Opentable, I cancel it there and my job is done. I do not think I need to call the restaurant unless it is short notice (meaning a day or so before, not hours or minutes before). Also, I must admit, I have made multiple reservations for the same date for different places to grab a reservation to hold it while I hammer out time, or preferred place to go with my wife, and then go back and cancel the ressies I do not intend to utilize. This is usually weeks in advance of a dinner. And I do this pretty rarely.

I even call if I am running late for a reservation (usually due to lousy traffic).

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I would never intentionally do this with a restaurant or a website like Open Table, but there are other areas where I might consider using a bad phone number (especially) or email address. Such as when from what I flatter myself is the goodness of my heart I give money to a charity, say, for disaster relief, and then they hound me what looks like all the way to my grave for more. I have a very high regard for the work that Médecins sans Frontières does in the world, but that doesn't mean I want them or their fundraisers to call me three times a week. For the rest of my life.

Ha. I found this out my very first year of working, when I decided to donate $10 to three different charities (Muscular Dystrophy, St. Jude's Children Hospital, and ... something else). They spent more on postage during the next five years than I donated, sending me regular junk mail with three boxes to fill in: $10, $20, or $30 (I later found out it's 1x, 2x, and 3x of whatever you donated). Well, that's the last money they ever got from me, and my donations essentially went to the U.S. Postal Service.

BTW, if any restaurateurs want to use this thread to name no-call/no-shows, it's fine. All I ask is that you keep it factual.

I'm thinking as I type ... it may not be good business to have your name associated with calling people out - I'm tempted to offer to post these for you, but unless I list restaurant, it would just be asking for trouble or stretching credibility. In this situation, restaurateur's are victims, and there's got to be a way to stop this from happening

If you wish, I'll start a No-Call/No-Show thread, with a standard format (name, restaurant name, party size, time), and we can maintain a list in alphabetical order. Or, if someone has a better idea, I'd entertain that as well - it would need to be purely factual without any interjection. Diners have got to realize that if they aren't going to show up, they need to call the restaurant - I'd like to see this illusion of entitlement come to an end.

This is also the type of thing where everyone needs to be onboard, or else the trailblazers will be punished by public opinion.

I hate to say this, but we're heading towards credit-card deposits for the majority of restaurants, or advance purchases, just like buying tickets to the opera - you own the ticket, and if you can't show up, then you're responsible for selling it yourself. Hmmm ... maybe I should start a secondary-market website in anticipation of this occurring in the future - oh, I forgot, it's called TicketMaster.

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I hate to say this, but we're heading towards credit-card deposits for the majority of restaurants, or advance purchases, just like buying tickets to the opera - you own the ticket, and if you can't show up, then you're responsible for selling it yourself. Hmmm ... maybe I should start a secondary-market website in anticipation of this occurring in the future - oh, I forgot, it's called TicketMaster.

It's already happening:

"No More Reservations: Exclusive Restaurants Require Ticketing Instead" by Jeff Tyler on npr.org

My brother-in-law's restaurant in SF uses this same ticketing system, and while there were definitely kinks in the beginning (high demand pretty much crashed the system), it is preferable to the no-shows.  If the tickets are transferrable (which they are), what's the real downside?

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It's already happening:

"No More Reservations: Exclusive Restaurants Require Ticketing Instead" by Jeff Tyler on npr.org

My brother-in-law's restaurant in SF uses this same ticketing system, and while there were definitely kinks in the beginning (high demand pretty much crashed the system), it is preferable to the no-shows.  If the tickets are transferrable (which they are), what's the real downside?

I'm all for this - customers have brought it on themselves.

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I do not like the idea of tickets to dinner as a general idea. I want the flexibility to order what and how much I want to order and to not be locked in to a set menu (one notable exception to the rule being the Bread Furst dinners at the moment).  I do not mind paying a certain amount up front - say $50 to secure the deposit or to secure a ressie with a credit card.

