The Table Booking Standard

Open the booking diary for today and the next 14 days. Read the notes: private events, closed sections, large parties, VIPs, and in-house guests whose profiles show an allergy or an occasion.

Know the floor plan by heart: every table number, its seats, which tables join, the terrace and the inside, the quiet corners, the step-free tables and how many high chairs the restaurant has.

Know the rules you will be asked about: sittings and last seating, how long a table is held (15 minutes), the dress code, the deposit for parties of eight or more, and the cancellation terms.

Keep the phone, the diary and the message inbox at the host stand. One named person owns them for the shift; when that person seats a table, a colleague takes over the phone before they leave.

Check yourself against The Presence Standard before the first guest: uniform, name badge, hands, and today’s VIPs and occasions in mind.

Answer the phone within three rings or 10 seconds, with the restaurant’s name and your first name.

“Good evening, Terrazza restaurant, Marco speaking. How may I help you?”

Greet a guest who comes to the stand within one minute, even when you are on the phone: eye contact, a nod and one sentence until you are free.

“Good evening. I’ll be with you in just a moment.”

Answer chat and messaging requests within 3 minutes during opening hours, and emails within 60 minutes. Outside opening hours, the automatic reply gives the time you will answer and the phone number.

The lines in this standard are examples. Say them in your own words, calmly and without slang, and let the guest finish speaking before you answer.

Ask for the guest’s name in the first 30 seconds, write it down and use it at least twice. Ask whether they are staying with you, and find the profile on the in-house list.

“May I have your name, please? … Thank you, Mr Okafor. Are you staying with us?”

Take the day, the date and the time, and say them back with the weekday before you check the diary. “Saturday” and “the 14th” together catch most wrong dates.

“So that’s Saturday 14 June at 20:30. Let me check for you.”

Ask how many guests, and whether any are children, with their ages. Note a high chair or booster at once. For a family, see The Young Guests Standard.

“How many will you be? Will any children be joining you?”

Check the diary live while the guest waits. If the time is full, offer the two nearest free times or another area, then the waitlist. Never say “that should be fine” before you have looked.

“20:30 is full on the terrace. I can offer 19:45 there, or 20:30 in the dining room.”

Ask about seating: terrace or inside, a quiet table, step-free access. Write it as a request, and promise a specific table only when the diary lets you block it now.

Ask once about allergies and dietary needs, and write each one against the guest’s name, not as a table note. Then follow The Allergy Standard.

“Does anyone in your party have an allergy or a dietary need the kitchen should know about?”

Take the contact. For in-house guests, the room number, checked against the name on the in-house list. For others, a mobile with the country code and an email for the confirmation.

Ask what the evening is for, in one open question. A birthday, a business dinner and a first evening after a long journey need different tables and a different pace.

“Is it a special occasion, or simply dinner with us?”

If there is an occasion, offer one related request with its price: a cake with a message, flowers on the table, a chilled bottle on arrival or chocolates. Book it with the pastry chef or florist before the call ends.

“Would you like a small cake with a message for Mrs Okafor? It’s €28, and the pastry chef will write whatever you wish.”

Ask whether the occasion should be mentioned at the table or kept quiet. Some guests want a candle and a song; others want nobody to know.

“Shall we wish her a happy birthday at the table, or keep it discreet?”

Give the one practical detail the guest will need: the dress code, parking, where to enter, or what happens to a terrace table if it rains. One sentence, only what applies.

For an in-house occasion, tell guest relations the same day, so one gesture is planned for the stay. See The Occasion Standard.

Read the booking back in a fixed order: name; day, date and time; number of guests and children; area; occasion and requests; allergies; contact. Correct anything now.

“Let me read that back, Mr Okafor: Saturday 14 June at 20:30, four guests…”

State how long the table is held and the cancellation terms, in one sentence each. For a party of eight or more, give the deposit and the date it is due.

“We hold the table for 15 minutes. If your plans change, a call by 16:00 on the day is all we need.”

Thank the guest by name, give your name, say that the confirmation follows, and let the caller hang up first.

“Thank you, Mr Okafor. I’m Marco, and the confirmation is on its way. We look forward to Saturday.”

For a written request, the reply contains the same read-back as a call, in the same order, and asks the guest to reply with any correction.

Enter the booking in the diary straight away, every field complete, and link it to the guest profile. Never keep a booking on paper or in your head until later.

Send the written confirmation within 15 minutes: name, day, date, time, guests, area, requests booked, holding time, cancellation terms and the restaurant’s direct number.

Pass each request to the person who acts on it, the same day: allergies and the cake to the chef, flowers to the florist, the occasion to the head waiter.

On the day, by 15:00, reconfirm every booking of six or more and every booking made over 7 days ahead, by message or call. Release a table only when the guest has said so.

Before service, print the list in time order with covers, table numbers, occasions and allergies, and check that the number of covers matches the table plan.