Top 7 Online Reservation Systems for Restaurants

Deciding to offer your guests the option of booking a table at your restaurant online is a smart move.

After all, in a world where pretty much everything is accessible online, putting your restaurant on the map in this way is a no-brainer.

But choosing the best online reservation system for your restaurant isn’t quite as easy.

That is precisely why we have decided to create this article:

To provide you with an insight into 7 online reservation systems you may not have heard of before, and help you invest in the right one.

Tablein 

We’ll start off the list with our own online reservation system, Tablein. 

Voted by Investopedia as the best restaurant reservation system for 2024, our solution is ideal for smaller restaurants looking to take control of their reservation-taking and management activities.

Source: Tablein

Tablein is an online reservation system that boasts a plethora of features that go beyond just reservation management, all while remaining user-friendly with a minimal learning curve.

Our software’s features include:

• An online reservation widget 
• Reservation management 
• Table and time management 
• SMS and email notifications
• Account management
• Report and analytics
• Sales and marketing
• Website and menu builder
• Third-party tool integrations
• Business and customer data security

In short, Tablein is designed to help you get more table reservations and manage them with ease, market your restaurant, and analyze the data gathered by the system in order to take your business to the next level.

But how does it actually work?

It’s simple: all you have to do is place the Tablein online booking widget on your website (or any of your restaurants' online channels) and you can start accepting reservations around the clock—even when your restaurant is closed.

This is what the widget is going to look like for your guests:

Source: Tablein

As you can see, the widget is simple and intuitive, making it easy for your guests to book a table even if they’re doing it for the first time.

Once the table reservation has been made, this is automatically reflected in the system, giving you an instant insight into how busy your establishment is going to be and preventing double bookings.

On your end, Tablein’s calendar view provides your staff with a clear overview of all the reservations, including the guest name, reservation time slot, party size, and other relevant details like special requirements or VIP status.

Source: Tablein

Furthermore, Tablein’s customers praise our customer service and the approach to setup and integration at no additional cost:

“Rep and his team responded within 30 minutes of us sending them a request for a quotation on a Saturday morning. By Sunday afternoon they had everything set up and ready to go for Monday morning. Incredible service and very professional.”

If you want to test Tablein out for yourself, you are always welcome to sign up for a free, no-strings-attached 14-day trial.

And if you’re ready to invest in our solution, we offer three plans: Starter, Growth, and Success.

Source: Tablein

All three plans include all of the features but differ in the number of reservations included.

But even if you reach the reservation limit, you don’t need to worry about the system no longer working. 

The system will keep running smoothly, but any additional reservations will incur an extra fee of €0,67 or €0,37 per extra reservation, depending on the plan you’re using.

Overall, Tablein is a reliable, user-friendly online reservation system for smaller restaurants that comes with an extensive amount of useful features for growing your business and managing your bookings.

So, if that sounds like something you need, consider giving it a try. 

RestoManager 

The next online reservation system on our list is RestoManager.

Source: RestoManager

RestoManager presents itself as a solution that is going to make your reservation-taking and management smooth and simple, and your guests happy.

Similarly to Tablein, this tool allows restaurant owners to place a booking widget on their website, making it possible for guests to book a table 24/7 and on any device.

Furthermore, RestoManager integrates with Google.

That way, guests can find the restaurant on Google and make a table reservation right then and there, without even having to visit the restaurant website.

Regardless of what channel the booking has been made through, RestoManager consolidates all bookings in one place, providing the restaurant staff with a clear overview of all reservations in one central location.

Source: RestoManager

Furthermore, RestoManager points out their reservation management capabilities, explaining that “getting reservations is one thing, managing them in an effective manner is another.”

They claim to minimize no-shows and maximize your revenue by making sure your guests never forget about their reservations.

To achieve that goal, the system sends out automated confirmation emails and reservation reminders.

The confirmation email also contains a button that allows guests to modify their reservations as needed, thereby minimizing the likelihood of no-shows that can negatively impact a restaurant’s bottom line. 

While not many reviews are available online, the ones found on Trustpilot are overwhelmingly positive, praising the software’s ease of use and design, as well as customer service.

Source: Trustpilot

In terms of plans and pricing, RestoManager offers a 30-day free trial, after which you can opt for one of their three plans: Basic, Growing, and Professional.

Source: RestoManager

The Basic plan will cost you €39 per month, or €29 if you opt for the yearly plan which allows you to save up to 25% a year.

This plan comes with all the basic reservation-taking and management functionalities we described above. 

