For those eager to enjoy a meal out in New York, securing a reservation has become more challenging than ever. In the past three years, the pursuit of a seat at the city’s most sought-after restaurants has escalated from a task that was simply difficult to nearly impossible for many food enthusiasts.
“There are some restaurants that people just can’t get into,” stated Joel Montaniel, CEO of the reservations platform Sevenrooms, in a recent discussion. He mentioned that restaurateurs, when asked for tips on securing a reservation, often respond, “I don’t have them.”
The competition for dinner reservations has grown so intense that last month, New York state’s legislature approved a measure to outlaw third-party booking platforms like Appointment Trader, which allowed users to sell restaurant slots for over $200, a practice typically associated with concert and sporting event scalping.
Melissa Fleischut, President and CEO of the New York State Restaurant Association, praised the legislation as a “major victory for the hospitality industry,” intended to lessen competition for bookings and shield restaurants from costly no-shows.
Despite these legislative efforts, the high demand for trendy, upscale dining experiences continues to outpace their availability. Travel advisor Jaclyn Sienna India notes the post-COVID landscape, remarking, “Everything is booked up. Every plane is full, every restaurant is full, every hotel is full.” She questions how one can navigate securing spots in an already crowded market.
With 16 years of experience leading Sienna Charles, a concierge and travel planning service catering to the ultra-wealthy, India has a deep understanding of restaurant access. Her clientele, who typically earn over $100 million, have included notable figures such as George W. Bush and Mariah Carey.
Even with her impressive background, India insists that gaining entry to sought-after restaurants (as well as hotels and luxury experiences) depends on key strategies like grasping customer preferences and fostering relationships with restaurants that can cater to those needs.
“People are moving away from fine dining; we seldom have a client interested in a long tasting menu,” she explains. “The trend in the last three years has shifted towards restaurants where the emphasis isn’t strictly on food. It’s more about FOMO—fear of missing out. It’s about the prestige of saying you got in; it’s a bragging right.”
For those looking to claim their own bragging rights and who are prepared to persist in their reservation efforts, read on to discover which New York restaurant tables are the hardest to secure, as identified by Sienna Charles.