I love the idea of rating douchebag diners (meaning mainly no shows to reservations made) to Uber-ize (not that I partake in Uber, that's just....weird) so they get the restaurant karma that is coming to them while responsible diners get the restaurant karma that is coming to them. :)

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I do not like the idea of tickets to dinner as a general idea. I want the flexibility to order what and how much I want to order and to not be locked in to a set menu (one notable exception to the rule being the Bread Furst dinners at the moment).  I do not mind paying a certain amount up front - say $50 to secure the deposit or to secure a ressie with a credit card.

I love the idea of rating douchebag diners (meaning mainly no shows to reservations made) to Uber-ize (not that I partake in Uber, that's just....weird) so they get the restaurant karma that is coming to them while responsible diners get the restaurant karma that is coming to them. :)

I think the BreadFurst model (paying some minimum that the restaurant needs to stay in business) is what it would have to be.

I'm all for rating douchebag diners too, so let's get going.

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It's already happening:

"No More Reservations: Exclusive Restaurants Require Ticketing Instead" by Jeff Tyler on npr.org

My brother-in-law's restaurant in SF uses this same ticketing system, and while there were definitely kinks in the beginning (high demand pretty much crashed the system), it is preferable to the no-shows.  If the tickets are transferrable (which they are), what's the real downside?

What is the downside? I think in the long run it will lead to homogenized food experiences sold as theaters of dining.

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We are going to Disney World for part of winter break.  You have to give a credit card for every dining reservation (and pre-pay for some, like Cinderella's Royal Table) and there is a $10 per person penalty for no-showing.  And their software makes sure the credit card is valid.  Unlike Marriott's which is still using a Discover card I reported lost 2 years ago but I can't figure out how to change it...

And they still get a ton of no-shows.

But at least if you go online at 11 pm (the deadline for canceling without penalty) you are likely to find that elusive, hard to find, reservation that you have been struggling to find for the last six months.

I no-showed once--at Signatures, ages ago--because I screwed up Open Table and reserved for October 11th instead of November 11th.  I was SO ashamed.

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There is a vary easy solution for this. We experienced this at Gypsy when we first opened. Two tops are much easier to fill on weekends by walkins when guests dont show. We allow 15 minutes. After that, the twos will be filled with walk in guests.  Four tops and larger, we now take a credit card to hold the table with a $25.00 no show fee, not a cancelation fee but a no show fee, per how many guests that have made the reservation for.

As the same as a doctor, hotel, psychologist, or any other service, you show once you have to pay if you miss.

We now have 1% no shows.

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There is another side to this:

I am 67 years old and have never stood up a restaurant.  I also literally have more than three quarters of a century of my family being involved in restaurants and understand what it means.

But...

1.  My wife and I have had two significant reservations cancelled by restaurants recently.

We were married in 1996 and had our wedding dinner sitting at the chef's counter in the rear of Wolfgang Puck's Chinois on Main in Santa Monica.  Three months ago I made a reservation for that very same chef's counter for our anniversary (which was last week).  I offered to guarantee, even prepay given the historical significance.  I was told this was not necessary.  I was also told that having this on the books would "protect" us from a possible buyout which the restaurant occasionally had.

Two weeks before the date I received a call from Chinois telling me that they could not honor our reservation because they had a private party that night.  They asked if we could switch to another night?  No, we couldn't.  it was the anniversary of our wedding dinner which was there.  Would we consider Spago which they would comp us?  No, because we didn't eat at Spago the night we were married.  Sorry, they were booked and looked forward to seeing us another time.

This was for a reservation they had on their books, at the time of the call, for two months.  That I had reconfirmed.

Last week we were in Santa Monica and I drove by Chinois the night of our original reservation.  At 9:00PM it was almost empty and several staff were rolling oversize tables out the front door.  It looked like the private party that bought the restaurant out had totalled somewhere between 75 and 100 covers.  Total, for the whole night andl again, almost all gone by 9:00PM.

I thought about going in and asking for the manager but I didn't.  It would have been bad form and created an awkward situation.  Still, it was awkward when they asked if we could change our wedding anniversary dinner to another day or another restaurant.