If you’re looking for additional capabilities, such as reviews, digital menus, marketing campaigns, and integrations with partners, you may want to consider opting for the Growing (€69/month) or Professional (€109/month) plans.

It is also worth mentioning that RestoManager doesn’t charge reservation fees, but there is a surcharge for online payments that can be passed on to guests. 

Overall, RestoManager is a well-rounded, yet simple online reservation system that comes with all of the standard capabilities needed for successful reservation management.

Hyteno 

Hyteno is a platform that describes itself as “an all-in-one solution for restaurants looking to optimize their online presence, improve their reservation process, and increase their visibility and customer base.”

They offer the following services:

• Online Reservation System
• SMS and Email Marketing Campaigns
• Automatic Posting on Social Networks
• Online Ordering System
• Professional Website
• Intelligent Review Collection
• Loyalty Program
• Local SEO Optimization

However, for the purpose of this article, we are going to focus on their online reservation system module only.

Source: Hyteno

Hyteno states that their online reservation solution is intuitive, automated, and flexible.

When making a table booking online, guests can select their desired date, time, and party size, and are guided through the process.

Once the reservation has been made, there is no need for your staff to manually enter anything into the reservation management system—all of the details are entered automatically, saving you time and preventing human error.

Furthermore, Hyteno claims to increase your table occupancy and improve guest satisfaction by allowing last-minute table bookings and accommodating them in real-time.

However, the Hyteno website doesn’t actually showcase what the system looks like, thereby making it a bit difficult to determine whether the interface would work for you and your staff.

So, for a detailed insight into the layout and capabilities, you would need to book a demo.

When it comes to plans and pricing, Hyteno offers a Basic, Standard, and Professional plan:

Source: Hyteno

At €29 per month, the Basic plan covers online reservation-taking and management capabilities, as well as some additional ones like social media management and digital QR menus.

However, if you want to make use of Hyteno’s SMS and email campaigns, loyalty program, or automated email marketing, you would need to opt for one of the pricier plans.

Like other solutions we’ve presented so far, Hyteno also offers a no-strings-attached free trial that will allow you to test it and explore all of its functionalities.

Eveve 

Established in the UK and launched in 2007, Eveve prides itself on being one of the leading global suppliers of online reservation systems for restaurants.

Source: Eveve

Their booking system allows guests to make instant reservations, in turn maximizing the number of bookings and allowing you to control them in terms of table availability and arrival limits.

What makes this solution unique are the capabilities that allow you to interact with diners during the booking process, as well as to offer alternative dates when the desired ones are fully booked. 

Eveve also prides itself on providing a plethora of features as compared to the traditional, paper-based reservation-taking methods. 

These include:

• real-time reservations,
• a platform for telephone bookings and walk-ins,
• table and yield management tools,
• EPOS integration, and
• account management.

Below, you can see what this reservation system looks like on a mobile device.

Source: Google Play

As you can see, this online reservation system can provide you with a holistic view of all your bookings and tables, but also a more granular view of individual bookings, where you can easily get in touch with the guest or modify the reservation.

According to the reviews on the Eveve website, they are successful at delivering on their promises.

This is what the owners of The Riverhead restaurant in New Zealand had to say about their experience:

“Running a very busy restaurant and managing our bookings has been a minefield for us over the past two years. Since changing to the Eveve system we have been able to manage the number of guests, maximise our capacity and offer real-time on-line bookings. Although we are only new to the system, the support and training has been superb so that the transition from our old booking system to the new Eveve system has been seamless."

Keep in mind, though, that if you’re interested in trying this online reservation system, you’ll have to contact their team to inquire about the pricing and plans they offer.

In summary, Eveve is a veteran of the online reservation-taking game, leaving the impression of a reliable solution that is worth exploring.

Tableo 

The next solution on our list is Tableo, a restaurant booking and reservation management system.

Source: Tableo

This software promises to:

• streamline the management of phone reservations, walk-ins, and online bookings on your desktop or mobile device,
• keep your tables full by eliminating no-shows with the help of on-the-day email reminders and reservation deposits,
• reduce wait times with the help of online waitlists,
• let you receive reservations around the clock with the help of their widget, and
• help you get to know your guests and their preferences.

Aside from helping you earn reservations through the website widget, Tableo also makes it possible for you to accept them from your social media profiles, Google, TripAdvisor, and MICHELIN Guide website and app.

On top of that, Tableo can help manage seating arrangements by allowing you to create a digital floor plan for your restaurant.

