What OpenTable Is
OpenTable is a well-established online restaurant reservation platform, operated by OpenTable Inc., a subsidiary of Booking Holdings since its 2014 acquisition. Founded in 1998, it’s one of the longest-running and most widely used dining reservation platforms globally, connecting diners with restaurants across tens of thousands of locations in multiple countries.
The platform allows users to search for restaurants by location, cuisine, price range, and available time slots, then book a table directly through the website or mobile app without needing to call the restaurant, a booking experience that’s become the standard expectation for a significant share of restaurant diners today.
How Diners Use OpenTable
Using OpenTable as a diner is straightforward: search for a restaurant by name, location, or cuisine type, select a date, time, and party size, and choose from the available reservation slots the restaurant has made accessible through the platform. Confirmation is typically instant, and reminder notifications are sent ahead of the reservation.
A notable feature of OpenTable’s diner-facing service is its loyalty program, which awards points for reservations made and completed through the platform, redeemable for dining credit at eligible restaurants — a system designed to encourage diners to book consistently through OpenTable rather than calling restaurants directly or using a competing platform.
How Restaurants Use OpenTable
For restaurants, OpenTable functions as a reservation and table management system, letting staff manage bookings, track guest history and preferences, handle waitlists, and reduce no-shows through automated confirmation and reminder messages sent to diners ahead of their reservation time.
Restaurants typically pay OpenTable through a combination of subscription fees for the reservation management software and per-cover fees for reservations booked through the platform, a business model that’s drawn some criticism from independent restaurants concerned about the cumulative cost of covers booked through third-party platforms, though many restaurants continue using the service given its wide diner reach.
The Guest Profile and CRM Features
Beyond simple reservation booking, OpenTable provides restaurants with guest relationship management tools — tracking a diner’s reservation history, noted preferences, special occasions, and past feedback, letting restaurant staff personalise service for repeat guests, such as remembering a regular customer’s preferred table or a noted dietary restriction from a previous visit.
This CRM functionality has become an increasingly significant part of OpenTable’s value proposition for restaurants, since it helps build repeat business and stronger guest relationships beyond simply filling tables for a single reservation.
Reliability and What to Expect as a User
OpenTable is a well-established, publicly trusted platform with millions of monthly users, and using it for a standard reservation is generally straightforward and secure, using standard encrypted checkout for any payment or deposit information required for reservations that request it (some higher-demand restaurants require a credit card hold or prepayment to reduce no-shows).
As with any reservation platform, it’s worth reading a specific restaurant’s cancellation policy before booking, since some restaurants set stricter cancellation windows or deposit requirements than others, and these terms are set by the individual restaurant rather than OpenTable itself.
Common Questions About Using the Platform
A frequent point of confusion for new users is why some highly sought-after restaurants show no availability on OpenTable even when tables might genuinely be open — this can happen because a restaurant has allocated only a limited number of tables to online booking, reserving the rest for walk-ins or phone reservations, a common practice particularly at smaller or high-demand establishments.
It’s also worth knowing that OpenTable isn’t the only reservation platform in use — some restaurants use competing platforms like Resy or Tock instead, or exclusively take phone reservations, meaning a restaurant’s absence from OpenTable doesn’t necessarily mean it’s unavailable for booking elsewhere.
OpenTable’s Place in the Broader Reservation Market
OpenTable competes with several other reservation platforms, including Resy (owned by American Express) and Tock, each with somewhat different restaurant partnerships and regional strengths. Many major cities have restaurants split across these different platforms, meaning frequent diners often end up with accounts on more than one system depending on which restaurants they favour.
This competitive landscape has generally pushed all these platforms toward richer features over time — better waitlist management, more detailed guest profiles, and tighter integration with point-of-sale systems — as each competes for both diner loyalty and restaurant partnerships in an increasingly crowded reservation technology market.
Final Thoughts
OpenTable.com is a well-established, legitimate restaurant reservation platform used by millions of diners and tens of thousands of restaurants worldwide, offering straightforward booking alongside loyalty rewards for diners and reservation management tools for restaurants. For most standard reservations, it functions reliably and securely, with restaurant-specific cancellation and deposit policies being the main detail worth checking before booking.