The IT Nerd

OpenTable today announced the global rollout of Seating Options, a feature that allows diners to reserve a seat at the bar, counter, a table outside and more during the reservation process. Not only does the feature give diners the freedom to choose where they want to sit at the restaurant, even before they arrive, but it also increases restaurant availability during peak dining times.

Diners can now easily find restaurants around the globe offering various seating options and table types when searching for reservations across desktop and mobile web, as well as on the OpenTable iOS and Android apps. Alternative seating options are noted with a table icon on restaurant profile pages.

Located within GuestCenter, OpenTable’s flagship restaurant management product, Seating Options allows participating restaurants to categorize tables on their floor plan as either standard, bar, high top, outdoor or counter. These alternate seats are typically empty despite being highly coveted. Aside from attracting diners who may be looking for a seat at the bar or on the patio, Seating Options allows restaurants to open up more seats, increase the number of reservations available and ultimately boost profit.

Seating Options is now available globally with nearly a third of restaurants on OpenTable already using the feature. For diners interested in learning more, visit the OpenTable blog. Restaurants can find out more on the Open for Business blog.

OpenTable has today announced a business intelligence suite for its flagship restaurant management product GuestCenter. The new suite gives restaurants the tools and insights they need to seat more guests, better understand their diners’ booking habits and preferences, and personalize hospitality to help turn first-time diners into regulars.

The business intelligence suite provides powerful insights and recommendations to help restaurants grow and thrive:

• Shift Occupancy Analysis: Analyzes monthly and yearly historical occupancy to help identify occupancy trends and forecast demand.
• Turn Time Optimization: Uncovers opportunities to optimize turn times to maximize busy shifts and seat more guests
• Booking Insights: Analyzes reservation data to provide insight into where diners are coming from.
• Referral Insights: Tracks referrals, concierge relationships and reservations, giving restaurants insight on who is referring the business and the number of guests they are sending to the restaurant.
• Restaurant Owner app: Presents quick analytics into how the business is performing on a monthly and shift basis, giving restaurateurs the knowledge they need to make informed and strategic decisions.
• Monthly Business Reports: Shares actionable insights for busy owners and GMs, ensuring stakeholders stay informed with top-line reporting.

Additional analytics will be rolled out in the coming months, including a first time guest and visit frequency report; and covers and reviews analysis. These additional reports will help restaurants understand where their diners come from and how to convert them into regulars.

To learn more about the business intelligence suite for GuestCenter, please visit the website here or watch the video:

An analysis by OpenTable reveals that reservations for parties of one have grown nationally by 85 per cent since 2015.

OpenTable findings indicate the stigma surrounding dining solo may be starting to lift and that consumers are eager to savour special culinary experiences alone. Data shows the majority of solo dining reservations are booked for dinner (43 per cent) followed by lunch (30 per cent). Canadian solo diners also book the majority of their tables Monday to Friday (78 per cent), saving the weekends for dining with others.

In celebration of solo diners and the restaurants that welcome them, OpenTable has also released the Top 25 Restaurants for Solo Dining in Canada. The list was generated based on the restaurants most booked for tables of one and the “overall” star-ratings associated with reviews submitted by verified diners. Based on this methodology, the Top 25 Restaurants for Solo Dining in Canada according to OpenTable diners are as follows (in alphabetical order):

2017 Top 25 Restaurants for Solo Dining in Canada

529 Wellington – Winnipeg, Manitoba
The Bison Restaurant – Banff, Alberta
Bonaparte – Montréal, Québec
BOSK at Shangri-La Hotel – Toronto, Ontario
Bow Valley Grill – Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel – Banff, Alberta
Bruce Wine Bar – Thornbury, Ontario
Byblos – Toronto, Ontario
Damas – Montréal, Québec
Earth to Table: Bread Bar – Guelph, Ontario
Gyoza Bar – Vancouver, British Columbia
Jacobs & Co. Steakhouse – Toronto, Ontario
LaVinia – Toronto, Ontario
Le Filet – Montréal, Québec
Library Bar – Fairmont Royal York – Toronto, Ontario
The Marc – Edmonton, Alberta
The Merchant Tavern – St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador
Mettawas Station Mediterranean – Kingsville, Ontario
Miijidaa Cafe + Bistro – Guelph, Ontario
Miku Restaurant – Toronto – Toronto, Ontario
Miku Restaurant – Vancouver – Vancouver, British Columbia
ONE Restaurant – Toronto, Ontario
Restaurant Le Continental – Québec City, Québec
Richmond Station – Toronto, Ontario
Scaramouche Pasta Bar – Toronto, Ontario
Trattoria Gusto – Port Hope, Ontario

In honour of National Pasta Month, OpenTable today announced the 100 Best Italian Restaurants in Canada for 2017. These awards reflect the combined opinions of more than 515,000 restaurant reviews submitted by verified OpenTable diners for more than 2,000 restaurants in Canada.

