Restaurant Innovations & New Ideas

“I can’t afford to have a table sit there unoccupied.”

—Restaurant owner.

Tired of getting spurned, when trying to make a restaurant reservation? That may be changing now that many upscale dining establishments are insisting upon credit cards to hold tables on major holidays.

All special occasions are in play: Thanksgiving, New Year’s Eve, Christmas Eve, Valentine’s Day, Easter, and Mother’s Day which is the busiest dining out day in the $511 billion industry.

The penalty for not canceling ahead of time: $25 a head—or more. By requiring credit-card charges, restaurants hope to nail down reservations...as no-shows are costly. And as many a restaurant owner laments, “I can’t afford to have a table sit there unoccupied.”