What Claude (Anthropic) with web search answered for reservation systems (restaurants) on 2026-09-20

Claude (Anthropic) with web search claude-opus-5 asked 2026-09-20

Coverage: Claude (Anthropic) with web search. Other engines not included.

The question asked, verbatim: best reservation systems for restaurants

Brands named, in the order the engine gave

1. DoorDash mentioned
   DoorDash bought SevenRooms (closed June 2025), and Amex announced in February 2026 that Tock is being folded into Resy - the Tock app and site eventually shut down and those venues migrate to Resy.
2. SevenRooms mentioned
   DoorDash bought SevenRooms (closed June 2025), and Amex announced in February 2026 that Tock is being folded into Resy - the Tock app and site eventually shut down and those venues migrate to Resy.
3. Amex mentioned
   DoorDash bought SevenRooms (closed June 2025), and Amex announced in February 2026 that Tock is being folded into Resy - the Tock app and site eventually shut down and those venues migrate to Resy.
4. Tock mentioned
   DoorDash bought SevenRooms (closed June 2025), and Amex announced in February 2026 that Tock is being folded into Resy - the Tock app and site eventually shut down and those venues migrate to Resy.
5. Resy mentioned
   DoorDash bought SevenRooms (closed June 2025), and Amex announced in February 2026 that Tock is being folded into Resy - the Tock app and site eventually shut down and those venues migrate to Resy.
6. OpenTable mentioned
   OpenTable - Still the default, and the reason is the diner network.
7. Toast mentioned
   Toast Tables - Only worth naming if you're already on Toast POS.
8. Toast Tables mentioned
   Toast Tables - Only worth naming if you're already on Toast POS.
9. Yelp Guest Manager mentioned
   Yelp Guest Manager - Narrow but real use case: if a meaningful share of your traffic originates on Yelp, booking directly inside the listing removes a step.
10. Eat App mentioned
    Eat App / Ressto and similar - Budget tier.
11. Eat App / Ressto mentioned
    Eat App / Ressto and similar - Budget tier.
12. Buddy mentioned
    A note on sourcing: a lot of the "best reservation system 2026" pages that surface are SEO content written by the vendors themselves or by AI content farms, and several push unfamiliar names (TableShift, Bite Buddy) that I have no independent evidence are real, established products.

Sources the engine cited

The answer, as recorded

Here's how I'd actually rank them, with one important timing caveat up front: **the market is mid-consolidation right now.** DoorDash bought SevenRooms (closed June 2025), and Amex announced in February 2026 that Tock is being folded into Resy - the Tock app and site eventually shut down and those venues migrate to Resy. So a couple of these picks are moving targets. **1. OpenTable** - Still the default, and the reason is the diner network. If you need inbound covers from people who don't already know you, nothing else comes close in the US. The tradeoff is the pricing model: roughly $149 (Basic) / $299 (Core) / $499 (Pro) per month *plus* per-cover fees on network bookings, which for a busy room routinely costs more than the subscription itself. Worth it if you're filling seats you couldn't fill yourself; expensive rent if you're already booked out. **2. Resy** - What I'd recommend for most upscale/neighborhood spots with their own demand. Flat monthly subscription, no per-cover fees, and Amex's backing means real marketing muscle and the cardholder dining-credit flywheel. With Tock merging in this summer, Resy is absorbing prepaid bookings and tiered experiences, so it becomes the strongest all-around option for fine dining. If you're choosing today and plan to stay put for years, this is the one I'd bet on. **3. SevenRooms** - The pick if guest data is the point. Deep CRM, guest profiles, automated marketing, and you own the relationship rather than renting it from a marketplace. It's an ops tool layered on *your* marketing, not a discovery channel. Starts around $499/month, enterprise quotes above that. Best for groups, hotels, and multi-outlet operators. The DoorDash ownership is worth watching - could mean useful delivery/loyalty tie-ins, or a strategy shift. **4. Tock** - Still the best-in-class ticketing and prepaid model: prix fixe, tasting menus, wine-country tastings, ticketed events, deposits that actually kill no-shows. No cover fees; ~2% on prepaid transactions. I'd only start here now if you need that capability *immediately*, since you'll be migrating to Resy regardless. **5. Toast Tables** - Only worth naming if you're already on Toast POS. Reservations launched in 2023 and it's not a discovery platform, but the POS-to-floor-plan integration is genuinely tight and it's cheap relative to the above. One vendor, one dataset. **6. Yelp Guest Manager** - Narrow but real use case: if a meaningful share of your traffic originates on Yelp, booking directly inside the listing removes a step. Also a solid, inexpensive waitlist tool for casual/no-reservation concepts. **7. Eat App / Ressto and similar** - Budget tier. Eat App has a free plan (capped, around 30 covers/month) with a booking widget, floor plan, and guest database. Fine for a small independent testing the waters; you'll outgrow it. A note on sourcing: a lot of the "best reservation system 2026" pages that surface are SEO content written by the vendors themselves or by AI content farms, and several push unfamiliar names (TableShift, Bite Buddy) that I have no independent evidence are real, established products. I left those out deliberately. **Short version:** own demand → Resy. Need new diners → OpenTable. Data and guest relationships at scale → SevenRooms. Prepaid/ticketed → Tock, knowing it's becoming Resy. Already on Toast → just use Toast Tables. Sources: - [Resy Announces Next Phase of its Reservation and Dining Platform - American Express Newsroom](https://www.americanexpress.com/en-us/newsroom/articles/travel-and-dining/resy-announces-next-phase-of-its-reservation-and-dining-platform.html) - [Reservation services Resy and Tock are merging - Restaurant Business](https://www.restaurantbusinessonline.com/technology/reservation-services-resy-tock-are-merging) - [Amex is upgrading Resy to win the restaurant reservation wars - Fast Company](https://www.fastcompany.com/91496951/amex-resy-tock-restaurant-reservation-wars) - [Tock vs OpenTable, SevenRooms, Yelp Reservations, Toast Tables - Tock](https://www.exploretock.com/join/vs/) - [OpenTable vs. Resy: Reservation Systems Compared - Eat App](https://restaurant.eatapp.co/blog/opentable-vs-resy) - [Restaurant Reservation System Comparison Guide - SevenRooms](https://sevenrooms.com/blog/restaurant-reservation-system-comparison-guide/) - [Toast, Inc. - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toast,_Inc.)

Markdown edition · the question page, with every recording · Answer Watch · AEO Watch

Answer Watch records what one AI answer engine said on one date, nothing more. Each page names the engine and the model, carries the date the question was asked, and lists the brands that appeared in the answer in the order the engine gave them, with the sources it cited. It is a measurement, not a ranking, not a recommendation and not a claim about the world. Brands that did not appear in an answer are not named on any public page. Coverage: Claude (Anthropic) with web search. Other engines not included.