An empty VIP booth on a Saturday is the most expensive no-show in hospitality. Deposits and clear minimums fix most of it, and doing it online means your host isn’t juggling DMs and screenshots at the door.
Price by section, not by table
Most venues have a few kinds of seating: main floor booths, a raised section, a private room. Give each section a minimum spend and a deposit, and let guests pick the section. It’s simpler for guests and for your staff than a different price for every table.
Make the deposit part of the minimum
Guests accept deposits more easily when the deposit counts toward the minimum. “$200 deposit toward a $750 minimum” feels like paying ahead, not paying extra. Say what happens if they don’t show: usually the deposit is kept.
Set a party size and an arrival window
- Ask for the party size when they book, and set a maximum per section.
- Hold the table until a set time (for example, 11:30pm) and say so on the booking.
- Let the guest of honor share a link so friends can join the tab or pay their part.
Run the table on one tab
Once they’re seated, everything ordered at that table should go on the section’s tab, with the deposit already applied. Guests can see how close they are to the minimum, and your servers aren’t keeping it in their heads. At close, the table settles up in one go.
Follow up the morning after
Guests who had a great night are your best source of reviews and repeat bookings. A message the next day with a thank-you and a review link catches them while they’re still talking about it. Ask everyone the same way, and don’t offer drinks or discounts in return for a review.