I wrote this on Chowhound in 2007 soon after Wolfgang Puck's The Source opened:  http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/450594  Then, there was no Yelp nor Travel Adviser.  If anyone googled "Wolfgang Puck The Source" this is what came up.  Please note the first paragraph.

I was not happy when Chinois cancelled our reservation.  I must also add that I sent the corporate office an e-mail and never heard from them.

2.  My wife and I and another couple made a reservation for Patowmack Farm two months in advance.  Ten years ago you HAD to reserve months in advance for there-it was that popular.  This was another anniversary and the couple we were going with (no names) knew Tarver King.  I have also cooked for Beverly in our house.

Two weeks before I got a call from Patowmack Farm that they had a private party and could be reschedule for another day?  No, because a birthday is a birthday.  Also, at that time, our reservation had been on the books for six weeks-why were we now being cancelled?  It was also a Friday night:  Didn't they have enough covers that a private party would have been out of the question?

This was through Open Table.  My guess is that Patowmack Farm and Beverly had no idea who anyone was who was coming, nor any idea if it was a celebratory dinner.

But we were cancelled for a private group.

Twice, in a couple of months.

My guess is that if more, many more people actually showed up for THEIR reservations restaurants wouldn't be cancelling our's.  But for myself this is a bad direction that restaurants are taking:  believing that with a week or two of notice that it's all right to tell someone who has been on their books for six weeks or more  (and who was willing to prepay/guarantee with a credit card), "no."

I'm not going to stand out on the street for a restaurant that doesn't take a reservation.  But I'm also not going to go back for one that cancels me.  I'm not talking about an illness or an extraordinary situation; I'm talking about being "riffed" for the security of a prepaid private party.  Even on a Friday night when I would not have thought that a private party would have been a consideration.

FWIW, L. A.'s Rustic Canyon (where we went in place of Chinois) is one of the best restaurants in Southern California.  It's chef should be nominated for a Beard award-he is that good.  I never would have eaten his cooking if it were not for Chinois.

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Joe,

I understand your frustration but your situations are very rare coincidence.

I had a party of 4, cancelled FishNook yesterday with the excuse being `there is a Caps game and the concert on the mall`. FishNook seats only 4 people and I have to bring in all my produce and seafood on Monday because the menu is completely different than the restaurant`s. Did these people not know about the game or the concert before hand? They made the reservation almost 4 weeks ago. I was too naive to trust them and did not ask for a credit card. How is that fair to me? I was not able to fill the seats tonight. I learned my lesson, just too late.

Btw, you should try Melisse next time right across from Rustic Canyon.

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Yes Joe I agree with you completely.  As for our policy at Rogue24. We take reservations 1 month in advance and with any private party a 50% deposit must be made to hold the date. If the party cancels within 1 month they loose there deposit.

If a party wants rogue the day we have reservations, and we have to cancel the reservation,, the party pays for their experience at any future date. With all upgrades involved.

Standing on a street for a table at a restaurant, I just don't get.  Like begging for them to cook for you.  Takes the hospitality out of hospitality.

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I have to add that we "know someone" (I won't go into any more specifics because they may read this and i don't want to get shot in public in our neighborhood) who recently had a trip to a major city on the East Coast.  They had two "significant" reservations for two nights and were on the waiting list for a third restaurant for one of those same nights.  After their trip was over, sitting over a second bottle of wine, they talked about the excellence of the dinner they had-the restaurant that they got into at the last minute.  I asked about the restaurant they had the original reservation at for that night and what did they do?  From my perspective it didn't matter whether they called or not.  They should have said no to the "third" restaurant and honored their standing reservation. (There should not have been a third restaurant!) But they didn't.

The topic was changed before I got an answer.

Again, I am certain that attitudes like this played a major role in our own cancellations.  FWIW I lost a lot of respect for the couple who told this story.

