A neighbourhood Italian in Lahore
Taking a phone-only restaurant onto online reservations, with guest history attached to every booking.
The challenge
Every booking went through the phone, and the phone rang hardest exactly when the room was busiest. A call that came in mid-service competed with the service, so some were missed and never called back — and a missed booking call leaves no trace, which is what makes it expensive. Regulars were recognised by whoever happened to be on the floor that night. If that person was off, a guest who had been coming for two years arrived as a stranger.
What we did
Reservations went online, so a guest can book at the hour they are actually deciding where to eat rather than the hour the restaurant can answer. Guest history was connected to the booking, so a returning diner shows up on the screen with their history attached — visits, party size, what they last said about the meal — before they reach the table.
What changes
Two things stopped depending on who was working that night. A booking no longer needs somebody free to pick up, so reservations keep arriving through the middle of service, which is exactly when the calls used to be missed. And recognising a regular is no longer a matter of who was rostered: the history is on the screen, so anyone on the floor can greet a guest as the returning customer they are.