From trattorias serving classic Italian comfort food to enotecas with outstanding wine offerings, this list highlights the diversity of Italian cuisine across the country such as Villa Rosa Ristorante in Penticton, British Columbia, and Italian by Night in Saint John, New Brunswick. Including establishments with multiple locations², Ontario has the greatest number of restaurants included with 50, followed by Alberta with 21, British Columbia with 15 and Québec with eight. Manitoba and Nova Scotia each have two restaurants recognized while New Brunswick and Saskatchewan are also represented on this list.

The 100 Best Italian Restaurants in Canada list is generated solely from more than 515,000 restaurant reviews collected from verified OpenTable diners between September 1, 2016 and August 31, 2017. All Italian, Modern Italian and Pizza (as a primary cuisine) restaurants with a minimum “overall” score and number of qualifying reviews were included for consideration. The restaurants were then sorted according to verified diner reviews.

Based on this methodology, the 100 Best Italian Restaurants in Canada according to OpenTable diners are as follows (in alphabetical order):

100 Best Italian Restaurants in Canada for 2017

ARDO Restaurant – Toronto, Ontario
Aria Ristorante – Toronto, Ontario
Ascari Enoteca – Toronto, Ontario
Atomica Pizza & Wine Bar – Kingston, Ontario
Bar Centrale – Toronto, Ontario
Bar Mercurio – Toronto, Ontario
BiBo Pizzeria con Cucina – Vancouver, British Columbia
Bistecca Italian Steakhouse & Wine Bar – Edmonton, Alberta
Blu Ristorante – Toronto, Ontario
Blue Martini Jazz Cafe – Vancouver, British Columbia
Bonterra Trattoria – Calgary, Alberta
Buca – Toronto, Ontario (Multiple Locations)
Cafe Chianti – Halifax, Nova Scotia
Campagnolo Toronto –  Toronto, Ontario
Carino Riserva – Calgary, Alberta
Carisma – Toronto, Ontario
Carne Italian Chophouse – Winnipeg, Manitoba
Carpaccio Restaurant & Wine Bar – Niagara Falls, Ontario
Casalinga Ristorante – Mississauga, Ontario
Cibo – Calgary, Alberta
Cibo Bistro – Edmonton, Alberta
Cibo Wine Bar – Toronto, Ontario (Multiple Locations)
Cinara – Vancouver, British Columbia
CinCin Ristorante + Bar – Vancouver, British Columbia
Cioppino’s Mediterranean Grill – Vancouver, British Columbia
Conti Caffe – Québec City, Québec
Cucci Ristorante – Oakville, Ontario
Cucina Market Bistro – Calgary, Alberta
da Maurizio – Halifax, Nova Scotia
Da Vinci Ristorante – Montréal, Québec
Dels Enoteca Pizzeria – Kitchener, Ontario
The Distillery Bar + Kitchen – Vancouver, British Columbia
Dolcetto – London, Ontario
EVOO – Toronto, Ontario
F’Amelia Ristorante – Toronto, Ontario
Federico’s Supper Club – Vancouver, British Columbia
Figo – Toronto, Ontario
Francobollo – Toronto, Ontario
Graziella Restaurant – Montréal, Québec
Hostaria – Montréal, Québec
Hot House Restaurant & Bar – Toronto, Ontario
Il Buco – Barrie, Ontario
Il Ponte – Toronto, Ontario
Il Postino – Unionville, Ontario
Involtini Ristorante – Calgary, Alberta
Italian by Night – Saint John, New Brunswick
Italian Farmhouse Restaurant & Bar – Bragg Creek, Alberta
Kitchen76 at Two Sisters Vineyards – Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario
L’Antipasto – Vancouver, British Columbia
L’Unità Enoteca – Toronto, Ontario
La Bettola di Terroni – Toronto, Ontario
La Brezza Ristorante – Calgary, Alberta
La Terrazza – Vancouver, British Columbia
La Vecchia Ristorante – Toronto, Ontario
La Verità – Dollard-Des-Ormeaux, Québec
Le Serpent – Montréal, Québec
Little Anthony’s Italian Ristorante – Toronto, Ontario
Little Grouse on the Prairie – Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
Local Kitchen & Wine Bar – Toronto, Ontario
Lupo Restaurant & Vinoteca – Vancouver, British Columbia
Mangia E Bevi – West Vancouver, British Columbia
Mangiafoco – Montréal, Québec
Mettawas Station Mediterranean Restaurant – Kingsville, Ontario
Mistura – Toronto, Ontario
Modus Ristorante – Toronto, Ontario
Niko’s Bistro – Calgary, Alberta
Noce Restaurant – Toronto, Ontario
North and Navy – Ottawa, Ontario
Osteria Savio Volpe – Vancouver, British Columbia
Ovest Cucina e Vineria – Toronto, Ontario
Paese Ristorante – Toronto, Ontario
Pasquales on MacLeod – Calgary, Alberta
Piano Piano – Toronto, Ontario
Pizzeria Gusto – Winnipeg, Manitoba
Pulcinella – Calgary, Alberta
PZA Parlour – Calgary, Alberta
Restaurant Balsam – Montréal, Québec
SASSI Kitchen & Bar – Calgary, Alberta
Sauce Italian Kitchen & Market – Calgary, Alberta
Scaramouche Pasta Bar – Toronto, Ontario
Scopa Neighbourhood Italian – Calgary, Alberta
Sorrentino’s – Edmonton, Alberta (Multiple Locations)
Tavola – Vancouver, British Columbia
Teatro Restaurant – Calgary, Alberta
Terroni – Toronto, Ontario (Multiple Locations)
TOCA – Ritz Carlton – Toronto, Ontario
Trattoria Gusto – Port Hope, Ontario
Trattoria Taverniti – Toronto, Ontario
Trattoria Timone – Oakville, Ontario
Trio Ristorante & Pizzeria – Toronto, Ontario
Tutti Matti – Toronto, Ontario
Tutto Pronto – Toronto, Ontario
Uncle Tony’s – Toronto, Ontario
Vero Bistro Moderne – Calgary, Alberta
Vibo Restaurant – Toronto, Ontario
Villa Firenze – Calgary, Alberta
Villa Rosa Ristorante – Penticton, British Columbia
vivo ristorante – Westend – Edmonton, Alberta
Zambri’s – Victoria, British Columbia
Zucca Trattoria – Toronto, Ontario

