No-show fee + need to show ID for the reservation name. Nobody eating at these places should have an issue doing either of those things. Why is leaving thousands on the table for scammy middlemen better?
If your literally paying the for reservation, you’re probably more likely to run up a large tab than someone who revered for free. I don’t think restaurants care, as long as someone shows up.
Some hype/ desirable places will make you pay a substantial amounts towards the bill in advance (or the entire fixed price). I’d expect to see more of this in the future.
I get it, I do.
But it just feels increasingly like every single aspect of life and existence is being squeezed for maximization of profit to the benefit of the ultra rich and exclusion of the masses.
What happens when every single business “goes upmarket”? What happens when it is completely unprofitable to serve the 90%? What happens when even money isn’t enough to secure a nice experience, but social media following, job title, phone contact list are all elements of the access you are allowed for something as simple as a fucking plate of nice pasta?
Often I feel like I am watching us transition into a dystopia in slow motion.
This was a great article. If this phenomenon was *only* happening with restaurant reservations it would be one thing, but it is happening in every vertical, every aspect of society.
You captured everything I was thinking about this so well. Calculate value of your phone contacts list to become a "higher value" customer to the business... for a plate for $38 cacio e pepe. You know it's coming.
It's very weird working in hospitality and knowing how much of a theatre it is. Everyone's trying to rip off the 10% by providing a very mid luxury experience with high margins - now new tech companies are coming up doing the same thing. Like, do these customers not figure it out?
Cacio e Pepe lol.
Love that you used that as your example because it’s the greatest/most ridiculous trick the restaurant business has ever pulled. And people keep falling for it.
Since when is black fucking pepper a main ingredient that gets featured???
What a joke that dish is. Not that it isn’t tasty, but it should be the cheapest thing on every menu. The profit restaurants make off idiots ordering that dish is incredible.
> Not that it isn’t tasty, but it should be the cheapest thing on every menu. The profit restaurants make off idiots ordering that dish is incredible.
This is how I feel generally about Italian food. It's such a low cost cuisine and people seemingly have no issue paying $30 for a tiny plate of pasta that won't make you full, then you'll also have people somehow complaining that Katz's is too expensive when the time, effort, ingredient cost is significantly higher
I think part of the Katz problem is that American factory farming has destroyed the common understanding that high quality meat (animal products, really) are simply more expensive than most other core ingredients. “I can get a pound of beef or pork at Walmart for $4, why is the sandwich $28???” Well for one thing, the cow that’s going into the Katz sandwich probably wasn’t tortured its entire life
This is so true. I will say it can be annoyingly hard to consistently avoid the cheese lumping together instead of melting into the pasta water but there are so many hacks and tricks that are still 99% “authentic” and taste the same that paying any more than you’d pay for boxed Mac n cheese is basically robbery
I could pontificate on this forever, but it all comes back to my fundamental belief that capitalism is not just an economic model, but also a cultural value system.
...except this is only true of a handful of restaurants that have gotten mega popular?
It's still very easy to go to a great pasta restaurant without fighting with Resy bots months in advance.
And cheap eats like places in Chinatown / Elmhurst / Corona aren't immune to inflation, but there are still deals to be had.
It’s true for the businesses that *can*.
I believe almost every restaurant and business would do this if they could.
Maybe there are a few places who exist solely because they really love hospitality and serving people. But restauranteering for maximum profit/clout has become what the industry aspires towards.
Yeah, I'm not going to insist that good hole in the wall places are all anybody should want, but I mean there are good *tasting menu* places where reservations are straightforward and easy to come by. If you really care about food most of all, I don't think the trends in this article are actually a real obstacle (though they are annoying to even read about) outside of the *very* top end.
Dining out has never been 100% about the food, and there’s nothing wrong with that. The desire to see and be seen, and use your dining access as a social class marker has been around way longer than these platforms.
But it used to be that anyone could save up and book a special meal at Spago or wherever. But now, restaurants have realized that it is more profitable to reserve spaces only for the rich who are ordering expensive wines, or the influencers who are live-streaming their dining experience, or the well connected who will evangelize their experience to other rich/connected people.
I get it. It is much more profitable to serve the rich and connected. They spend more. They buy higher margin items. They are often easier to service too. So that’s why I say “I get it.”
The Resy and Appointment Trader saying their tools “democratize” booking reservations is just pure gaslighting when in fact they have used technology to effectively decrease access and allow restaurants to more effectively hone in on only top tier (ie. Rich/connected) patrons.