I agree with Chef Cooper-if people had something invested in the dinner, I believe they'll make a sincere effort to show up.  And, if they don't, as Ferhat noted, there's an expense that they should be responsible for.

Ferhat, I absolutely loved Rustic Canyon.  A GREAT chef who is imaginative, talented and wildly successful at pairing odd flavors and textures.  Even contrasting hot and cold in the same dish. Superb wine list, too and a very real ambassador in the front of the house who is their GM ("Steve")  I considered Melisse but am extremely fortunate that we found Rustic Canyon.

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I love the convenience of Open Table and would never think about not showing up.  I feel bad even if I show up 5 minutes late (usually my husband's fault) because I worry I've screwed up their turnover timing.  One policy I used to hate but now don't mind is GAR call-ahead.  I tried it recently at Carlyle and it worked pretty well.  I wonder why more restaurants don't try this.

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Joe,

I understand your frustration but your situations are very rare coincidence.

I had a party of 4, cancelled FishNook yesterday with the excuse being `there is a Caps game and the concert on the mall`. FishNook seats only 4 people and I have to bring in all my produce and seafood on Monday because the menu is completely different than the restaurant`s. Did these people not know about the game or the concert before hand? They made the reservation almost 4 weeks ago. I was too naive to trust them and did not ask for a credit card. How is that fair to me? I was not able to fill the seats tonight. I learned my lesson, just too late.

Btw, you should try Melisse next time right across from Rustic Canyon.

Since you are only dealing with four people at a time, I would think this is the perfect opportunity to institute the ticketing system. Pay upfront and lose out if you don't show.

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Failing to call to cancel, and just not showing up is immature behavior of the highest degree.  Of course there are too many folks that make a reservation at two or three places then decide which one to go to at the last moment.  (again, not something you can do on OpenTable)

For what it is worth, we have multiple open table accounts and actually do this quite often.  Do we want Rasika or CityZen Friday? Let's book both on Monday and decide on Wednesday (or whatever the cancellation policy is).  For trips it is worse, we often have 4 reservations at different places simultaneously on multiple days so we can build an itinerary depending on when we can get hard to get tables.  We do eventually cancel the ones we don't want.

We don't no show though.  We always cancel as early as possible.  I think I've only been stung once for a cancellation fee - Momofuku Ko. Wife and I was terribly sick day of and I unhappily sucked up $500 or so of cancel fees. I agreed to it to secure the reservation, so I guess I can't really complain.

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Curious - does a last minute cancellation (say like an hour before) via open table help at all, or is it basically the same, from the restaurant's perspective as a no show?  Personally, I don't think I've ever no-showed, but have canceled reservations the day of (usually in the morning/afternoon).

Funny story about this - two weeks ago we had a reservation at Dino's - but due the the F*^#in Metro track work on EVERY. SINGLE. LINE - we were running about 10-15 minutes late and I was worried that they were going to give our table away.  Was about to call and beg not to do so, but instead decided to just walk all fast like from the Shaw stop and made it there only about 15 min late and were shown right to our table :) .  Meal was fantastic btw - made even better with lots of Lambrusco and orange wine (yes I'm weird).

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Curious - does a last minute cancellation (say like an hour before) via open table help at all, or is it basically the same, from the restaurant's perspective as a no show?  Personally, I don't think I've ever no-showed, but have canceled reservations the day of (usually in the morning/afternoon).  

Yes it helps, and the more notice, the better. Even calling at 7:10 PM for a 7 PM reservation to say, "We're stuck behind an accident, and can't get there for another hour" is *much* better than no-showing - just think of it as going to someone's house. 10 minutes notice is better than 1 minute notice. 30 minutes is better than 10 minutes. 4 hours is better than 30 minutes. Etc. Etc.

People need to make "closure" - whether it's showing up and dining, canceling ten minutes in advance, or calling the next day to apologize for forgetting - part of their basic, autonomic psyche.

