Best online booking systems for Irish restaurants

An online booking system lets people reserve a table at 11pm without ringing you, cuts down on mistakes in the diary and can reduce no-shows. But the platforms charge in very different ways, and the wrong fit can cost you more each year than your website. Here’s a plain-English guide to the main options Irish restaurants use, and how to choose.

Do you need one at all?

Not every place does. A small café that doesn’t take reservations, or a pub that only books the odd function, may be better off with a click-to-call button and a simple enquiry form. An online booking system starts to pay for itself when:

• you take bookings most nights, and the phone gets busy at service time
• double-bookings or lost diary entries happen more than you’d like
• no-shows on busy nights are costing you real money
• you want people to book from Google, Instagram or your website at any hour

How booking systems charge

Before comparing names, understand the three ways platforms make money — this matters more than any single feature.

• Monthly subscription only. A fixed fee each month, whatever number of people book. Predictable, and you keep the full value of busy months.
• Subscription plus a fee per diner (“per cover”). Common with platforms that also run a consumer app or marketplace. You typically pay extra for each diner who books through the platform’s own app or website, and sometimes a smaller amount or nothing for bookings made through your own website.
• Payment-provider bundles. Some card-terminal companies now offer bookings bundled with their card machines and payments, priced by quote.

Per-cover fees add up quickly. As a purely hypothetical example: at €2 a diner, 100 diners a week booking through a platform’s app would cost €200 a week before the monthly fee. That can be worth it if the platform genuinely brings you new customers — but it’s worth knowing the number before you sign.

The main platforms used in Ireland

One web-technology survey of Irish websites that use a booking system found OpenTable the most common, followed by ResDiary and SevenRooms. Here’s how those and two other well-known options differ.

OpenTable

The best-known name, with a large consumer app and website where diners discover and book restaurants. Its main selling point is that marketplace: new customers can find you through it. The trade-off is that it generally charges per diner for bookings that come through its network, on top of a monthly plan. Best for restaurants in busy, competitive areas — Dublin city, for example — that want the extra visibility and will use it.

ResDiary

Widely used in Ireland and the UK, and built around the restaurant’s own channels: your website, Google and social media. It’s sold as tiered monthly subscriptions, positioned as an alternative to per-cover pricing, with add-ons such as deposits, gift vouchers and SMS reminders at extra cost. A strong choice for independent restaurants that already get most of their bookings directly.

SevenRooms

Aimed at larger and busier operators — groups, hotel restaurants and high-volume venues. Alongside reservations it focuses on guest profiles, marketing and repeat business. Pricing is by quote. Usually more than a small independent restaurant needs, but worth a look if you run several venues.

TheFork

A large European dining marketplace, owned by Tripadvisor, with management software for restaurants (TheFork Manager). Its consumer side is strongest in mainland Europe, so check how many Irish diners actually use it in your area before counting on it for new bookings.

Dojo Bookings

Bookings and table management from Dojo, the card-payment company, which operates in Ireland. It can make sense if you already use Dojo card machines and want fewer suppliers. Pricing is by quote, with a free trial offered at the time of writing.

At a glance

Plans, prices and features change often. Check each provider’s current terms for Ireland before deciding — this guide doesn’t endorse any of them, and UWRH Digital has no commercial relationship with any platform mentioned.

Questions to ask before you sign up

1. What will I pay in total per month, in euro, at my usual number of bookings?
2. Are there fees per diner, and do they differ for bookings from my own website versus your app?
3. Is there a minimum contract, a setup fee or a cancellation fee?
4. Can I take deposits or card details for large groups and busy nights, and what does that cost?
5. Can people book directly from my Google listing and Instagram?
6. Does it send reminders by email or text, and are texts charged extra?
7. If I leave, can I export my booking and guest data?
8. Who answers support calls on a Saturday night?

Connecting it to your website

Whichever platform you choose, your website is where a lot of bookings start, so the booking button needs to be impossible to miss — near the top of the homepage, on the menu page and on mobile. Most platforms give you either a link to their booking page or a small widget that sits on your own site. A link is simpler and very reliable; a widget keeps people on your site. Both are fine.

Every restaurant website I build links to the booking platform you already use, with clear “Book a table” buttons in the right places — I don’t build custom booking systems. If you switch platforms later, updating the booking link or widget is priced on the editing price list. See restaurant website design, or start your website.