Who owns the guest relationship?
Some booking platforms put themselves between you and your guests, charging per cover and keeping the data. A system where you own the bookings and the guest profiles builds a first-party relationship you can market to directly — far more valuable over time.
Pricing: commission vs. flat
- Per-cover commission scales with your success — and quietly eats margin on every booking.
- Flat or included pricing keeps costs predictable as you grow.
- Always model the annual cost at your real cover volume.
Waitlist and walk-ins
Reservations are only half the room. A good system manages the waitlist too, with accurate wait quotes and guest notifications, so walk-ins are hospitality rather than chaos.
Does it connect to the floor and POS?
The best setup isn't a standalone calendar — it's reservations that flow onto your floor plan and into your POS and guest profiles, so the host, server, and kitchen all work from the same picture.