Faculty & Research
A Consumer's View of Restaurant Reservations Policies
Vol 8 No 1
By: Sheryl E. Kimes Ph.D.
Executive Summary: Restaurant customers view reservations as a form of contract, according to a survey of 1,230 frequent diners. The self-selected respondents to the survey had little patience for restaurants that fail to have tables ready, but they also thought that customers who could not honor their reservations should keep their end of the deal, by contacting the restaurant with their change of plans. Along that line, survey respondents often found it difficult to contact a restaurant when they needed to change a reservation. An examination of specific reservations-related policies found that, with regard to late-arriving diners, a policy of holding a table for no longer than a stated period, typically 15 minutes, is viewed as fair and acceptable. Also seen as relatively fair is asking guests to guarantee their reservation with a credit card. The respondents dislike the idea of premium pricing, question the fairness of policies that set a maximum duration at table or a minimum party size, and take a negative view of restaurants that penalize guests when one or more members of a party do not appear. Guests who linger at a table present a special challenge. Respondents do not want to be rushed or be asked to leave when they stay long at a table, but at the same time they realized that lingering guests cause delays for parties that follow them. One way to circumvent this issue might be for the restaurant operator to discuss time expectations when accepting the reservation.
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Comments
Usually, when a guest decides to go to a restaurant it's because he expects to live a culinary experience and to share an enjoyable moment (with friends, family, business partners, clients....)
Time could be important depending on the reason the guest go to the restaurant (Business, leisure....). An answer to the questions asked in your study would be the operator's training. The operator or hostess being the first contact person and the last one as well.
1- While a guest wants to book a table the operator must confirm:
- An exact time to the guest considering the business of the restaurant
- AND must explain the reservation policy of the restaurant
If there is no possibility at the required time, information about the availability or delay and guest's pampering is always better than overbooking and guest's vexation.
2- If the guest tried to call the restaurant because his change of plans, the restaurant should
- Be equipped with at least a double line a
- AND then the operator should be trained to answer several calls at the same time.
It's a little investment but so much professional and appreciable by the guest.
3- Concerning the delay in the reservations.....of course it could be a lost of time and so of sales for the restaurant. Operator training should result in booking management efficiency.
IIf a guest is waiting for his table, i would recommend to offer him a glass of wine at the bar. This represents a cost, but isn't it better to lose $10 than a $100 bill?
Guest are often comprehensive and by having something offered, they will have a good first impression and will certainly come back.
3- Concerning the credit card information, i think that we have to consider that a restaurant is first of all a "melting pot area". If some persons are used to those practices, some others could be offended or at least reluctant to provide such information. I personally believe that it is not the best way to give a good first impression to the guest.
Asking for a phone number and a last name will permit to call back the guest in a case of no show but overall to create a customer database.
Guillaume Benezech
Director & Owner
GJ Consult Miami
Other Reports or Articles You May Find of Interest
- Restaurant Capacity Effectiveness: Leaving Money on the Tables, by Gary M. Thompson
- Customer Satisfaction with Seating Policies in Casual-dining Restaurants, by Sheryl Kimes and Jochen Wirtz
- Examining the Effects of Full-Spectrum Lighting in a Restaurant, by Stephani K.A. Robson and Sheryl E. Kimes
About Sheryl E. Kimes Ph.D.
Dr. Sheryl E. Kimes is the interim dean of the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration, serving for the academic year 2005-2006. Dr. Kimes is a Professor of Operations Management at the School. From 2001-2005, she also served as the School’s Director of Graduate Studies.
Dr. Kimes teaches yield management, restaurant revenue management, and food and beverage management. She has been named the School’s Graduate Teacher of the Year on three occasions.
Dr. Kimes’ research interests include revenue management and forecasting in the hotel, restaurant, and golf industries. She has published over 30 articles in leading journals such as Interfaces, Journal of Operations Management, Journal of Service Research, Journal of Operational Research, and the Cornell Hotel and Restaurant Administration Quarterly. She is the author/co-author of over 20 national and international conference papers and has been an invited speaker at numerous international conferences. She was awarded the La Quinta Research Fellowship, and has received 15 university research grants.
Dr. Kimes serves as a consultant to many business enterprises around the world. Her work is focused primarily on maximizing revenue management practices. She is a member of several organizations including the International Federation of Operations Research and Management Science, Decision Sciences, and the Beta Gamma Sigma Honorary Scholastic Society.
Dr. Kimes earned her doctorate in 1987 from the University of Texas at Austin. She also holds an M.B.A. from New Mexico State University, and M.A.P.A., from the University of Virginia, and an A.B. from the University of Missouri.
