Are you an OpenTable diner who plans your restaurant reservations way ahead of time? Or, are you a foodie who likes to reserve on the fly, whenever the mood strikes? Pick your preference in today’s dining poll!
Archive for the ‘Reservations’ Category
OpenTable Dining Poll: Do You Plan Far Ahead When Making Reservations?
Wednesday, January 25th, 2012On Our Plate This Week at OpenTable: Happenings and Hot Offers
Monday, June 6th, 2011
During Palm Springs Desert Resort Restaurant Week, Frank Sinatra's house isn't the coolest thing in Palm Springs!
What’s on our minds — and on OpenTable — this week…
* Dine About Town San Francisco is in full swing in the Bay Area! Don’t miss two-course lunches for $17.95 and three-course dinners for $34.95 at terrific restaurants, such as Fish & Farm, Marlowe, Spruce, and waterbar. Make your reservations now!
* Did you know June is Dining Month Portland? We did! Take advantage of three-course dinners for just $25 at this city’s coolest restaurants. Reserve today.
* Palm Springs Desert Resorts Restaurant Week runs through June 12! Restaurants around this arid area are offering multi-course meals for $24 or $36. Book now — and tell ‘em Sinatra sent you.
* Don’t forget dear old Dad! Reserve now for Father’s Day! I’m in New York, so it looks my father will have some amazing options.
* Put pen to paper and write an ode to your favorite restaurant for a chance to win a free Spotlight offer.
OpenTable Seats 200 Millionth Diner; OpenTable Diners Have Spent Approximately $8 Billion at Partner Restaurants
Wednesday, March 2nd, 2011OpenTable is pleased to announce that we’ve seated our 200 millionth cumulative diner during the first quarter. Diners seated via online reservations through OpenTable have now spent an estimated $8 billion at partner restaurants.
“Our early adopting restaurants were using the OpenTable Electronic Reservation Book first and foremost to optimize their front-of-house operations,” said Jeff Jordan, Chief Executive Officer of OpenTable. “Over time, diners discovered the convenience of making online reservations, and we’re very gratified that over 200 million diners have been seated through our service. We value our partnership with our restaurant customers and are energized by helping them fill their dining rooms and grow their businesses.”
“In 1999, we became one of the first restaurants to computerize the host stand using OpenTable,” said Dale Forrest, General Manager of Farallon Restaurant in San Francisco, a critically acclaimed winner of numerous OpenTable Diners’ Choice Awards. “Our original decision to use the OpenTable Electronic Reservation Book was driven by its user-friendly interface and operational benefits, such as catering to all our guests’ needs, planning special events, and efficiently managing seating plans. Over time, as the OpenTable diner network has grown and online reservations have become increasingly popular, we’ve reaped another benefit: filling more seats.”
OpenTable has more than 20,000 restaurant customers, including over 3,000 restaurants in the United Kingdom that may be booked via toptable.com, a leading restaurant reservation site based in London and owned and operated by OpenTable.
OpenTable Introduces New Metro Home Page with Improved Features
Monday, November 29th, 2010So, it’s the ‘new’ Friday (otherwise known as Thursday) and you have dinner plans with a friend — but no idea where to dine. Naturally, we do — and now you will, too, thanks to OpenTable’s new metro home page, which launches in all metro areas tomorrow morning. Front and center, you’ll find available tables for two at some of your city’s most popular and highest-rated restaurants. Just click on a time, and you’re on your way! Known as ‘Tables for Two Tonight,’ it is one of several new concepts that we’ve introduced as part of a facelift to our metro homepage.
How OpenTable Works for Restaurants
Friday, November 19th, 2010As a diner, when you think about OpenTable, you probably think about the convenience of booking restaurant reservations online (as we hope you do!). However, recent buzz has led some diners to wonder, “Is OpenTable as good for my favorite restaurants as it is for me?” Well, we certainly believe so, and here’s the how and the why.
OpenTable for Nokia Is Now Available for Symbian S60 5.0 touch Devices
Wednesday, May 12th, 2010We are pleased to announce that OpenTable for Nokia is now available on Ovi Store by Nokia, allowing diners to reserve tables instantly and for free at thousands of restaurants in the UK, U.S., Canada and Mexico. Key features include the ability to:
* Find restaurants around your current location with availability and book on the spot
* Refine search results by cuisine, price and points
* Read fresh and relevant reviews by recent OpenTable diners
* Manage upcoming reservations
* Send SMS messages with reservation details to the rest of your dinner party
OpenTable for Nokia is available for Symbian S60 5.0 touch device users residing in the UK, U.S., Canada and Mexico. Users of non-touch Nokia devices such as the Nokia E72 will be able to download the app in the coming weeks.
OpenTable for Nokia is the company’s latest smartphone application, following the releases of applications for the iPhone, BlackBerry, Android and Palm.
We are pleased to announce that OpenTable for Nokia is now available on Ovi Store by Nokia, allowing diners to reserve tables instantly and for free at thousands of restaurants in the UK, US, Canada, and Mexico. Key features include the ability to:
* Find restaurants around your current location with availability and book on the spot
* Refine search results by cuisine, price and points
* Read fresh and relevant reviews by recent OpenTable diners
* Manage upcoming reservations
* Send SMS messages with reservation details to the rest of your dinner party
OpenTable for Nokia is available for Symbian S60 5.0 touch device users residing in the UK, US, Canada and Mexico. Users of non-touch Nokia devices such as the Nokia E72 will be able to download the app in the coming weeks.
