What is OpenTable?
If you run a restaurant, you know getting customers in the door is the name of the game. You’ve probably heard of OpenTable, the big name in online reservations. But is it right for your business? This detailed OpenTable review will help you decide.
We’re cutting through the complexity to give you a clear, honest OpenTable review. What does it really cost? What features do you actually get? Our goal is simple: to show you if OpenTable can help you fill more seats, run your floor smoother, and make more money. We’ll break down the pricing, explain the pros and cons, and compare it to other options. Let’s find out if this tool is a smart investment for your restaurant
Small Business, E-commerce, Startups, Enterprise
Key Features
Global Diner Network
Get your restaurant listed on one of the world's largest platforms where millions of diners search for and book tables. This directly puts your restaurant in front of new customers.
Seamless Reservation Management
An all-in-one dashboard to view, confirm, and manage all your bookings from OpenTable, your website, and even phone calls, reducing double-bookings and no-shows.
Intelligent Table Management
A visual "floor plan" of your restaurant that helps you maximize seating, track table status (seated, ordering, eating), and optimize server rotations to turn tables faster.
Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
Keep notes on guest preferences (e.g., "loves window seats," "allergic to shellfish"), track visit history, and build a loyal customer base with personalized service.
Powerful Data & Reporting
Get detailed insights into your performance, including covers, no-show rates, peak dining times, and revenue trends. This helps you make smarter business decisions about staffing and menus.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Massive Customer Reach: Instantly taps into a vast, pre-existing market of hungry diners.
- Incredibly User-Friendly: The interface is intuitive for both restaurant staff and customers making reservations.
- Reduces No-Shows: Integrated reminder emails and confirmation systems significantly lower the number of no-shows.
- Improves Operational Efficiency: Streamlines the entire front-of-house process from seating to payment.
Cons
- Costly for Small Restaurants: The monthly fee, especially for the Core and Pro plans, can be a significant expense for new or very small establishments with thin margins.
- Per-Cover Fee Model (Legacy): While newer plans are moving to flat-rate, some older contracts include a fee per seated guest, which can add up quickly.
- Contract Commitment: Typically requires an annual contract, which can feel restrictive.
- Strongest in Urban Areas: The network effect is most powerful in major cities and densely populated areas.
Pricing Plans
Basic
- Access to global diner network
- Basic reservation management
- Good for very small establishments
Core
- Best-in-class table management.
- Operations streamlining.
- he best value for most restaurants
Pro
- Advanced CRM
- Detailed data analytics,
- Marketing tools to drive loyalty and revenue.
How It Compares
Resy
OpenTable has a much larger, more established global diner network, offering greater immediate exposure.
Yelp reservations
OpenTable's table management and guest CRM tools are generally considered more robust and feature-rich.
SevenRooms
While SevenRooms excels in data, OpenTable offers a better balance of customer acquisition and management tools at a more transparent price point for SMBs.