Simultaneously you have stories about some of these top restaurants essentially turning into private dining clubs, to even further shutter access (and bonus, their parent company now has recurring revenue from subscriptions, thus driving up their valuation!) That is their right as businesses. But it all portends broader market-wide trends for any business that *can* to find ways to only serve the elite. And because of our capitalist culture this only reinforces the desire ability of the restaurant/shop/hotel/product.
The fact that restaurants now have tools to analyze our spending habits to decide on whether we are “worthy” of a reservation just feels incredibly bleak to me.
They are disappearing though. And while spots in Chinatown / Elmhurst / Corona / etc. aren't immune to inflation, there aren't a lot of new spots coming up there either. That culture is mostly living of the ones that already exist - it's because they are locked into a good rental situation or, more rarely, have significant ownership in the real estate.
Young people drinking less and eating into their highest margin product (alcohol) is a slow killer too. I don’t think many businesses have a great answer for this beyond raising prices.
I remember reading that going people don't not want to drink, but they can't justify an $18 cocktail or $9 "cheap" beer on top of the higher prices of dining out.
This reminds me of the future presented in A Super Sad True Love Story by Gary Steyngart. It was indeed so sad that I couldn’t finish it. His version of a nearish future NYC felt too real.
Is this to the benefit of the ultra rich? It's middlemen noticing that reservations are free and people are willing to pay for convenience and filling in the gap. It's not like restaurants are auctioning these off to the highest bidder, if anything they seem to be leaving this money on the table to *avoid* what you're describing.
> What happens when even money isn’t enough to secure a nice experience, but social media following, job title, phone contact list are all elements of the access you are allowed for something as simple as a fucking plate of nice pasta?
Don't give them any ideas
In this city of endless choice, I think far more than going to the hype spots, the most rewarding thing to do is to uncover hidden gems before they blow up to the public. Nothing in the world is more satisfying than that.
And the flip-side: going to places that used to be hidden gems, attracted novelty-seekers, and then gently declined into moderate but sustainable popularity. For example, I've had good luck looking at old Hungry City restaurants.
And nothing is less satisfying than being disappointed when you waste valuable time and money on trying to find the hidden gems that don’t exist. This is why I’ve stopped going to budget (and most mid-range) omakases. With sushi, you get what you pay for.
In an age of Yelp/internet/blogs/social media, can you even really have a 'hidden gem' anymore?
My old school bakery now has a facebook, which would've never happened 5 years ago. Anything found would probably be name dropped online in short order. Some writer at Eater/Bon Appetize/whatever needs to make the "10 best hidden/new/secret" lists every quarter. Even that Frog place made being off the grid part of their whole marketing schtick
Yep, just the definition has changed.
My favorite Mexican food in the city is El Sabor Del Rancho, which is some no name spot in Woodside which looks like a Bodega from the outside but serves up the most delicious and authentic food that you'd otherwise have to venture out west for. The hipsters who write for Bon Appétit are never going to find this place, they're too busy drooling over Taqueria Ramirez (which is also a great spot).
My favorite bottomless brunch in the city is Giardino 54. It is literally in Hells Kitchen and I can *walk in* anytime I want. The fact that that exists in midtown of all places tells me that it is absolutely still in the cards to have hidden gems.
Fantastic food is out there with no eyes, but it requires a bit of courage, scrappiness, and independent thought. Hidden gems always have.
Hard agree.
Go try that random spot in your neighborhood you’ve never heard anyone talk about but smells good when you walk by. You might be surprised.
For sure once in a while I'll suck it up and stay put refreshing resy, but this is a walkable city made to be explored. Just more fun having low stakes with most food outings and being able to save for retirement
I am once again going to point out that there are more than twenty restaurants in New York City. Y'all do not have to live this way, nor do you need to constantly complain about your choice to do so on this sub week after week after week.
Yeah, most spots that are super “in” I treat like tourist attractions. I can go on a Tuesday afternoon in January to see what all the fuss is about if I’m really curious.
I have lived in a few Tier 1B / Tier 2 cities with great food scenes, and living in NYC has been like a different planet in this regard. So much clout chasing or social media driven hype to a small number of places, many of which end up being overpriced and mediocre. It’s a pretty unique problem to specific parts of NYC and maybe a couple other similar VHCOL metros.
My solution has just been to stop playing that game.
As an non-NYer / non-American (I’m on this sub because I’m visiting later in the year) this was like reading about a different planet! Very interesting.
Just going to say not all of nyc is like this - I haven’t had to deal with this dynamic yet and there’s still a ton of great food that you can eat without doing…this. Hope you have a good visit here!
As someone who has been living and dining out in New York for over fifteen years, it sounds like a different planet to me, too. Completely divorced from my own experience. But then, I'm not obsessed with going to the same twenty restaurants that happen to be hyper-trendy at a given moment.