I once ordered a pizza at Dominic's and couldn't get there (beltway traffic). I called (after the pizza was cooked) and said I couldn't come, and the next time I went in, maybe a week later, I paid for the pizza. Honestly, I was a little surprised they accepted the entire amount (they should have charged me their cost), but I paid it. Whoever was working the cash register had no knowledge of the situation, but I did. Why doesn't everyone do this? Would the world not be a better place?

It seems that people are just embarrassed (or can't be bothered) to make the call, but I cannot name one single time in my life when I've called to atone for something and it wasn't appreciated, or at least acknowledged. I even missed a *wedding* once, and after I wrote and explained what happened, they understood, and now everything is as it was before.

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For what it is worth, we have multiple open table accounts and actually do this quite often.  Do we want Rasika or CityZen Friday? Let's book both on Monday and decide on Wednesday (or whatever the cancellation policy is).  For trips it is worse, we often have 4 reservations at different places simultaneously on multiple days so we can build an itinerary depending on when we can get hard to get tables.  We do eventually cancel the ones we don't want.

Hmm...This strategy strikes me as ethically dubious.  Certainly better than no-call/no-showing, but you are knowingly booking a table for a restaurant you have no intention of visiting.  In the case of large and very popular places like Rasika and CityZen, it's probably less of an issue, but I could see that hurting a smaller place.

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Hmm...This strategy strikes me as ethically dubious.  Certainly better than no-call/no-showing, but you are knowingly booking a table for a restaurant you have no intention of visiting.  In the case of large and very popular places like Rasika and CityZen, it's probably less of an issue, but I could see that hurting a smaller place.

Josh, I was wondering if someone was going to say something about this. There's a reason I "Liked" Adam's post: It reeks of honesty. *Lots* of people do this in real life (although if you took a poll, nobody would admit to doing it), and this is a valuable opportunity for open, non-judgmental discussion.

This is reality. And we're not going to change it. Given that, what are we going to do about it?

Again, I see the final answer (other than not accepting any reservations and having lines down the block at Rose's Luxury, or showing up and having two-hour waits at Sweetwater Tavern (*)) being "credit cards during the reservation process with a minimum charge, and all sales final," but I'm curious to see what else people come up with.

(*) Note that Great American Restaurant Group uses a hybrid method where you can call ahead, and have your name put on the waiting list before you get there (and they can give you a time estimate over the phone). This system is ingenious, and has *always* worked well for us, but it takes a high-volume restaurant in order to get the estimates right.

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For what it is worth, we have multiple open table accounts and actually do this quite often.  Do we want Rasika or CityZen Friday? Let's book both on Monday and decide on Wednesday (or whatever the cancellation policy is).  For trips it is worse, we often have 4 reservations at different places simultaneously on multiple days so we can build an itinerary depending on when we can get hard to get tables.  We do eventually cancel the ones we don't want.

We don't no show though.  We always cancel as early as possible.  I think I've only been stung once for a cancellation fee - Momofuku Ko. Wife and I was terribly sick day of and I unhappily sucked up $500 or so of cancel fees. I agreed to it to secure the reservation, so I guess I can't really complain.

This seems very fair.

As long as you don't mind the restaurant taking more reservations than they can handle knowing full well that some people use this strategy {an if you cancel on Wednesday, now worries!} and others just make the several reservations and no show the others.  And if luck isn't a lady tonight  (just quoting a song, no stereotypes involved: substitute gentleman, gentle gender non binary, gentle life form of any type), an hour or two wait is taken without blaming the restaurant.  

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Hmm...This strategy strikes me as ethically dubious.  Certainly better than no-call/no-showing, but you are knowingly booking a table for a restaurant you have no intention of visiting.  In the case of large and very popular places like Rasika and CityZen, it's probably less of an issue, but I could see that hurting a smaller place.

I find it way more than a little ethically dubious.  A reservation is a commitment to be somewhere.  You can't be committed to be in more than one place at the same time.  It is the equivalent to lying or cheating in my opinion.  But I know that I have much stronger feelings about cancelling plans in general than many - if I tell you that I will be there, I will be unless it is impossible.  A reservation doesn't have that same level of commitment, but to make one when you know that you have a good chance of cancelling it is deceitful all the same.  I really hope you reconsider this practice.

