Table Reservations Management

This guide covers the administrative and operational workflows for managing restaurant table reservations, including booking procedures, capacity settings, and blackout configurations.

Table of Contents

1. Staff Booking Workflow
2. Managing & Editing Requests
3. Reservation Engine & Terminology
4. Administrator Settings & Auto-Confirmations
5. Blackout Days & Service Availability
6. Changing Reservation Times

1. Staff Booking Workflow

Staff can create table reservations on behalf of residents, visitors, or family members through the back-office panel.

• Adding a Request: Navigate to Reservations in the menu and click the Add request button.
• Mandatory Fields: To submit a reservation, you must select the resident name, date, service (e.g., Lunch/Dinner), party size, and time slot.

• Capacity Alerts:
  • A red dot appears in the back office when a specific time slot is nearing its maximum capacity.
  • A red banner warning will display if a staff member attempts to make a reservation that exceeds the allowed limit for residents in that slot.

• Special Requirements: You can add optional tags for special occasions like birthdays, request high chairs, or enter free-text special requests.

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2. Managing & Editing Requests

All incoming bookings are collected in a central Reservations grid, sorted by requested time slot per day and service.

• Reservations Grid: View time slots, client names, party sizes, contact information, and special requests in a single list.

• Status Management: Staff must manually confirm or cancel requests unless auto-confirm is enabled. Residents receive push notifications once their status is updated.
• Editing Existing Bookings: Click the pencil icon on any confirmed request to change the assigned table number or the number of people in the party.
• Communication: Staff can post comments within a specific request to communicate with the resident. Unread comments are marked with an orange dot or pill in the staff panel.

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3. Reservation Engine & Terminology

Understanding the reservation engine parameters allows for a self-regulating system that manages guest flow.

• Concurrent Capacity: This refers to the total capacity that can be booked through the front office by residents.
• Staff Flexibility: Total capacity minus concurrent capacity equals seats that can only be booked by staff through the back office, preventing overbooking by residents.
• Intervals: The time between selectable time slots (e.g., 30 minutes) ensures guests arrive gradually.
• Reservation Length: The estimated time a table is actually taken. If a reservation is 60 minutes long, the guest occupies capacity for two 30-minute intervals.

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4. Administrator Settings & Auto-Confirmations

Global reservation rules are managed under Table Reservations > Settings.

• Auto-Confirm Options: Administrators can enable automatic confirmations for reservations made by residents/family or those made by team members.
• Editing Permissions: Settings allow you to toggle whether confirmed reservations can be edited regarding the number of people.

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5. Blackout Days & Service Availability

Staff can block specific dates to prevent residents from making reservations and, if needed, cancel existing bookings for those dates.

• Configuring Blackouts: Under Settings > Service Availability, select the dining location and click any blue date to turn it white, adding it to the "Service unavailable on" list.

• Canceling Existing Bookings: If you blackout a date that already has active reservations, the system will prompt you to cancel those bookings.

• Resident Notifications: Canceling via the blackout tool sends a standard notice. Because this notice is not customizable, it is recommended to post a community news article or leave a comment on the reservation for context.

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6. Changing Reservation Times

Staff can update the time slot of an existing reservation from the Reservations grid.

• Open the Reservation: In the Reservations grid, select the existing booking you want to change.
• Edit the Time Slot: Use the edit or pencil action to update the reservation time to an available slot.
• Save and Confirm: Save the change and confirm the reservation if required by your workflow settings.

If the new time is not available, check capacity limits, interval settings, and any blackout dates before retrying.

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