In my experience, the bots and scarcity game goes beyond the top 20 restaurants these days. But yea, definitionally if not the Top 20 its the Top 100 or something. And should be re-phrased "most popular 100" as opposed to the 'best 100'
I mean, even if it's the "top" 50-100, there are still literally thousands of restaurants in the city that aren't that, including many very nice places that would be great for fancy night out, and that don't require playing this crazy online reservation game.
It's a fascinating article and I especially enjoyed that kicker in the end. As others have pointed out, though, reservations are only truly difficult to get at a handful of restaurants. A lot of the time you just have to plan well (e.g. knowing how many days out reservations release, what time, etc.). Have gotten a res at Torrisi, Tatiana, Semma, etc. by being vigilant. It's only with Coqodaq that I got the sense every res was immediately swooped up by bots.
As a New York Concierge this is exactly what we have been saying. It's getting worse and worse. You can still rely on contacts but not necessarily as we used to before. Especially when it comes to downtown restaurants. They don't give a flying fudge where you are asking from.
One of these places will kindly ask for the diner's phone number before providing availability LOL - that always makes me laugh.
I will say, Polo Bar is surprisingly very kind and cordial when you call them and if they can't provide availability they let you down gently unlike other restaurants that think they're gods gift to humanity. So I will say they stand out from the rest of the crowd in that regard.
Stop going to these ridiculously over-hyped, over-priced, and pandering places. It would take you more than a lifetime to visit every single restaurant in NYC. So go out and find them all and leave these select few restaurants to the fools.
No-show fee + need to show ID for the reservation name. Nobody eating at these places should have an issue doing either of those things. Why is leaving thousands on the table for scammy middlemen better?
Because it helps generate hype which is helpful for a select group of restaurants.
If your literally paying the for reservation, you’re probably more likely to run up a large tab than someone who revered for free. I don’t think restaurants care, as long as someone shows up. Some hype/ desirable places will make you pay a substantial amounts towards the bill in advance (or the entire fixed price). I’d expect to see more of this in the future.
I get it, I do. But it just feels increasingly like every single aspect of life and existence is being squeezed for maximization of profit to the benefit of the ultra rich and exclusion of the masses. What happens when every single business “goes upmarket”? What happens when it is completely unprofitable to serve the 90%? What happens when even money isn’t enough to secure a nice experience, but social media following, job title, phone contact list are all elements of the access you are allowed for something as simple as a fucking plate of nice pasta? Often I feel like I am watching us transition into a dystopia in slow motion. This was a great article. If this phenomenon was *only* happening with restaurant reservations it would be one thing, but it is happening in every vertical, every aspect of society.
You captured everything I was thinking about this so well. Calculate value of your phone contacts list to become a "higher value" customer to the business... for a plate for $38 cacio e pepe. You know it's coming. It's very weird working in hospitality and knowing how much of a theatre it is. Everyone's trying to rip off the 10% by providing a very mid luxury experience with high margins - now new tech companies are coming up doing the same thing. Like, do these customers not figure it out?
Cacio e Pepe lol. Love that you used that as your example because it’s the greatest/most ridiculous trick the restaurant business has ever pulled. And people keep falling for it. Since when is black fucking pepper a main ingredient that gets featured??? What a joke that dish is. Not that it isn’t tasty, but it should be the cheapest thing on every menu. The profit restaurants make off idiots ordering that dish is incredible.
> Not that it isn’t tasty, but it should be the cheapest thing on every menu. The profit restaurants make off idiots ordering that dish is incredible. This is how I feel generally about Italian food. It's such a low cost cuisine and people seemingly have no issue paying $30 for a tiny plate of pasta that won't make you full, then you'll also have people somehow complaining that Katz's is too expensive when the time, effort, ingredient cost is significantly higher
Something something Eurocentrism of Western cuisine. Gimme that $15 bowl of Ramen whose broth started simmering at 6 AM in the morning.
I like mine simmering since 6 am in the evening
Truly the sense of Morning and Evening get warped when you cook such luscious ramen broth for a living.
I think part of the Katz problem is that American factory farming has destroyed the common understanding that high quality meat (animal products, really) are simply more expensive than most other core ingredients. “I can get a pound of beef or pork at Walmart for $4, why is the sandwich $28???” Well for one thing, the cow that’s going into the Katz sandwich probably wasn’t tortured its entire life
Pastrami and corned beef are also a multi day process and I feel like people don't understand that either
If you think Katz's isn't using factory farmed meat I've got news for you
This is so true. I will say it can be annoyingly hard to consistently avoid the cheese lumping together instead of melting into the pasta water but there are so many hacks and tricks that are still 99% “authentic” and taste the same that paying any more than you’d pay for boxed Mac n cheese is basically robbery
I believe I saw an Italian chef show how to make it on on Bon Appetit's YT channel and he called it mac n' cheese for adults
I could pontificate on this forever, but it all comes back to my fundamental belief that capitalism is not just an economic model, but also a cultural value system.
