Welcome to your comprehensive guide on the Table Reservations feature! This module is designed to streamline your operations, reduce empty seats, and elevate the overall guest experience by allowing frictionless booking directly through your marketplace application or web platform.
Below, you’ll find everything you need to know about how this feature works for your customers, how to get it configured in your admin panel, and some industry best practices to maximize your revenue.
Introduction
Managing a busy dining room can be complicated, but it doesn’t have to be. The Table Reservations module simplifies the booking process for both you and your guests. By eliminating the friction of phone calls and manual entries, you can lock in revenue and focus your team on what matters most—delivering incredible service.
As showcased in the video this integration spans seamlessly from the initial customer order screen to your central administrator backend dashboard.
How It Works: The Customer Experience
Booking a table is smooth, intuitive, and takes under a minute. Here is the step-by-step journey your customers will experience:
Select the Business: The customer opens your marketplace and navigates to their chosen restaurant (e.g., Delicious Pasta).
Open Reservations: They click the Reservations button located directly on the store profile header.
Choose Booking Method: A modal will prompt them to choose between:
Table Reservation: Booking the table only.
Table Reservation & Preorder: Securing their table and selecting their favorite dishes ahead of time, ensuring food hits the table shortly after arrival.
Party Details: The customer inputs their desired party size (number of guests).
Date & Time: They choose an available date and a specific time slot from the dropdown menus.
Instant Checkout: They are guided to a custom checkout screen with a $0 layout option (unless configured otherwise). Upon confirming, they receive real-time location mapping and reservation tracking details instantly.
How It Works: Merchant & Admin Setup
Configuring your booking rules is just as easy as using them. Admins can customize variables on a store-by-store basis or globally.
Step 1: Activate the Reservation Order Type
To ensure reservations are available across your platform, navigate to your global system settings:
Go to Settings > Standard > Available Order Types.
Ensure that the Reservation order type is checked and saved.
Step 2: Configure Store-Specific Booking Rules
To dictate how individual locations manage their floor plan, go to your Stores manager:
Select your specific business and scroll down to the Reservations section.
Minimum / Maximum Guests: Establish floor limits (e.g., minimum 1 guest, maximum 10 guests) to keep seating efficient.
Lead Times (In Minutes / Days): Set how far in advance a customer must book, or how far into the future they are allowed to plan.
Grace Period (Hold Table Minutes): Protect your table turnover by inputting an automated expiration threshold (e.g., release the table if the guest is more than 15 minutes late).
Pre-Ordering Toggle: Turn the pre-order option on or off depending on kitchen readiness.
Step 3: Monitor In Real-Time
Every reservation flows directly into your centralized Orders List under a dedicated status badge, allowing your front-of-house staff to log details, track upcoming arrivals, and modify bookings instantly.
Best Practices for Success
💡 Pro-Tip: Optimize these configuration parameters regularly based on your seasonal demand and physical seating adjustments.
Leverage Pre-Ordering: Encourage guests to pre-order their food during the booking process. This shortens the dining cycle, maximizes your table turnover rates during peak hours, and helps your kitchen prepare prep sheets efficiently.
Optimize the Late-Arrival Window: Set your grace period between 10 to 15 minutes. This ensures you keep customers happy if they hit unexpected traffic while protecting your bottom line from unexpected no-shows.
Sync with Staff Schedules: Ensure your booking parameters (maximum advance notice) match up realistically with your staffing windows so your floor is never overwhelmed.
Conclusion
The Table Reservations module is an all-in-one logistics solution meant to drive customer loyalty and operational precision. By moving your reservation management entirely online, you reduce manual friction, capture accurate customer data, and ensure a packed house night after night.