Average deposit for set menu meal?

laiman · 23 Apr 2006 at 16:50

Mate of mines birthday and twenty of us are gonna go for a meal. Twenty pound a head set menu, they are looking for a 200quid deposit 2 weeks in advance thats like 50% haddnt thought about it until now but that seems a little expensive deposits are usually about 10% no?

is he gettin ripped of?

iSam · 23 Apr 2006 at 16:52

Na I wouldn't of thought so, the restaurant obviously doesnt like being stood up so demands a high deposit in order to reserve the table 100%.

Greenlizard0 · 23 Apr 2006 at 16:52

I think that's a bit harsh tbh...I'm not sure that all places do that.

edit - perhaps it's because they've been stung before by a late cancellation? Though tbh, if a restaurent needs to take 200 off you beforehand maybe they're not that good?

Stringy · 23 Apr 2006 at 16:53

Well if it's a restaurant that doesn't plan on going anywhere I don't see how you'd get ripped off. If people book for a set menu table/do whatever, and then don't turn up, they've lost income they were planning to receive. If they take a big deposit, they eliminate the risk.

Unless of course this is some sort of Nigerian internet restaurant venture of course.

iSam · 23 Apr 2006 at 16:59

OCdt Stringy said:
Well if it's a restaurant that doesn't plan on going anywhere I don't see how you'd get ripped off. If people book for a set menu table/do whatever, and then don't turn up, they've lost income they were planning to receive. If they take a big deposit, they eliminate the risk.

Yea, where I work, they have large groups booked, the chefs work hard all day on getting the food ready, (which sometimes means getting new food in especially) extra waiting staff may also be brought in for really big parties and then the people dont turn up (it sounds unbelievable but it happens.)

The place can loose a lot of money from chucking food away that wont keep and by paying the extra staff.

PardonTheWait · 23 Apr 2006 at 17:03

laiman said:
is he gettin ripped of?

What, are you expecting them to shut down and change their name to steal £200 off your mate?

20 people is a massive booking, if they rearrange the tables for a big party like that and then you don't turn up, it's a giant pain in the bum for them. They're just making sure you show.

VeNT · 23 Apr 2006 at 17:09

£10 a head for booking isn't bad

laiman · 23 Apr 2006 at 17:47

Just wondered, the place is pretty big takes groups up to about 100 if IIRC, so 20 is pretty small, wouldnt have said twenty was that big we quite often go out for peoples birthdays in groups that size.
didnt really mean ripped off just money is a bit tight just now, and im loaning him most of the cash.

PinkPig · 23 Apr 2006 at 18:30

I think it's becoming fairly routine for places to charge large deposits for big groups, particularly if you're not regular customers as your group. The fact that they accept even larger groups is neither here nor there. In any case, if you like the place and want to go there then there's not much you can do!

Jest3r · 23 Apr 2006 at 19:32

laiman said:
Just wondered, the place is pretty big takes groups up to about 100 if IIRC, so 20 is pretty small, wouldnt have said twenty was that big we quite often go out for peoples birthdays in groups that size.
didnt really mean ripped off just money is a bit tight just now, and im loaning him most of the cash.

rather than fronting the cash, how about chasing round mates and getting the cash for everyone, so all cash is sorted in advance, only drinks to worry about on the night then,