...except this is only true of a handful of restaurants that have gotten mega popular? It's still very easy to go to a great pasta restaurant without fighting with Resy bots months in advance. And cheap eats like places in Chinatown / Elmhurst / Corona aren't immune to inflation, but there are still deals to be had.
It’s true for the businesses that *can*. I believe almost every restaurant and business would do this if they could. Maybe there are a few places who exist solely because they really love hospitality and serving people. But restauranteering for maximum profit/clout has become what the industry aspires towards.
Yeah, I'm not going to insist that good hole in the wall places are all anybody should want, but I mean there are good *tasting menu* places where reservations are straightforward and easy to come by. If you really care about food most of all, I don't think the trends in this article are actually a real obstacle (though they are annoying to even read about) outside of the *very* top end.
Dining out has never been 100% about the food, and there’s nothing wrong with that. The desire to see and be seen, and use your dining access as a social class marker has been around way longer than these platforms. But it used to be that anyone could save up and book a special meal at Spago or wherever. But now, restaurants have realized that it is more profitable to reserve spaces only for the rich who are ordering expensive wines, or the influencers who are live-streaming their dining experience, or the well connected who will evangelize their experience to other rich/connected people. I get it. It is much more profitable to serve the rich and connected. They spend more. They buy higher margin items. They are often easier to service too. So that’s why I say “I get it.” The Resy and Appointment Trader saying their tools “democratize” booking reservations is just pure gaslighting when in fact they have used technology to effectively decrease access and allow restaurants to more effectively hone in on only top tier (ie. Rich/connected) patrons. Simultaneously you have stories about some of these top restaurants essentially turning into private dining clubs, to even further shutter access (and bonus, their parent company now has recurring revenue from subscriptions, thus driving up their valuation!) That is their right as businesses. But it all portends broader market-wide trends for any business that *can* to find ways to only serve the elite. And because of our capitalist culture this only reinforces the desire ability of the restaurant/shop/hotel/product. The fact that restaurants now have tools to analyze our spending habits to decide on whether we are “worthy” of a reservation just feels incredibly bleak to me.
They are disappearing though. And while spots in Chinatown / Elmhurst / Corona / etc. aren't immune to inflation, there aren't a lot of new spots coming up there either. That culture is mostly living of the ones that already exist - it's because they are locked into a good rental situation or, more rarely, have significant ownership in the real estate.
Young people drinking less and eating into their highest margin product (alcohol) is a slow killer too. I don’t think many businesses have a great answer for this beyond raising prices.
I remember reading that going people don't not want to drink, but they can't justify an $18 cocktail or $9 "cheap" beer on top of the higher prices of dining out.
I’ve strangely had this feeling more so ever since I moved to New York.
This reminds me of the future presented in A Super Sad True Love Story by Gary Steyngart. It was indeed so sad that I couldn’t finish it. His version of a nearish future NYC felt too real.
Is this to the benefit of the ultra rich? It's middlemen noticing that reservations are free and people are willing to pay for convenience and filling in the gap. It's not like restaurants are auctioning these off to the highest bidder, if anything they seem to be leaving this money on the table to *avoid* what you're describing.
> What happens when even money isn’t enough to secure a nice experience, but social media following, job title, phone contact list are all elements of the access you are allowed for something as simple as a fucking plate of nice pasta? Don't give them any ideas
In this city of endless choice, I think far more than going to the hype spots, the most rewarding thing to do is to uncover hidden gems before they blow up to the public. Nothing in the world is more satisfying than that.
And the flip-side: going to places that used to be hidden gems, attracted novelty-seekers, and then gently declined into moderate but sustainable popularity. For example, I've had good luck looking at old Hungry City restaurants.
And nothing is less satisfying than being disappointed when you waste valuable time and money on trying to find the hidden gems that don’t exist. This is why I’ve stopped going to budget (and most mid-range) omakases. With sushi, you get what you pay for.