From there, you can click on individual tables to pull up reservation data, as depicted in the image below.

Source: Tableo

Overall, Tableo is a well-rounded online reservation solution for restaurants and receives generally positive reviews on websites like Capterra.

The hiccups mentioned by users include bugs in the system that prevent restaurants from charging no-show fees and the potential for improvements in the mobile interface.

As regards pricing, Tableo offers three paid and one free plan.

Source: Tableo

The free plan with up to 50 monthly bookings boasts a plethora of useful features.

Keep in mind, though, that it doesn’t include, for instance, reporting capabilities, pre-payments and deposits, no-show fees, or gift vouchers.

The paid plans—Bronze, Silver, and Gold—include all of the features Tableo has to offer, but differ in the number of available monthly bookings.

Although pricier than the other options we’ve presented so far, this solution comes with a wide variety of features aimed at making restaurant reservations a breeze, making it worth looking into.

Food Booking 

Food Booking is a table reservation system that comes with an online table booking app, allowing you and your staff to take and manage reservations on the go.

Source: Food Booking

Like several of the options we’ve talked about in this article, Food Booking is a solution that comes with an embeddable widget, making it possible for guests to book a table in a few clicks.

What makes this system stand out, though, is that they have integrated the “Table Reservation” and “Order Ahead” features, so guests can order their dishes during the table booking process.

That way, Food Booking explains, restaurants get to reduce waiting times, thereby increasing both guest satisfaction and table turnover.

Source: Food Booking

When it comes to plans and pricing, Food Booking prides itself on offering affordable options for restauranteurs.

As you can see below, they offer three plans—Basic, Pro, and Pro + Site Builder.

The default features, which are always free and available in all 3 plans include:

• Website Ordering
• Dine-In Mode (at table ordering)
• Facebook Ordering
• Table Booking
• Opening/Delivery Times
• Order Ahead
• Scheduled Ordering
• Delivery Zones
• Offline Payment Options
• Customer Mobile App
• Restaurant Mobile App
• Promotions Engine Basic
• Missed Order Alerts

For a surcharge, restaurants can also choose from a range of optional add-ons, according to their needs.

The Pro and the Pro + Site Builder plans cost £19.95 - £29.95 a month and come with additional features like website and Facebook integrations, a free domain name, and a website builder.

Source: Food Booking

Overall, Food Booking is an affordable online reservation system suitable for restaurants that are looking for a simple solution and want to reduce their wait times.

Favouritetable 

And the final online reservation system on our list today is Favouritetable, a solution that describes itself as ideal for busy restaurants looking for flexibility.

Source: Favouritetable

Favouritetable promises to help restaurants make better operational decisions, keep their tables full, and improve their bottom line.

It comes with a variety of features designed to make running a successful restaurant a breeze: from online bookings and a reservation system, to marketing and reporting capabilities.

You can see an overview of Favouritetable’s reservation system-related features below.

Source: Favouritetable

Favouritetable’s booking diary, table management module, and floor plan view make it easy to take and manage reservations, optimize table turnover, and manage walk-ins and waitlists.

On the guests’ side of things, all they have to do is visit the restaurant’s website or social media pages, choose their desired date and time from the booking widget, and pre-order their dishes if they so wish.

The booking is then sent to the system, instantly updating availability to prevent double bookings.

In terms of customer feedback, Favouritetable’s Capterra reviews are generally very positive, praising the customer service and ease of use.

The cons pointed out by users are the limited customization possibilities and a lack of capabilities allowing last-minute reservation changes.

With regard to pricing, Favouritetable is one of the more costly solutions on this list, starting at £69 per month for the FT Lite plan suitable for smaller restaurants.

The other two plans—FT Pro and FT Ultimo—will cost you £129 and £199 a month respectively.

According to Favouritetable, they are better suited for medium and large-size restaurants in need of additional features like capacity management tools and marketing capabilities.

It is also worth noting that Favouritetable doesn’t charge commission fees on bookings.

Source: Favouritetable

In summary, Favouritetable is a solution worth considering if you’re looking for a more fixed online reservation system with standard booking features and don’t mind the higher price tag.

Conclusion 

And with that, we conclude our roundup of 7 online reservation systems that every restauranteur should look into.

We hope that this article has provided you with a general idea of what you can expect from such systems, as well as helped you determine which features matter to you the most.

You should now feel equipped to decide which solution(s) are worth testing, weigh their pros and cons, and, ultimately, invest in the one that perfectly suits your restaurant’s needs.