Like Gleff, I have yet to experience any "special services" from being a VIP with OpenTable.

But overall I still like very much like the service and have had all my (very few) "disputes" rectified with a quick email. In looking at the lists of participating restaurants, we have ended up going to places we never knew about and finding EXCELLENT places.

At 100 points per reservation, you are effectively only accumulating $1 toward a future dining check, but, hey, a buck is buck! Regrettably, the 1000 point ($10) dines are rarely at times when we can go ... but I guess that's the point: Get people to a restaurant at times when most people aren't there, but the kitchen is open.

Bottom line: Join OpenTable. Doesn't cost anything, and can be very convenient.

I would agree -- calling often finds more tables then are available on OpenTable, particularly if booking for a large group.

I use opentable all the time. It's great in big cities like Chicago where they have a pretty extensive restaurant list. I usually mention to the host or hostess when checking in that I made the reservation on opentable and on the few occasions where I've missed a credit, it's quickly resolved. Have never had any problem redeeming for gift certificates - at this point, I've probably used $400 - $500 worth over the course of a couple of years. Much of this has come from taking advantage of the 1,000 reservations (usually off hours) which will instantly earn you $10 of certificates.

This happens a lot. I'd say about 1/3 of restaurants (at least) put only a limited number of tables on Open Table. Unfortunately, the website doesn't tell you when a restaurant is genuinely sold out or just holding back tables (probably because they'd prefer you choose an available restaurant).

Used open table a few times. It's handy for me, as i book tables in america from here in england. Never had a problem with the system, never redeemed anything from the points i earned

Yada

As a VIP, I've gotten the worst table in a restaurant (Ruth's Chris in Bethesda) and one of the best (Indique Heights in Chevy Chase).

Some tips-
If you want a table for 6 but they will only accept for parties of 4 or less, make the reeservation online and then call to change. It almost always works.
If you want 7:30 and they only show 7:00 or 8:00 online, make the online reservation and call to change, again should almost always work.
When I call to change an online reservation, the change is then reflected on the website for most restaurants but not all.

I have also used it but have also yet to redeem anything.

I recently used it for a local restaurant I was not familiar with. Even though I was dining alone that night, I thought it might be prudent to use it in case this was a brand new restaurant and was thus packed. OpenTable couldn't find any tables for 1 at the restaurant, but as soon as I changed the number of people to 2, there was plenty of availability. A few other restaurants also appeared with availability when I changed # of diners to 2, so there may be some bias against single diners. As others have mentioned, if one particular request doesn't get you the time you want, it may be worth a few minutes to try changing some of the specifics of the request to see if the result is any better.

When I made the reservation (for 2), in the comments, I noted that there would only be one person. As it turned out, it was a small restaurant and I was the only diner there for most of my meal. The manager mentioned that they were very happy with their relationship with OpenTable. And I did mention that the restaurant appeared to be full when I tried making a reservation for 1, so I hope he worked to change that.

Almost all restaurants on OpenTable don't allow reservations for one person...they will show zero availability instead of saying, "this restaurant does not take online reservations for less than 2 diners".

Digging up a pretty old thread here but have a question regarding the dining certificates. Have a couple on the way of varying amounts (have never used them before) and read somewhere that they are essentially like using a travelers check at the restaurant and the restaurant even processes them as such. That being said, if the bill is just slightly under (i.e. $96 bill) can I use a $100 certificate or does it have to be equal to or over the amount of the certificate? Can the certificate be used to cover tax and gratuity as well?

As of date of this post, from OpenTable FAQ:

Question
If I don't use the full amount of the Dining Cheque, do I lose the remaining value or do you issue me a new Dining Cheque?
Answer
The restaurant should give you change if the bill is less than the Cheque amount.

Question
Can I use my Dining Rewards Cheque toward the tip?
Answer
Dining Cheques are just like cash and can be used to cover the tip.


"Search" is your friend...

Lavandou in Cleveland Park gives me a free glass of champagne when i dine there due to my OpenTable VIP status.

Same seems to be true for parties of three. When I have 3 diners I just reserve a table for 4 and space magically opens up. I've never had an issue when I showed up with 3 instead of 4.

The restaurant is told to handle the OpenTable check basically as they handle a traveller's cheque. No problem using it to apply for any portion of the bill, in my experience.

We have a number of 1,000 points restaurants in the Sacramento (California) area - several of them actually very good restaurants, like Bidwell Street Bistro in Folsom and Paul Martin's American Bistro in Roseville. And a few OpenTable restos around here are also part of the Rewards Network program, nothing like double dipping and using a newspaper, online or Entertainment coupon in combination!

I enjoy getting my fifty dollar OpenTabel checks and love spending them. ^