The complete list may also be viewed at https://www.opentable.com/m/canada-italian-restaurants. Diners can read more about the 100 Best Italian Restaurants in Canada by visiting the OpenTable blog.

OpenTable today announced new features optimized for iOS 11, giving diners across the globe new ways to discover and share restaurants using the latest OpenTable apps for iPhone and iPad.

The new Invite Guests feature lets OpenTable’s iPhone and iPad app users send dining invitations and share restaurant reservation details directly within an iMessage conversation. By simply tapping the “Add Guests” button on the reservation confirmation screen, diners can invite friends, colleagues or loved ones to join their reservation.

With the new Drag and Drop feature on iPad, diners can now seamlessly drag and drop restaurants from anywhere in the OpenTable app into iMessage conversations. They can also drag and drop upcoming reservations into iCal Apple Maps, and other apps on iPad.

To experience the new features, diners can download the OpenTable apps on the App Store or by visiting https://www.opentable.com/m/mobile-apps/.

With wine harvest season upon us, OpenTable today revealed the 50 Best Restaurants for Wine Lovers in Canada. These awards recognize restaurants with notable wine lists and reflect the combined opinions of more than 515,000 restaurant reviews submitted by verified OpenTable diners for more than 2,000 restaurants in Canada.

Featuring restaurants offering exclusive vintages from world-renowned European vineyards to those with a focus on wine from the local cellars of the Okanagan Valley and Niagara Peninsula, this list highlights some of the country’s best wine lists, including Sooke Harbour House in Sooke, British Columbia, and Raymonds in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador. Ontario has the greatest number of restaurants included with 20, followed by British Columbia with 13, and Alberta with seven. Québec has six restaurants recognized, while Nova Scotia has two. Manitoba and Newfoundland and Labrador are also represented on this list.

The 50 Best Restaurants for Wine Lovers list is generated solely from more than 515,000 restaurant reviews collected from verified OpenTable diners between August 1, 2016, and July 31, 2017. All restaurants with a minimum “overall” score and number of qualifying reviews were included for consideration. Qualifying restaurants were then scored and sorted according to the percentage of reviews for which “notable wine list” was selected as a special feature.