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Making multiple reservations for the same person's use at the same mealtime is also a violation of Open Table's terms of service, as is any furnishing of false information when registering.  It's not like they're probably checking for every version of your name in their system, though.  As long as you have enough email addresses and phone numbers, it's possible to register multiple accounts without giving false information.

I sometimes make OT reservations for my husband when he's traveling.  To do that, I had to convert to an administrative account.  That's the only legitimate way you can make multiple reservations through OT at the same time.*  I can make a reservation for him to go out with work colleagues in Charleston at the same time I've got a reservation to go out with friends in DC, but it requires that type of account and giving OT the names of people you reserve for.

*ETA: They also have a concierge account type for hotel professionals, so "only" isn't correct.

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What's going to happen, if popular restaurants start using ticketing, is that speculators will buy up blocks of tickets and resell them at a higher price.

Already happens.  There is a thriving business in selling reservations at hot restaurants in NY.  You get a reservation, especially for a Friday or Saturday night, and put it up for sale.  I saw a reservation for Per Se for a Saturday night offered for $200.

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For what it is worth, we have multiple open table accounts and actually do this quite often......

We don't no show though.  We always cancel as early as possible.  I think I've only been stung once for a cancellation fee - Momofuku Ko. Wife and I was terribly sick day of and I unhappily sucked up $500 or so of cancel fees. I agreed to it to secure the reservation, so I guess I can't really complain.

I have multiple 'people' on my Opentable account. They used to (still do??) allow this for assistants to make reservations on behalf of their boss, for example.

Point #2 - While I enjoyed my experience at Momofuku Ko, I was underwhelmed. Given that they fill up so quickly, assuming you cancelled early enough in the day I cannot imagine they would not have been able to backfill the seats. That sucks.

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Point #2 - While I enjoyed my experience at Momofuku Ko, I was underwhelmed. Given that they fill up so quickly, assuming you cancelled early enough in the day I cannot imagine they would not have been able to backfill the seats. That sucks.

I bet they did still serve two people in my seats.   It reloaded the seats on their online reservation system instantly and they were gone quickly.  I sort of contemplated sending my assistant over there to make sure the seats sat empty.  In one sense, I paid for them.  Frankly David Chang doesn't seem like the type of guy who would refund my money even if he did fill those seats.

Regarding the ethical issues of multiple reservations, I see none.  I routinely make multiple reservations for hotels and transportation and car rentals and figure it out all later. I don't view a reservation as a commitment until day of (unless, I have agreed explicitly to some sort of contract).

In some ways Opentable has caused this.  It lets me make reservations semi-consciously.  I don't need to think much.  Just tap tap, done.  Before Opentable you had to call, and speak to a human, and it took effort to make a booking. There was a connection with the person who picked up.  You felt obligated to show.  That has all changed.  If Opentable was smart, they would charge for reservations at prime times.  They incentivize you by offering 10,000 points to dine at 5:30.  Why not charge $20 a reservation for an 8 pm prime table and pass the money on to the restaurant owners.

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Regarding the ethical issues of multiple reservations, I see none.  I routinely make multiple reservations for hotels and transportation and car rentals and figure it out all later. I don't view a reservation as a commitment until day of (unless, I have agreed explicitly to some sort of contract). 

So would it be OK if a restaurant took multiple booking in each slot, and canceled on you the day of?

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Regarding the ethical issues of multiple reservations, I see none.  I routinely make multiple reservations for hotels and transportation and car rentals and figure it out all later. I don't view a reservation as a commitment until day of (unless, I have agreed explicitly to some sort of contract).

In some ways Opentable has caused this.  It lets me make reservations semi-consciously.  I don't need to think much.  Just tap tap, done.  Before Opentable you had to call, and speak to a human, and it took effort to make a booking. There was a connection with the person who picked up.  You felt obligated to show.  That has all changed.  If Opentable was smart, they would charge for reservations at prime times.  They incentivize you by offering 10,000 points to dine at 5:30.  Why not charge $20 a reservation for an 8 pm prime table and pass the money on to the restaurant owners.