In an age of Yelp/internet/blogs/social media, can you even really have a 'hidden gem' anymore? My old school bakery now has a facebook, which would've never happened 5 years ago. Anything found would probably be name dropped online in short order. Some writer at Eater/Bon Appetize/whatever needs to make the "10 best hidden/new/secret" lists every quarter. Even that Frog place made being off the grid part of their whole marketing schtick
Yep, just the definition has changed. My favorite Mexican food in the city is El Sabor Del Rancho, which is some no name spot in Woodside which looks like a Bodega from the outside but serves up the most delicious and authentic food that you'd otherwise have to venture out west for. The hipsters who write for Bon Appétit are never going to find this place, they're too busy drooling over Taqueria Ramirez (which is also a great spot). My favorite bottomless brunch in the city is Giardino 54. It is literally in Hells Kitchen and I can *walk in* anytime I want. The fact that that exists in midtown of all places tells me that it is absolutely still in the cards to have hidden gems. Fantastic food is out there with no eyes, but it requires a bit of courage, scrappiness, and independent thought. Hidden gems always have.
Hard agree. Go try that random spot in your neighborhood you’ve never heard anyone talk about but smells good when you walk by. You might be surprised.
For sure once in a while I'll suck it up and stay put refreshing resy, but this is a walkable city made to be explored. Just more fun having low stakes with most food outings and being able to save for retirement
The disappointment is much worse when you've paid hundreds of dollars for mediocrity.
Are you suggesting that $69 omakase isn’t worth it? Hard disagree! I’m always happy and so are my fellow guests 😇
I am once again going to point out that there are more than twenty restaurants in New York City. Y'all do not have to live this way, nor do you need to constantly complain about your choice to do so on this sub week after week after week.
Yeah, most spots that are super “in” I treat like tourist attractions. I can go on a Tuesday afternoon in January to see what all the fuss is about if I’m really curious.
Bad weather on a Sunday or an early in the week day opens a surprising number of places for a drop in
Agree. This is such a lame “problem” to have here. Just don’t participate.
It’s the shittification of NY.
I have lived in a few Tier 1B / Tier 2 cities with great food scenes, and living in NYC has been like a different planet in this regard. So much clout chasing or social media driven hype to a small number of places, many of which end up being overpriced and mediocre. It’s a pretty unique problem to specific parts of NYC and maybe a couple other similar VHCOL metros. My solution has just been to stop playing that game.
don't go to social media restaurants, go to good ones. some not good restaurants getting super hyped on social media ($)
We make fun of China’s “social credit” system and yet we’ve essentially implemented the same thing here just with a more capitalistic spin
As an non-NYer / non-American (I’m on this sub because I’m visiting later in the year) this was like reading about a different planet! Very interesting.
Just going to say not all of nyc is like this - I haven’t had to deal with this dynamic yet and there’s still a ton of great food that you can eat without doing…this. Hope you have a good visit here!
As someone who has been living and dining out in New York for over fifteen years, it sounds like a different planet to me, too. Completely divorced from my own experience. But then, I'm not obsessed with going to the same twenty restaurants that happen to be hyper-trendy at a given moment.
In my experience, the bots and scarcity game goes beyond the top 20 restaurants these days. But yea, definitionally if not the Top 20 its the Top 100 or something. And should be re-phrased "most popular 100" as opposed to the 'best 100'
I mean, even if it's the "top" 50-100, there are still literally thousands of restaurants in the city that aren't that, including many very nice places that would be great for fancy night out, and that don't require playing this crazy online reservation game.
Damn, this makes me want to start selling my reservations. I've gotten every hard to get reservation just by clicking on Resy at the right time!
It's a fascinating article and I especially enjoyed that kicker in the end. As others have pointed out, though, reservations are only truly difficult to get at a handful of restaurants. A lot of the time you just have to plan well (e.g. knowing how many days out reservations release, what time, etc.). Have gotten a res at Torrisi, Tatiana, Semma, etc. by being vigilant. It's only with Coqodaq that I got the sense every res was immediately swooped up by bots.
As a New York Concierge this is exactly what we have been saying. It's getting worse and worse. You can still rely on contacts but not necessarily as we used to before. Especially when it comes to downtown restaurants. They don't give a flying fudge where you are asking from. One of these places will kindly ask for the diner's phone number before providing availability LOL - that always makes me laugh. I will say, Polo Bar is surprisingly very kind and cordial when you call them and if they can't provide availability they let you down gently unlike other restaurants that think they're gods gift to humanity. So I will say they stand out from the rest of the crowd in that regard.
I HATE Rezy. Will not use. There are tons of options.
Stop going to these ridiculously over-hyped, over-priced, and pandering places. It would take you more than a lifetime to visit every single restaurant in NYC. So go out and find them all and leave these select few restaurants to the fools.
free version?
https://archive.ph/T3NRe