Based on this methodology, the 50 Best Restaurants for Wine Lovers in Canada according to OpenTable diners are as follows (in alphabetical order):

50 Best Restaurants for Wine Lovers in Canada

529 Wellington – Winnipeg, Manitoba
Atelier – Ottawa, Ontario
Backhouse – Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario
Bishop’s – Vancouver, British Columbia
Blink Restaurant – Calgary, Alberta
Bruce Wine Bar – Thornbury, Ontario
Cimo Mediterranean Grill – Prince George, British Columbia
Cut Steakhouse – Halifax, Nova Scotia
da Maurizio – Halifax, Nova Scotia
DiVino Wine Studio – Ottawa, Ontario
Eden – Rimrock Resort Hotel – Banff, Alberta
Grapevine Restaurant and Patio at Gray Monk Estate Winery – Lake Country, British Columbia
Hardware Grill – Edmonton, Alberta
Hillside Winery & Bistro – Penticton, British Columbia
Inn on the Twenty – Jordan, Ontario
Kitchen76 at Two Sisters Vineyards – Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario
L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon – Montréal – Montréal, Québec
La Chaumiere – Calgary, Alberta
Langdon Hall Country House Hotel & Spa – Cambridge, Ontario
Le Baccara – Casino du Lac Leamy – Gatineau, Québec
Le Cellier du Roi Par Jérôme Ferrer – Bromont, Québec
Le Club Chasse et Peche – Montréal, Québec
Liquidity Bistro – Okanagan Falls, British Columbia
Neros Steakhouse – Caesars Windsor – Windsor, Ontario
North and Navy – Ottawa, Ontario
Opus Restaurant – Toronto, Ontario
Peller Estates Winery Restaurant – Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario
Pullman – Montréal, Québec
Quails’ Gate Estate Winery – Old Vines Restaurant – Kelowna, British Columbia
Oxley Estate Winery – Harrow, Ontario
Raymonds – St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador
Red Ox Inn – Edmonton, Alberta
Restaurant at Peninsula Ridge – Beamsville, Ontario
The Restaurant at Redstone – Beamsville, Ontario
Rustica Steakhouse at Silvertip Golf Resort – Canmore, Alberta
Sonora Room Restaurant – Burrowing Owl Estate Winery – Oliver, British Columbia
Sooke Harbour House – Sooke, British Columbia
Sterling Restaurant – Gatineau, Québec
Tap Restaurant – Surrey, British Columbia
The Terrace – Mission Hill Family Estate Winery – West Kelowna, British Columbia
Terrafina at Hester Creek by RauDZ – Oliver, British Columbia
Treadwell Farm to Table Cuisine – Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario
Trius Winery Restaurant – Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario
Twisted Lemon – Cayuga, Ontario
Tzin Wine & Tapas – Edmonton, Alberta
Vibo Restaurant – Toronto, Ontario
Vineland Estates Winery Restaurant – Vineland, Ontario
Vineyard Terrace Restaurant at CedarCreek Estate Winery – Kelowna, British Columbia
Waterfront Wines – Kelowna, British Columbia
Wildfire Steakhouse Waterloo – Waterloo, Ontario

The complete list may also be viewed at https://www.opentable.com/m/canada-best-wine-list. Diners can read more about the 50 Best Restaurants for Wine Lovers in Canada by visiting the OpenTable blog.

OpenTable today released the results of its latest Technology and Dining Out research survey*, which explores Canadian diner sentiment toward the use of technology before, during and after the dining experience.

Insights from the Technology and Dining Out survey of diners across Canada include:

Before the meal:

• Best seat in the house: Fifty-six per cent of diners want restaurants to know their preferred table or seating area. Seventy-six per cent of diners believe choosing a table or seating area would improve their experience.
• It’s about the little things: Diners also want restaurants to know special dates, such as birthdays or anniversaries (44 per cent), number of times visited (33 per cent) and dietary preferences (29 per cent).
• Skip the line: Seventy-two per cent of diners would like the option to add themselves to the waitlist before they arrive.
• Cool or Creepy: Fifty-three per cent of diners think it’s a good idea or are not bothered by the idea of restaurants Google searching them prior to their arrival.

