Restaurant insiders share the secrets of snagging hard-to-get reservations

Reservation apps have made it a straightforward process for patrons to book a table just by a few clicks on a smartphone, but sometimes a table at the restaurant you want to book isn’t available. Whether it’s a special anniversary or just a night out to experience chef-curated menus and great service, if you can’t cinch a table at your desired restaurant, it can be a disappointment. And if the restaurant is a hot spot that’s booked for weeks or even months, it can be even more frustrating. Still, if you think that securing hard-to-get reservations is only for the elite, think again. Three restaurateurs shared insider tricks, tips and strategies to increase your chances of dining at the restaurant on your bucket list. If you know you want to dine on a certain date, a sound game plan could be to secure the table as early as possible.This can be attained by asking the restaurant when it opens for reservations. Many establishments create this model to even the playing field for securing a table. “We open our books on a rolling 60-day basis,” Rachel Candelaria, general manager at Press, a trendy restaurant in St.

Helena, California, told Fox News Digital. “There really are not any hacks to getting a reservation at Press.All our reservations are available on Tock,” a website dedicated to securing restaurant reservations, Candelaria said. If the common seating time is 7:30 or 8 p.m., you can gain an advantage by being flexible about the time you dine. Often, establishments want to turn the table over to maximize the night.“Generally, most popular restaurants try to get two seatings on each table, so the easiest times to get reservations are within the first one-and-a-half hours of opening and then again three hours after opening time,” Candelaria said. If you can dine a bit on the early side or enjoy a later dinnertime, getting a table on your evening of choice could be a better bet. If you have some flexibility, consider dining at...