Mostly just a rant here, but I’m moving out of NYC in about a month and my wife and I were looking at a splurge restaurant dinner before we leave, and Tatiana by Kwame Onwuachi looked great. I read about their [reservation system on Resy](https://blog.resy.com/2023/02/how-to-get-into-tatiana/), how they release new ones at Noon each day 28 days ahead, which gave us a one week window in mid-July to get a reservation. The article said reservations typically fill up in a half hour and last Valentine’s Day was the fastest at 12 minutes.
Each day this week I got on my computer between 12 and 12:05, and reservations were always booked. Today I was on at 11:59 and literally refreshing my screen on the page for July 13 every five seconds. At Noon on the dot I saw all time slots available on Resy. I clicked 5:45, and by the time I got to the next page Resy said that was booked. It took me back to the page for that day and a few timeslots remained (5, 5:15, 9:45, etc.). I clicked 5:15, and that was also booked by the time I got to the next page. This all happened within 15-20 seconds tops.
So I’m not sure if these are all actually booked before the 28-day somehow or these are bots making these reservations or what. It’s literally impossible to book a spot (filling out email, phone, etc. on Resy) before everything books. But it’s pretty frustrating for an exceptionally highly reviewed and well-known restaurant that an average person without connections basically can’t dine there right now.
by scottkellogg
9 Comments
Use the app!!!!! It’s so much easier to get a reservation.
Make sure you’re logged in already so you only have to click confirm.
Must be your first time. There is a list of well over 100 restaurants in nyc that are equally as hard.
Yes the answer is they are all bottled. Resy does absolutely nothing to stop bots, not even a captcha, and most reservations go to bots at this point. And yes it sucks. Not much can be done until Resy steps up or restaurants switch platforms.
Def use the app, and you have to watch the seconds tick down and be really quick to navigate the 3 screens – date selection, time selection, and reserve now (and maybe additional popups on occasion). I got a Tatiana res for last month, and like others have said, it’s the same scramble for a ton of other restaurants so don’t think it’s impossible.
That said – didn’t love Tatiana so I can’t say I’d recommend it; not sure what Pete Wells was thinking when he put them #1 on his list!
There was a [Grubstreet article](https://www.grubstreet.com/2023/05/tatiana-impossible-tables.html) in May where the author discovered that the outdoor seating at Tatiana is surprisingly accessible (with the same menu). Not sure if this has changed since but might be worth a call.
Went here last week with a reservation. If you get there right at 5 they take a line for walk ins and the restaurant was relatively empty for the first hour and a half of the night.
Make sure to get the short rib pastrami. May be my favorite dish in NYC. One of the most insane mindfucks of a bite.
If you have a fancy Amex card or a friend with a fancy Amex card – some places hold a number of redos for folks with a fancy Amex membership. Could try making a reso that way. I’ve been successful in the past (for my previous rich af boss)
Yeah it’s super frustrating. I felt lucky to get a 9:45pm spot in February. It’s not a big place and it was packed when I went even that late on a Saturday. Food was truly excellent. Might help to try Resy notify on dates that are full – you’ll be notified if anyone cancels and a table opens up. That’s how I was able to finally get I Sodi.
Get there at 4:30pm. And grab two of the seats at the bar when they open at 5. That’s what my friend does.