 During the meal:

• Focus on the food: Forty-six per cent of diners say they hate it when people they’re dining with use tech during a meal because it disrupts their experience.
• Oh snap! Eight per cent of diners take photos during their meals to remember the experience.
• A human touch: Sixty-five per cent of diners agree that automation, including robots taking orders and preparing food, takes away from the experience of dining out.
• Technically solo: When eating alone, diners want their tech to keep them company. Twenty-two per cent use their phones several or multiple times while eating solo at a fine-dining restaurant (33 per cent for those under 34) compared to 47 per cent of diners (and 71 per cent for those 34 and under) dining solo at a counter service restaurant.
• Tech to try: Diners want to experiment with technology they’ve never used before, with 50 per cent open to mobile payments so they don’t have to wait around for the cheque, or even a button on the dining table to alert staff to an issue (37 per cent).

After the meal:

• Keep them coming back: Twenty per cent of diners always or frequently interact with a restaurant’s loyalty program (a further 27 per cent use them sometimes).
• Restaurant apps: Only four per cent of diners are very likely to download the apps of individual restaurants they’ve visited.

*These findings are based on an online survey of 275 OpenTable diners conducted between February 25, 2017 and March 15, 2017.

OpenTable has announced further expansion to its international reach with its launch in Amsterdam.

As part of the expansion, OpenTable will be working with restaurants to help them tap into its global diner network, which delivers more than 22 million seated diners to restaurants worldwide each month.

To further showcase their offering to global diners, restaurants will be able to list special offers and set menu options on the OpenTable network, catering to an increasing audience of diners looking for authentic, local dining experiences.

In addition to helping restaurants target global travellers, OpenTable has unveiled the localized version of its flagship hospitality products, GuestCenter and Connect, designed to help restaurants run and grow their business. Both products have been specifically designed and custom-built to help restaurants optimize their service and ensure their business runs as efficiently as possible.

GuestCenter is OpenTable’s full service front-of-house product, enabling restaurants to effectively plan shifts, enhance table management, better understand their guests and make smarter business decisions through reporting and analytics. Connect offers restaurants an affordable marketing tool for those who don’t need a full front-of-house product, enabling them to take reservations round the clock and access basic reporting tools.

At launch, nearly 100 restaurants are bookable through OpenTable’s website and via the global app, with more to be added to the network in the coming months.

The Amsterdam restaurants join the more than 42,000 restaurants available on OpenTable across more than 20 countries, including renowned global dining hotspots such as Berlin, Dublin, London, Melbourne, New York, San Francisco, Sydney, Tokyo and Toronto. The restaurants will be available for reservations in English, French, Spanish, Japanese, German and Dutch languages.

Grab your sunglasses and appetites! With patio season in full swing, OpenTable, today announced the 100 Best Outdoor Dining Restaurants in Canada for 2017. These awards reflect the combined opinions of more than 515,000 restaurant reviews submitted by verified OpenTable diners for more than 2,000 restaurants in Canada.

The official start of summer is almost here and Canadians can take advantage by indulging at some of the best outdoor dining experiences across the country. From the panoramic views of Grapevine Restaurant & Patio at Gray Monk Estate Winery in Kelowna to the vibrant rooftop of The Chase in Toronto, this second-annual list features outdoor tables from coast-to-coast to suit any occasion. Including restaurants with multiple locations, Ontario has the greatest number of restaurants featured with 44, followed by British Columbia with 27 and Alberta with 16. Québec has eight restaurants recognized, while Manitoba has five. Nova Scotia is also represented on this list.

“Canadian patio season never lasts as long as we want. With this list from OpenTable, locals and tourists can spend less time hunting for the perfect spot to grab a drink or share a meal and more time soaking up the beautiful weather,” said Ziv Schierau, Head of National Accounts for OpenTable Canada. “From West Coast estate wineries to Rocky Mountain retreats and al fresco urban escapes, this list showcases some of the country’s best outdoor dining destinations this summer.”

The 100 Best Outdoor Dining Restaurants list is generated solely from more than 515,000 restaurant reviews collected from verified OpenTable diners between April 1, 2016 and March 31, 2017. All restaurants with a minimum “overall” score and number of qualifying reviews were included for consideration. Qualifying restaurants were then scored and sorted according to the percentage of reviews for which “great for outdoor dining” was selected as a special feature.

The complete list may also be viewed at https://www.opentable.com/m/best-outdoor-restaurants-in-canada. Diners can also read more about the 100 Best Outdoor Dining Restaurants in Canada by visiting the OpenTable blog.