And this is why we can't have nice things.

I'm glad you came in here and admitted these things because it's an interesting window on how "real people" act, but I've got to say, it makes me angry reading it.  It's behavior like this that has caused and will continue to cause the rest of us to suffer.

I can't wait for the day that every single place under the sun (not just restaurants) won't take a reservation without a credit card and also starts lengthening the cancelation period.  Goodbye 24 hours and hello one week!  We can probably also look forward to being charged just to make a reservation too.

And to blame it on Open Table is a weak and silly justification  If you want to practice jerky behavior, own it!  Don't blame it on an app.

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Isn't the no show to restaurant problem a situation-specific manifestion of our general cultural tendency to be lax about interpersonal commitments? When students make appointments to see me outside of class I ALWAYS confirm the day of, because either they fail to show, or I get an email 5 minutes before the appointment saying "sorry, won't be coming." A friend recently planned a surprise party. She told me there was almost zero relationship between the RSVP (or lack thereof) and actual attendance. People who said they were attending failed to show, and those who hadn't bothered to RSVP did show. My hairdresser says his schedule regularly blows up when appointments are 1/2 hour late, or fail to show. He said the late arrivals almost always ask to be served "immediately," you know, because they're late for the next things.

People just don't seem to care that their lack of commitment affects others. It affect the provider and its employees, who might lose income. It affects other customers, whose experience might be diminished when businesses have to institute punative measures.

Everyone says they're "so busy" and "don't control my own schedule." If you're THAT busy, or you're so in demand that someone else tells you where to be, then don't make a reservation, an appointment or a date. All the rest of us will appreciate it, not that you'll care!

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Thank you to those who are using this as an opportunity for polite discussion.

My guess is that for every member voicing objection, there are two members on the phone, booking multiple reservations, and not saying a word.

And to blame it on Open Table is a weak and silly justification  If you want to ... own it!  Don't blame it on an app.

He did own it, and I am grateful for the honesty because it's *exactly* what people do in real life.

 
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He did own it, and I am grateful for the honesty because it's *exactly* what people do in real life.

I disagree.  To own it would be to come right out and say, "I don't care who I hurt or inconvenience or screw over.  I'm more important than you Mr.s Restaurant owner and I'm certainly more important than you fellow diner"  Instead he blame the behavior on the ease of using Open Table"¦.."two clicks and I'm done, when in the past I had to talk to a real person and therefore felt an obligation"  (paraphrased)

I'm grateful for his honesty too, and it also should be noted that he didn't actually violate any policies, but he's certainly violating the spirit and intent of the cancellation policies.  Put another way, do you think these "24 hour cancellation policies" would still be in effect if 90% of the public were pulling these moves?

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I disagree.  To own it would be to come right out and say, "I don't care who I hurt 

I stopped reading right after the word hurt, and therein lies the difference between your opinion and his. Do you honestly think if he thought he was doing something wrong, he'd continue to do it?

I don't.

And I could go into many other avenues of life where *I* might think, passionately, that accepted human behavior is unacceptable, but I'm in such a small minority that what I think doesn't matter.

Quoting from C.S. Lewis here:

"¦one man said to me, "three hundred years ago people in England were putting witches to death. Was that what you call the Rule of Human Nature or Right Conduct?" But surely the reason we do not execute witches is that we do not believe there are such things. If we did"“if we really thought that there were people going about who had sold themselves to the devil and received supernatural powers from him in return and were using these powers to kill their neighbours or drive them mad or bring bad weather"“surely we would all agree that if anyone deserved the death penalty, then these filthy quislings did?

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I stopped reading right after the word hurt, and therein lies the difference between your opinion and his. Do you honestly think if he thought he was doing something wrong, he'd continue to do it?

I don't.

