When it comes to making restaurant reservations online, chances are you’ve heard of OpenTable. But a new suite of on-demand restaurant apps has hit the marketplace, and none is more poised to tackle the king of online dining concepts than Reserve, the Google Ventures-backed startup that has investors like Will.i.am, and actors Jared Leto and Jon Favreau pulling out their checkbooks.
Currently live in New York City, Los Angeles, Boston, San Francisco and Chicago, the app offers the same on-demand dining concept as other reservations-based apps, but with a focus on high-end restaurants and a curated, concierge-style experience.
Restaurant partners are hand-selected to meet a list of criteria including food quality (you’ll often find Michelin-starred chefs in the list) as well as overall dining experience metrics. The app acts more like a concierge than simple a service provider. If your original request isn’t available, the app offers a list of alternate suggestions, such as bar seating or similar restaurants nearby with availability.
Post meal, you’ll be prompted, much like Uber, to rate your dining experience. Also ideal for client entertaining, the app takes care of payment seamlessly – a copy of the bill, tip and a small concierge charge are automatically sent to your credit card. The app charges a minimal “concierge fee,” a flat $5 charge added only at the time that a customer pays the final meal bill. It’s significantly less than options like Table 8 and Resy, that charge upwards of $25 to simply make a reservation.
The app has also partnered with nearly impossible-to-get restaurants, like Momofuku Noodle Bar and tasting-room-only Ko to auction off on-demand reservations for charity. So now your foodie obsession can go to a good cause.
We’re so in.
