Prepayments are the best way to avoid no shows. Guests are no longer surprised when they have to pay in advance for a reservation, even on the terrace. For your inspiration, we have collected 50 examples of restaurants that work with deposits.

Prepayments are the best way to avoid no shows. Guests are no longer surprised when they have to pay in advance for a reservation, even on the terrace. For your inspiration, we have collected 50 examples of restaurants that work with deposits.

N.B.: The featured restaurant events and menus are meant for inspiration. Not all of them are still being sold.

50 examples how restaurants use prepayments

1. 3 course lunch on the terrace
Ron Gastrobar, Amsterdam

2. 7 course menu + wine and water
Restaurant Gebr Hartering, Amsterdam

3. Early bird shift
Old Dutch, Breda

4. Terrace voucher
Brandstof, Amsterdam

5. Summer menu - terrace
‘t Amusement, Arnhem

6. Chef’s Menu
The Good Companion, Amsterdam

7. Winemakers Dinner
John Dory, Amsterdam

8. 1,5m drinks
House of Watt, Amsterdam

9. Workplace reservation
De Uitsmijter, Amsterdam

10. Bib Gourmand menu
Restaurant Danyel, Maastricht

11. Drinks reservation
Bar Baut, Amsterdam

12. Tapas dinner terrace
De Markt, Breda

13. Pinksterbrunch late shift
Haddock, Amsterdam

14. Winebar late shift
Restaurant Groenland, Driebergen

15. Wine and food 3 course dnner
Restaurant Waterproef, Den Haag-Scheveningen

16. Lunch in the restaurant
Barca, Amsterdam

17. Terrace max. 2 hours
Restaurant Domenica, Amsterdam

18. Dinner outside from 20:45
De Vergulden Eenhoorn

19. 6 course menu
Brooks, Amsterdam

Old examples:

20. Groups lunch at MOS
Restaurant MOS, Amsterdam

21. Groups menu #2
Restaurant Bickers a/d Werf, Amsterdam

22. Guerilla Cuisine
Saris & Sobecki, Eindhoven

23. Happy Happy New Year!
Restaurant Happyhappyjoyjoy West, Amsterdam

24. High Harrie & Toon-tasting on Sunday
Restaurant Tussen Harrie & Toon, Ledeacker

25. IFTAR - Breaking the Ramadan fast
Restaurant Ortam BBQ Rijnhaven, Rotterdam

26. King's day
Restaurant Envy, Amsterdam

27. Leftovers menu
Restaurant De Loohoeve, Schoonloo

28. Let Us Feed You
Restaurant 101 Gowrie, Amsterdam

29. Menu d 'Amour
Restaurant Bistrot Neuf, Amsterdam

30. Menu Gastronomico 4-courses
Da Pietro Ristorante Italiano, Elburg

31. Movie At The Lake
Restaurant Lake House Rotterdam, Bergschenhoek

32. New Years Eve
Restaurant Auberge Jean & Marie, Amsterdam

33. Opulence Revealed by Rémy Martin
Cocktail bar "A Bar", Amsterdam

34. Pizza Party
Restaurant Huis van Iemand Anders, Amsterdam

35. Pre-Theater menu
Amstel Brasserie, Amsterdam

36. Private Dining
Restaurant Aan de Poel, Amstelveen

37. Reservations | Maastricht Vrijthof
Corner Bakery - Maastricht, Maastricht

38. Saturday Lunch Vuurtoreneiland
Restaurant Vuurtoreneiland, Amsterdam

39. Valentine's menu
Razmataz, Amsterdam

40. Special dish: Bistecca alla Fiorentina 1.4 kg
Restaurant Cucina Casalinga, Amsterdam

41. Special Easter Lunch
Restaurant BAK, Amsterdam

42. Speed ​​Lunch
Restaurant Barça, Amsterdam

43. Spring pop up
Restaurant 4850, Amsterdam

44. Sublime Afternoon Wine & Food
Brasserie Sublime, Waalwijk

45. Tasting: South Africa
Wine café Rayleigh & Ramsay Overtoom, Amsterdam

46. The beginning
Restaurant De Nieuwe Winkel, Nijmegen

47. The Whiskey Club
Restaurant Juniper & Kin, Amsterdam

48. Valentine's menu
Brasserie de Gempemolen, Sint-Joris-Winge

49. Wine tasting: Bavette meats Oranje
Boutique restaurant Bavette, Maasland

Not only for fine-dining restaurants anymore

Even though prepayments were first introduced in fine-dining restaurants, they can be used in countless ways:

• Regular lunch and dinner bookings
• Special days like Valentine’s, Father’s Day, Christmas and New Year’s
• Exclusive dining events, Chef's tables, private dining and showcasing a particular chef
• Tasting menu's with several courses
• Restaurant openings, concerts, boat trips, beer and wine tastings
• Reduced prices for package deals
• Responding to local and cultural events; Dutch King's day and Iftar - the evening meal with which Muslims end their daily Ramadan fast at sunset

Prepayments prevent no-shows, generate cash flow and save you time

Why do more and more restaurants use prepayments like deposits and tickets? Primarily, because they help to stop no-shows. By paying beforehand, guests make a commitment to your restaurant.

Tickets are also a great way to generate positive cash flow. Selling tickets before your restaurants opening can help you to get a flying start. This is exactly what Restaurant De Nieuwe Winkel did with their opening.

Offering tickets for your restaurant online can also free up your valuable time. Guests can easily book and pay online. Instead of calling and emailing with guests multiple times to schedule a single reservation, you can focus on running a restaurant.

How hospitable is it to ask for a restaurant reservation deposit?

Not too long ago it was unthinkable that a casual restaurant would work with deposits. Still, not everyone thinks that it fits with the hospitality we expect from a restaurant. For a lot of restaurants, however, it has become a well-known problem that the number of guests not valuing their reservation has increased in recent years.

Asking for a deposit helps in dealing with this in a transparent and flexible way. The deposit amount will be deducted from the final bill in the restaurant. If the guest can’t make it on the date of the reservation and cancels within the agreed time frame, the deposit will be refunded.

For the guest it feels nice to be charged a smaller amount on the day itself, as they partly paid already. For the restaurateur it is nice that cancellations (almost) always come in on time. A win-win for everyone.

What is the right price for a restaurant prepayment?

The prices in the examples range from a €7,50 deposit for a groups brunch to a €250 prepaid 7-course "All out" Chef's Table dinner arrangement in a Michelin-starred restaurant. If you are in doubt, just use the average deposit price of €25.

Start creating your own prepaid restaurant events with Formitable

With Formitable you can easily create tickets and prepayments for the events in your restaurant.

Here you can see two prepaid arrangements from the restaurant Supperclub. At Formitable we call these arrangements “Tickets”.

Each ticket made with Formitable has its own URL link. If you want to guide your guests' attention to a particular event or special menu, just share this link on social media, your website, or in your newsletter.

As each ticket has its own link, you can even use paid online advertisements on Google AdWords and track the performance of your events in Google Analytics.

You can choose to showcase certain arrangements (tickets) in the Formitable widget on your website. This way website visitors will immediately see what your restaurant has to offer.

Do you want to keep your event exclusive? You can also hide your event ticket from the general public. With hidden tickets, only the people that receive the direct link from you are able to see and buy the ticket. This is for example what Café Caron did when they invited guest chef Sergi Arola and only wanted to invite close friends to the event.

Tickets created for one-time events will automatically be deactivated in Formitable after the event has passed. This way you never have to manually remove tickets of expired events.

Are you already a client of Formitable? Start offering prepaid events today. A better and more modern way to serve your guests. Our Ticket Guide in the Formitable Help Center will help you to get started.

Are you eager to start using tickets and deposits, but are you currently using another reservation platform? Try Formitable 14 days for free.