You should read the rest, it's not that long.

Well, for one he's technically not doing anything wrong, but I don't think he thinks about it at all.  And this is not just Adam I'm talking about but the entire Me Generation (which has no upper or lower age limit, but skews younger!).  I see this in every facet of life - eating, talking, driving, shopping, walking on the street, basically anywhere you come into contact with humans.  Most people don't give any consideration how their actions affect those around them.  Are they inconsiderate jerks or just  have absolutely no self-awareness at all?  I don't know.

Think about every loud talker on a cell phone.  Do you think they're being obnoxious and annoying on purpose?  Probably not.  They're just have no idea that there's a world around them that they are negatively impacting.

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Do you honestly think if he thought he was doing something wrong, he'd continue to do it?

I don't.

There is no way making reservations that you don't plan on keeping can benefit the restaurant or the waiters who might have empty seats.  If the restaurant isn't sold out, it might get that table filled, but what about the shoulders.  We fill the shoulders of the evening after the prime gets filled in general.  But the restaurant may not refill that reservation.  Or it may not get walk ins.  It may be raining or snowing.

A reservation for 10 at 6pm means you rebook the table(s) earlier than a night where those tables are booked later.  So cancelling it at 4pm or 5pm or even worse, at 6:30pm may leave me with a table that will sit empty til 8.30.  A waiter with a loss of perhaps 1/5 their income for the night.

Am I missing something here?  How can it ever be right to make a promise you don't intend on honoring.  When I overbook, I know that if I have he insane bad luck, a low probability event, of having everyone show up, I am in for a long night of apologies, gift cards, prosecco etc.  And I can't charge this to the person who caused it.

It's just food.  Make one and if you cant keep it, cancel and change plans.  Maybe Rasika will morph into a night in annandale in a hole in the wall instead of a night at the other restaurant you made a reservation at.  Its just food folks.  But to the restaurant, its owner and employees, its their livelihood.

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I disagree.  To own it would be to come right out and say, "I don't care who I hurt or inconvenience or screw over.  I'm more important than you Mr.s Restaurant owner and I'm certainly more important than you fellow diner"  Instead he blame the behavior on the ease of using Open Table"¦.."two clicks and I'm done, when in the past I had to talk to a real person and therefore felt an obligation"  (paraphrased)

I'm grateful for his honesty too, and it also should be noted that he didn't actually violate any policies, but he's certainly violating the spirit and intent of the cancellation policies.  Put another way, do you think these "24 hour cancellation policies" would still be in effect if 90% of the public were pulling these moves?

He has violated Open Table's policies, but I don't imagine they probably police the accounts that much.

I've never booked multiple restaurants for the same time, but I don't eat out that much and rarely at the most in-demand restaurants.   It wouldn't occur to me to do that, much as it wouldn't occur to me to accept three dinner party reservations for the same time and then decide a day or two before which one I would attend.  It might be different if I got invited to three parties on the same date but they were spread out enough that I could get to all of them for a while.

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There is no way making reservations that you don't plan on keeping can benefit the restaurant or the waiters who might have empty seats.  

And there's your point of emphasis - that things should be done to benefit the restaurant. Fair enough, but other people have different priorities.

Am I missing something here?  How can it ever be right to make a promise you don't intend on honoring. 

You are missing something here: Some people do not consider making a reservation "making a promise."

Its just food folks.  But to the restaurant, its owner and employees, its their livelihood.  

To some diners: it's their time, it's their money, it's their choice, and it's their right.

I'm absolutely not taking sides here; but I am witnessing very different points of view depending on people's position. I don't want to speak for anyone, but it's clear to me - given how often this happens in the real world - that the eventual solutions are 1) no reservations, or 2) credit card. Restaurants that do offer reservations will do so like the dwindling number offering a free bread basket - as an added bonus.

This has *always* happened - it's just that the digital age has made it easier to do (oops, am I not supposed to say that?)

I wonder how many people here wouldn't think twice about canceling a hotel reservation at 4:59 PM.

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