OpenTable for Nokia is the company’s latest smartphone application, following the releases of applications for the iPhone, BlackBerry, Android and Palm.
Easter Is Almost Here: Hop to It!
Monday, March 22nd, 2010
Easter is less than two weeks away. Have you made your reservations for the day? No matter where you live, OpenTable can help you find the right food and a restaurant with the right mood for celebrants. Visit our international Easter reservations page to search for tables where you are — or where you’ll be, if you’re traveling for the holiday. From locations across the U.S. to Canada and the U.K., let us help you plan a special day.
View special offers and dining discounts, and book your Easter reservations today!
How to Be a Good Diner (or How Not to Wind Up on ‘Waiter Rant’)
Monday, March 15th, 2010
CNN.com recently ran a story about restaurant service with advice from our friend Steve Dublanica, the former professional wait staffer behind the snarky Waiter Rant blog and author of the book Waiter Rant: Thanks for the Tip — Confessions of a Cynical Waiter (HarperCollins). In it, he provides some tips for being a good patron, including not treating a restaurant as if it’s a day care center (Clean up after your kids.), not requesting an off-menu dish unless you accept the consequences (It might not taste great.), and refraining from showing up sans a reservation yet expecting the best table in the house (Use OpenTable.).
A few diner don’ts that come to my mind are things I’ve seen very recently. First, don’t ask a waiter to go through the entire menu with you. Use your reading comprehension skills and then ask specific questions. I saw a couple make a very patient server walk them through a five-page menu. It took 15 minutes on a busy Saturday night. This was not Daniel, mind you — just a lovely, unpretentious Mexican restaurant with entrees under $20 apiece. Next, if you have a food allergy, ask if certain ingredients are in a particular dish instead of giving your server a graphic explanation of your allergy. S/he probably doesn’t care, and it’s an overshare. Also, if you’re a picky eater, don’t make a face when the server explains the specials and they sound unappetizing to you. It’s not polite. Finally, if you don’t like your meal, speak up immediately (and kindly). Don’t wait until it’s too late to fix it and then simply rant about it later online. Give wait staff and managers an opportunity to serve you something you’ll enjoy.
What are your don’ts for diners when they’re out at restaurants? What have some of your past companions done to drive your server (and you!) crazy during a meal? Share your suggestions and stories here or on our Facebook.
OpenTable for iPhone 3.0: For Diners Who Know Where They Want to Go (or Not)
Thursday, March 11th, 2010
OpenTable is pleased to announce the latest and greatest version of OpenTable for iPhone. That’s right, diners. We’ve hit the big 3.0! The new features in the OpenTable for iPhone 3.0 update were created specifically for diners like you — mobile enthusiasts who often know exactly where they want to go “without reservation” (pun intended). Of course, the application still remains essential for diners in search of suggestions and reservations on the fly.
With OpenTable for iPhone 3.0, you can now:
* Search for and book OpenTable restaurants by name — around your current location or in another city.
* Save and manage favorite restaurants right from your iPhone.
* Reserve further in advance (more than 30 days).
* Scan recently viewed restaurants plus detailed restaurant profiles, including photos, parking options, etc.
* Find 1,000-point restaurants in the search results easily, so you can earn free meals faster.
Download OpenTable for iPhone 3.0 today to enjoy all these features and others, including enhanced maps, in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and the United Kingdom. To visit iTunes, click here.
Dining Out on Easter: Egg-cellent Deals at Restaurants Near You
Monday, March 8th, 2010
Easter is less than a month away, and, if you’re a planner (as I am), you’re probably ready to book a table at a restaurant for that day. What I love about Easter is that many restaurants offer brunch or an early traditional dinner (think ham and lamb). There’s something about eating dinner especially early (not early-bird special early, however) that feels extra decadent to me.
There are lots of Easter dining deals to be found on OpenTable. Some really fun ones that caught my eye include The Café at The Ritz-Carlton Buckhead in Atlanta, which is offering a brunch that includes a live petting zoo and an egg decorating station for kids. In Boston, Harborside Grill and Patio at the Hyatt Harborside features terrific views of the city’s skyline and activities for young diners, including a visit from the Easter Bunny himself. Chicago diners may have all the fun this year as Dick’s Last Resort is creating a brunch with live Beatles music by the Cavern Beat and an appearance by the Easter Bunny (I’m not sure how he’ll be in Boston and Chicago on the same day, but maybe he flies private?) as well as egg dying. China Grill in New York is getting festive and kid-friendly with an Easter egg hunt in the evening. In San Francisco, Bar Bambino is serving up a prix-fixe brunch comprised of classic Easter fare enjoyed in Italy. The nation’s capital is not to be outdone, with Chima Brazilian Steakhouse providing complimentary ice cream and entertainment for kids from 1- 5PM. If we lived in D.C., my husband would probably attempt to pass as a child based on this opportunity alone. His Zach Galifianakis beard would surely betray him, though.
Look for the launch of our national Easter page soon, and search for Easter dining deals on your local start page under “Easter Brunch & Dinner.”
What’s your favorite dish to dine on for Easter? How does your family celebrate? Share your thoughts here or on Facebook.
