Open Table

Grammatically, doesn't make sense. But as an ex-waitress...it was a phrase I heard a lot.

Do you have a table open?
Let me check if there is a table open.
There is a table open on the patio.

I signed up for opentable.com because the bevie wednesday night was getting bigger (JB and I thought that we would go out for bevies every Wednesday no matter what - and if you want to come, come. If not, no worries). Well, it grew on day bigger than we thought - so a resy was required.

I made a resy to Beer Bistro on open table and it was easy. It let you know what time they had available, special requests etc. After that success, I used it for a lunch at Vertical. Another success.

Today, I got an email about summerlicious on opentable. Brilliant. I may not go, but if I did - why not set it up online instead of the headaches of calling.

What makes this special for restaurants?
-It is up to the user to make sure they have their dates and time correct. (I initally got my first use of the site date wrong...but they accommodated me anyway).
-It is hard to find hospitality help these days - why not automate?
-Confirmations are provided via email...don't waste a host's time.