Tables with time limits

food
restaurant
theguardian
#1

How do you feel about restaurants that suggest you only have the table you booked for a set number of minutes, say 90 or 120?

Is it reasonable to impose a time limit on a restaurant booking?

  • Yes
  • No, I booked
  • No, not if we keep ordering coffee and petit fours

0 voters

Did a restaurant ever chuck you out for staying over time?

  • Yes
  • No

0 voters

Is 90 minutes always long enough to eat, drink and chat (forget about poor service)?

  • Yes
  • No

0 voters

Anything else you want to mention?

P.S. I am not looking for opinions on Jay Rayner

#2

Not literally chuck us out, but we were asked to move to the bar area to have our coffees.

I never went back, and the place has now closed down, obviously.

#3

It’s only acceptable if the restaurant is booked to capacity at a certain time i.e. you ask to book at 7.30 and they say “we can accommodate you but at 9pm we need the table for another booking”

as a flat policy gtfo

#4

i’ve been politely asked to finish up as the place is closing - fair enough, the staff want to get home

I’ve never been asked to leave to make way for more diners

#5

As long as it’s clear up front, I have no problem at all with this

#6

Pizza 500 in Brighton do this by bringing you free shots of Limoncello and the bill (before you’ve asked for it) - the classy approach / free booze always wins

#7

Restaurant owners, if you’re reading this, you’ve been warned.

#8

they are classy people (i used to work with one of the owners, lovely chap)

#9

Not really into restaurants. Would rather get a takeaway and, I dunno, a WhatsApp group going.

#10

once got asked to leave but just pushed a fifty into the waiters hanky pocket and he gave me a nod and left us to it

we then went home and watched the best of theresa may on vhs

#11

Never heard it called that etc

#12

Fair enough so long as they tell you when you book ain’t it. You can then make your own decision about whether or not the allotted time is long enough.

I mean I don’t like it but if a popular restaurant has to ration table time to meet demand then so be it.

#13

i’ve usually finished by the time they’ve brought everyone else’s plates out so never really had a problem with it

#14

we do know we are talking about eating?

#15

I enjoyed this in the article:

“£5 charge for a window seat at the Marco Pierre White Steakhouse in Birmingham. I adore Birmingham, but I’m not paying a fiver to look at it”

#16

A big smile across japes’s face as he unwraps his reduced Tesco Value sandwiches while the waiter works their way around the table taking everyone’s order.

“Just a water please. Tap.”

#17

I think it’s absolutely fine for restaurants to impose time limits. 2 hours is plenty of time to have a relaxed meal in my opinion. Then again I’m a proper gannet.

However, if the restaurant is taking an age to take the order and bring the food out and THEN they try and shove me out the door then my god do we have a problem and I’ll certainly consider writing a 3 star TripAdvisor review of the establishment

#18

He wrote a superbly pithy review of some restaurant once that made me laugh many times. I think he is often excellent