Chapter 8 Planning Reservations and Blocking Tables Copyright

Decision on Whether to Accept Reservations • Each restaurant must decide whether to – Accept – Rely on • Reservation – A promise for a table in a restaurant • Walk-in – Guests who patronize the restaurant without a reservation Copyright 2008 Delmar Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Decision on Whether to Accept Reservations (continued) • One of the MOST important considerations in NOT accepting reservations is the LOCATION of the restaurant • All restaurants are NOT alike – Required to have different policies for seating • Key to being profitable: Build loyalty among your repeat guests Copyright 2008 Delmar Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Decision on Whether to Accept Reservations (continued) • Reservations should ALWAYS be accepted on holidays: – Easter, Thanksgiving, and Mother’s Day • Special holidays for families Copyright 2008 Delmar Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Accepting Reservations • Once a decision has been made to accept reservations, the restaurant needs to create a policy to deal with reserving tables for guests • Restaurant can – Reserve a certain percentage of tables – Reserve the dining room completely Copyright 2008 Delmar Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Accepting Reservations (continued) • Reservations work in two ways: – Restaurant promises to have a table available for the guest – Guest promises to show up for the reservation Copyright 2008 Delmar Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Accepting Reservations (continued) • Provides a mutual benefit to both guests and the restaurant • Advantages and disadvantages – For both guests and the restaurant • See pages 221– 222 • Essential part of reservationist’s job is explaining to the caller the responsibilities regarding the reservation Copyright 2008 Delmar Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Factors That Affect Taking Reservations • – The time it takes a party to eat its meal and pay its bill • – Reserve more parties than they have tables for • An easy menu to prepare items – This speeds up the residence time Copyright 2008 Delmar Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Taking the Reservation • Can be taken by: – – – • Those taking reservations MUST be trained properly so that they can obtain ALL information needed – This is the guest’s first contact with the restaurant Copyright 2008 Delmar Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Taking The Reservation (continued) • Reservations should be taken and placed – On a preprinted form (see Figure 8 -2) – Directly into the reservation book • Operations with multiple locations have a centralized call center to take reservations for ALL restaurants Copyright 2008 Delmar Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Information to Obtain from the Guest • Name of the guest – Ensure the correct spelling of the name • Date for which the reservation is desired – Request day of the week and date • Time of the reservation – If time is booked, suggest another time • Number of guests in the party – Helps in blocking Copyright 2008 Delmar Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Information to Obtain from the Guest (continued) • Any – Special seating or birthday cake • Guest’s phone number – Home, business, and cell • Name of person who took the reservation – Makes people responsible • Date reservation was taken – How far in advance reservations are made Copyright 2008 Delmar Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Explaining Policies of the Restaurant to the Guest • Inform guests of any special policies – Develop checklist of pertinent policies for reservation takers to use • In order to avoid mistakes repeat the information back to the guest Copyright 2008 Delmar Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Not Accepting Reservations • Maximum use of tables is obtained – Not losing money from unoccupied tables • No overbooking occurs – No danger of reserving more tables than guests • Little preplanning of reservations – Only reserves tables for big parties • No-shows are not a problem – No danger of holding a table Copyright 2008 Delmar Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Not Accepting Reservations (continued) • Disadvantage for the restaurant – Business may be lost because reservations will not be accepted – Guests may refuse to patronize a restaurant • Believe they will have to wait for a table for a long period of time • Disadvantages for the guests – Far outweigh the advantages • See page 230 Copyright 2008 Delmar Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Reserving Tables Blocking Reservations • – To reserve a certain table at a certain time • Purpose is to enable the host to avoid overbooking • Process begins with taking the reservation correctly • Successful blocking depends upon – An organized system Copyright 2008 Delmar Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Reserving Tables Blocking Reservations (continued) • All blocking is to be entered in one book or place • Need physical layout of the dining room – Table numbers and number of seats per table • Computers – Programs designed to help blocking Copyright 2008 Delmar Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Blocking in a Small Restaurant • Simplest way of blocking tables occurs when a restaurant has a set meal period and a limited number of tables – See Figure 8 -3 Copyright 2008 Delmar Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Restaurants Without Set Meal Times for Reservations • Small restaurants will take reservations on a first-come, first-seated basis – Take reservations at any time during their meal period – See Figure 8 -4 Copyright 2008 Delmar Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Blocking in a Large Restaurant • Principle is the same as for a small restaurant – But impossible to use the same method because of the large number of tables involved • Reservation manager – The person who takes ALL reservations in a large restaurant Copyright 2008 Delmar Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Blocking with Set Meal Times • Check-off method – A method of blocking tables – See Figure 8 -5 and Figure 8 -6 • Key factor in making the system work is constant communication between the reservation manager and the people taking the reservations Copyright 2008 Delmar Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Accepting Reservations at Any Time • Open seating – A restaurant allows guests to reserve tables for any time • More planning and organizing is needed to avoid overbooking • Use of the check-off sheet – Including the guest’s name and the time of the reservation – See Figure 8 -8 Copyright 2008 Delmar Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Blocking Effectively • Involves much planning and organization • To block effectively, three items are needed – Diagram of the dining room – The • Blocking is an organized process – See Figure 8 -9 Copyright 2008 Delmar Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Blocking Effectively (continued) • Problems with the system – Guests do not like their table – Guests stay beyond their residence time • Taking reservations and blocking requires a lot of organization and preplanning to avoid overbooking Copyright 2008 Delmar Learning. All Rights Reserved.

Call-Ahead or Priority Seating • Guests call the restaurant and have their names added to the seating list – Holds a waiting spot for the guest • Keeps waiting time to a minimum • Does NOT guarantee a table for a certain time, but a place in line Copyright 2008 Delmar Learning. All Rights Reserved.

How to Alleviate No-Shows • Some proven methods – Properly train the person taking reservations to explain ALL policies to the guest – Call and confirm the reservation on the day of the reservation – Take a deposit for the reservation like hotels do for lodging rooms – Use computers to track no-show guests • Check name of guest with list of no-shows Copyright 2008 Delmar Learning. All Rights Reserved.