Ask George: Why do restaurants make it so hard to book a larger table?

Why do restaurants make it so hard to book a larger table? –Jason R., St. Louis

The short answer: Larger tables are often rife with challenges. From the top to the bottom of a restaurant’s service ladder—the reservationist, host, manager, bartender, server, busser, kitchen crew—large parties (e.g., eight to 12 people) is the toughest challenge for a restaurant and the great delineator. For a new restaurant, especially, it’s looked upon as the final exam—if you take on a large party or two and emerge relatively unscathed, then you feel confident you’ve been dealt your most demanding assignment. Ask any restaurant employee about that size of party, and the response is often, “Oh, no. Another 10-top.” There are legit reasons for such a reaction: Large parties are a mixed blessing. Here’s why.

THE POSITIVES

• Space Efficiency: Larger parties fill larger, often unused tables, “snugs,” or side rooms dedicated to such use.
• Extra Revenue: This can be a sizable amount, one that can make a server’s—and, often, the restaurant’s—night. Larger parties are often celebrating, and that means wallets usually open.
• New Customers: In many cases, members of larger parties may not otherwise have visited the restaurant. The restaurateur (and the server) have a chance to win them over and gain new customers.
• Fulfilling a Demand: Guests celebrating a special occasion often want to do so with more than a few people. If a restaurant can’t or won’t accommodate a larger party, then they will seek out a restaurant that will.

THE NEGATIVES:

• Large Parties Run Late: At least one person in the party will often arrive late, which slows the ordering process for everyone.
• They’re Loud: A 12-top is naturally louder than a four-top. Two large parties in the same vicinity can be deafening. Decibels don’t lie: Large tables are disruptive to other guests, and there’s no avoiding that.
• They Can Be Poor Tippers: When otherwise normal tippers find themselves in a group situation, they can become stingy. Maybe it’s intentional and maybe not, but it happens—ask any server. It was this widespread occurrence that prompted the now-ubiquitous automatic gratuity, which has fans and detractors.
• They No-Show or Change the Number in the Party: When a party of 10 becomes 12 or more without warning, it causes seating and service problems. Conversely, when it mysteriously throttles down to six, it causes managerial gastritis. When the party doesn’t show up at all, restaurant managers may mutter and curse. (Guests often make reservations at several places, then forget to cancel one or two. This issue has prompted some restaurants to reluctantly ask for deposits or prepayment, which generates its own set of problems.)
• They Request Separate Checks: Having to keep six couples’ orders separate and then process six charges takes extra time, which could be spent catering to other guests.
• They Switch Seats: The larger the party, the more likely it is that someone will temporarily switch seats to chat with another guest. Such activity causes service issues, because meals are served to a seat number, not to a roving guest. Don’t expect the server to keep up with a game of musical chairs.
• Food Quality Suffers: It’s likely that at least one person at a large table will be served a substandard meal—one that’s undercooked, overcooked, rushed, forgotten, or simply lukewarm from sitting too long in an undersized warming window.
• Kitchen Efficiency Decreases: A party of 12 bogs down the kitchen far worse than anything short of losing a cook mid-shift. Multiple large-party orders that follow one another into the kitchen often bring all subsequent orders to a standstill. (If the entrées at your deuce are taking a ridiculously long time, then there’s a good chance that your order was affected.)
• Server Efficiency Decreases: Larger parties require more server time overall than smaller parties. This is especially relevant at the moment, because staff shortages still plague many restaurants.
• Social Media Impact: Enter Murphy’s Law: The person at the 12-top with the forgotten entrée will inevitably be the first to bash the restaurant on social media—and could do it while waiting for the entrée.
• Mandatory Gratuities: In the past, servers could decide whether to apply an auto-gratuity. Nowadays, servers are often universally required to apply it, which could end up costing them a higher percentage tip. 
• Difficulty Making Reservations: Some online platforms restrict or prohibit larger-party reservations, requiring the guest to call the restaurant to make those arrangements.

All that said, large parties are a fact of restaurant life and offer a dining experience that can range from wonderful to problematic. A recent Wall Street Journal article cited several restaurants’ resistance to booking larger parties. Here in St. Louis, an event facility caters specifically to them. Bellwether Hall sold out its first Easter brunch buffet this year, booking only parties of six to eight guests, an experiment so successful that “repeat brunches will likely be scheduled for Mother’s Day, graduation weekends, and any other time that large groups tend to get together,” according to co-owner Brian Schmitz, who also owns The Bellwether and Polite Society with co-owner Jonathan Schoen.

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