Would You Pay For A Restaurant Reservation?
Trying to get a table at a hot restaurant is often an exercise in frustration. But what if, instead of making the calls yourself, or paying a concierge to try and get you in, you could log on to a website and buy the reservation. That's the basic idea behind TableXchange. The service offers reservation for a fee in New York City, San Francisco and the Hamptons and already has around 1,000 members. For example, for $25 you can get a table for two at Jean Georges this Friday. The idea is already causing controversy. Some in the New York hospitality industry find it manipulative and distasteful. Many people find it similar to the process of ticket scalping in which tickets to hot events often sell for far above their face value. The main difference, of course, is that restaurants reservations don't usually come with a price tag, although certainly money has been used to obtain reservations and/or hot tables for years, just through more oblique methods. TableXhange makes its money by taking a commission from each sale as well as through advertising revenue.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
jacki Jan 16th 2008 1:04PM
trendy as having one of these:
http://www.fakebuddy.com
beanspants Jan 16th 2008 1:54PM
i don't see why restaurants don't take a (nonrefundable) cut for guaranteed reservations - sort of like allowing you to pre-pay for part of your meal. it gets those who really want a table in for service, and locks in reservations for the restaurant.
i've never been to a restaurant that was anywhere near good enough to be worth paying just for the privledge to eat there, and i've eaten at some of world's (supposedly) best restaurants. however, if there's an opportunity, i don't see why places wouldn't take it.
robert Jan 16th 2008 10:25PM
start paying for restaurant reservations and a huge door opens up that probably shouldn't be opened
Dustin Van der Merwe DeWitt Bukater Jan 16th 2008 11:11PM
Someone should have told Patrick Bateman - "Try getting a reservation at Dorsia NOW!"
bo0giee Jan 19th 2008 1:06AM
yessir i would pay! depending on how exclusive the restaurant is. this is so funny bcuz ii recently found out about table exchange nd was a lil upset "as muich as ii eat out" why ii didnt think of that idea 1st smh
but buying a reservation to a restaurant that you like or want to try. is like buying sold out tickets to your favorite team or to see your favorite band
BUT I DO AGREE THIS IS JUST ANOTHER WAY OF THE "MIDDLE MAN" EXPLOITING A SITUATION