There are a few things we should all bear in mind before reserving a big table for the festive season
Fri Oct 23 2026 - 05:00 • 3 MIN READ
Whisper it, but the Christmas season is approaching. With this happy yet frantic time of year come family get-togethers, catch-ups over brunch and dinners out with colleagues, all of which require advance bookings. As we head into the hospitality sector’s busiest season, restaurateurs would love their guests to keep a few pointers in mind before making a group reservation.
Chef Kevin Burke of Library Street in Dublin 2 says his 33-seater restaurant receives “a fair few late cancellations or no shows a week”, but he adds that “everyone does”.
The Michelin-listed spot does not take deposits when reservations are made, but it does seek card details for each booking.
“We take nothing at the time ... it is just to cover us on a late cancellation or a no-show. It’s a preventive measure to make sure that people are serious about the booking,” says Burke. He notes that Library Street’s relatively small size means a large group not showing up will have a bigger impact than it might in a restaurant with more tables.
“If I am missing 10 guests in a small room of mine, it changes the atmosphere,” he says. “You want the room to be full ... If I have a no-show fee or a cancellation fee it is not because I’m money-hungry and I want your money. We want guests, we want to serve you and we want you to have an amazing time and if it doesn’t happen it’s not ideal.”
The financial impact of empty tables does need to be considered, however.
“I can’t speak for every restaurant but for here, I do a certain amount of customers and I need a certain amount of staff to cater for them, so if I am missing those 10 guests, I can’t just say to my staff, ‘sorry, they were going to pay for your salary that day’,” says Burke.
He says it’s helpful too if guests can advise of dietary requirements before they come to a restaurant, as well as providing an accurate group headcount.
“If you book for a table of eight, ideally if that number turns up that is great. If you come with more, we might not be able to fit it, or even less. A lot of groups will book for 10 and turn up and say that there are only five of us and say it as a normal thing.”
Lara Dalla Bona, general manager of the glitzy 180-seater Gloria Osteria in Dublin 2, says the no-show issue has prompted the restaurant to apply a cancellation fee of €20 per person for bookings of more than eight diners if the cancellation is not made at least 48 hours in advance.
“Sometimes people book multiple times and then they show up at their convenience – that is why we decided to put fees on for big groups because it helps us organise when we know we have a big group coming,” she says.
The fee is not just about helping the restaurant recoup money, but to ensure that the tightly planned Christmas season runs smoothly.
“It’s about being secure in how we are going to run the business over Christmas. It’s not just a loss in terms of money, it’s more about organisation, time, people that you prepare on shift, food that you order to make sure you have enough to serve and deliver a smooth experience,” says Dalla Bona.
Another issue when it comes to catering for large groups is timekeeping.
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“When it is a very big group, one [person] might come a little bit earlier and then someone else comes after half an hour or 45 minutes,” Dalla Bona says. “We have a sharing concept style and when people don’t arrive all at the same time, they don’t get to eat as much as the other people did, or the food is not warm anymore.”
She says it’s always best to have guests together and on time, especially at Christmas time. This helps with table rotation and with ensuring guests are happy when they leave.
“That’s the aim in hospitality,” says Dalla Bona.
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Source: The Irish Times · Niamh Browne
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