To think it's rude for restaurants to give you a time limit

[msrisotto]

I hate it! I've just had a restaurant call to confirm my booking and remind me that they need the table back after 2 hours. If the service is prompt then that shouldn't be a problem but don't like feeling like i'm being pushed out the door and this is a naice restaurant you know?

Dh and I went to a local Italian place for a quick after work dinner last week. We hadn't booked just turned up.

When we got here we were told we could either have a table which they'd need back in an hour or sit at the bar.

We chose the table on the proviso that staff would serve us quickly. Which they did. To be fair it doesn't take ages to cook and eat a bowl of pasta and a pizza and some salad.

If you are told in advance AND you're there at an early time I don't see it as an issue. Providing the restaurant are quick to serve.

Bet you wouldn't think this way if you were the owner and people sat using your restaurant as a bar for the remaining 4 hours.......

Exactly Foslady. You would have to put your prices up to reflect this otherwise.

yabu , 2 hours is plenty anyway

This did remind me of an occasion when DH and I had booked a table relatively late - I think 8.45 - 9.00pm time.

We had been out for a very rare children free evening and night (I do love grandparents!) and treated ourselves to some pre-dinner cocktails at a swanky bar.

Arrived on time to the restaurant with DH now starving and about to eat his own leg to find a very apologetic staff saying the occupants of "our" table were refusing to leave despite been told they had to vacate the table in advance.

So we sat in the bar area watching the scene unfold. The people at the table obviously eeking out their dessert and coffee and then trying to order more drinks. They were told yes they could but only in the bar area.

Massive strop ensued - they were paying customers, being hounded, terrible service etc caused a big scene.

We finally got to our table about 40 mins or so from memory after our booking - after sitting in the bar area where this couple could have comfortably had their dessert and coffee.

The restaurant staff were lovely. It was a difficult situation for them. We got a dessert for free .

I was once in a restaurant, we hadn't booked but they said they had room. They brought the starter and then the manager came over and said,"can you eat as quickly as possible because we have another booking?"
I was young and looked younger as did the other person with me who said, 'you are joking'.

Would have been fine to be told 2 hours

How would you like it if you turned up but your table wouldn't be ready for an undetermined amount of time because the current occupiers were eating incredibly slowly? Would you happily stand their for three or four hours while they slowly sipped their coffee? Or would you think they were selfish to block the table and that the restaurant should ask them to hurry up?

I suppose the restaurants I'm thinking of when I lived in central London (and of course, maybe things were different 20+ years ago) expected people to savour their food and their time together. Yes, fairly expensive restaurants. I think the 2-hour type restaurants back then were the ones you didn't bother booking.

Seriously Jux? Unless the service is spectacularly slow I would have thought that 2 hours is ample time to slowly savour your food and wine.

DD and I have just been out to lunch. We only had one course because that is all we wanted, but we were in the place for under an hour and didn't feel rushed.

I would feel very uncomfortable taking up a table after I had finished eating knowing that someone was waiting for our table BTW.

Clear to see no-one complaining has ever run a restaurant!

Not true - I have managed a restaurant and been responsible for the bookings and we would very rarely book out a table twice on the same evening - unless there was a really early booking and then we would advise the 'later' booking that their table had been booked for 6pm and hopefully it would be free by 8pm but we could make no promises.

As in all these 'customer service' issues, it is how you deal with the situation and how you explain it to the customer.