What to look for in a table booking system

The features that matter in a table booking system, and the settings that decide whether it works on a Friday night.

A paper booking sheet costs you tables. Someone double-books a six-top on a Friday, the phone rings out mid-service, and the note about a nut allergy ends up in three different hands.

A table booking system fixes most of that, if you check the right things before you commit. There are dozens on the market and every demo looks confident, so the differences sit in the details: how many clicks a guest needs, what happens when the connection drops, and whether the booking data lands somewhere you can use again.

What guests need

1. Few clicks. A guest books in under a minute on a phone, without creating an account.

2. A plain calendar. Day, time, party size, and no guessing which slots are still open.

3. Somewhere to add special requests and dietary requirements, stored against the booking rather than on a sticky note.

4. Your branding on the booking page, not the supplier's.

What your team needs

1. Table management you control: cover length, covers per table, availability, and which tables online bookings can take.

2. A timeline of the evening, so the floor manager sees what is coming without asking anyone.

3. A floor plan that matches the room, so a party of eight gets seated where eight people fit.

4. Real-time updates, and access that still works when the internet drops.

5. Automated email and SMS reminders before the booking, so guests cancel properly instead of not turning up.

6. An embed for your website and a link you can put in your social profiles.

7. A staff interface someone can learn in one shift.

Worth having if you can get it

• Two-way sync with your CRM, so a booking turns into a guest profile you can market to later.

• A waitlist for the nights you are full.

• Pre-ordering from the menu before the guest walks in.

• Deposits or pre-payment for large tables and peak dates.

Settings that decide whether it works

Work out your average dining time per table before you set slot lengths, then leave a buffer between bookings so the table can be cleared and reset before the next party sits down.

Cap the party size for online bookings at something your floor can actually seat. Ten covers is a sensible ceiling for most rooms, and larger groups get a phone number or an enquiry form instead.

Hold a few tables back from online booking at peak times for walk-ins. If every table is bookable, the guest at the door has nowhere to go.

Reminders only help if they still say what you want them to say. Check the wording, the timing and how they render on a phone every few months, and straight after any policy change. We wrote up the no-show side of this in more detail.

Stampede table bookings covers both lists above, and the booking data lands in the same guest profile as your Wi-Fi, loyalty and review activity. Book a demo and we will walk through your floor plan with you.