While there are many OpenTable reviews, we’re going to break the platform down from an event management perspective. OpenTable is a reservation service for restaurants. The booking site is used by both customers and businesses alike and is a clever solution for busy restaurants. But is it worthwhile to sign up for it?
Join us as we take a deep dive into OpenTable to see what the platform offers and whether or not it is the right choice for your restaurant.
OpenTable Review
About OpenTable
OpenTable is an online table reservation service used by restaurants all around the world. The service allows restaurants to create their own individual listings on the site giving guests the opportunity to view availability and manage their own reservations. Being one of the most popular restaurant management systems, OpenTable is best known for being the go-to app for most diners making reservations.
However, OpenTable may not offer everything your restaurant needs for larger groups. The platform lacks features that are needed for private dining and groups that you can get with software like Perfect Venue. For example, you won’t get access to functions such as generating proposals, tracking leads, template style documents (ie BEOs), and task management. Â
So, while OpenTable is certainly a helpful tool for managing reservations and gathering reviews, it can also be limiting if restaurants are looking for a more robust private dining and event management system.
OpenTable Features
As we’ve already pointed out, OpenTable’s core focus is on restaurant reservations. Although that said, the restaurant managers can also use OpenTable to manage various other daily restaurant operations tasks. The system's main features include tools for:
- Guest center to manage table reservations
- Reporting and analytics on dining history
- Creating and managing gift cards
- Review management
- A landing page that is SEO friendly
- Private dining list in major cities (extra fee)
Available Integrations
OpenTable offers integrations with many other relevant platforms such as; Google, Yelp, GrubHub, TripAdvisor, Facebook, and MenuPages. OpenTable partner integrations also span a wide range of marketing and point of sale (POS) platforms.
POS Integrations
Aloha, Micros, POSitouch, Upserve, H&L, Toast, SilverwarePOS, Lavu, and Squirrel Systems
Email Marketing
Mailchimp, Emma, and Fishbowl
Content Management
Yext, SinglePlatform, and ReviewTrackers
OpenTable Pricing Details
OpenTable offers restaurants three different pricing plan options. These are:
- Basic: Free for 30 days then $1.50 per network cover
- Core: $249/month and $1/network cover
- Pro: $449/month and $1/network cover
On the plus side, OpenTable has flexibility within its pricing structure to accommodate restaurants of all sizes. On the downside, the software’s more advanced plans come at quite a hefty price - especially considering the service still lacks features found in other event management solutions.
Pros
- Exposure to a large network of diners of up to 19 million users per month
- Marketing programs and diner loyalty programs that can help fill seats
- Email marketing integrations and POS integrations
- Private events lead form integrates with Perfect Venue to easily manage events in one place
Cons
- Monthly subscription costs plus per cover charges can quickly add up to an expensive bill
- Restaurants can pay to be listed before yours
- Competitive marketplace with high competition on their consumer facing app due to the sheer volume of restaurants listed
Conclusion
Restaurants can use OpenTable to streamline their table reservation process, improve customer service, listen to feedback, and provide a more professional online reservation system. It also helps to put new restaurants on the map with people looking for a place to dine in their location.
However, when it comes to managing private events, OpenTable is lacking. They have a simple contact form that sends an email to the restaurant, but there is no way to manage availability, send proposals, or get paid.
Fortunately, Perfect Venue provides an easy to use and affordable option for managing private events that even integrates with OpenTable so that new private event inquiries automatically go into Perfect Venue. To try out Perfect Venue you can either start a free trial today or book a demo with our team.
