OpenTable Reviews: How They Work and How to Reply

OpenTable reviews come from diners who booked through OpenTable and whose reservation was honored, which is why they’re often treated as some of the more reliable restaurant reviews online. After the meal, OpenTable invites the diner to rate the experience, including food, service, ambiance and value, and to leave a written review. Restaurants can’t remove genuine reviews, but they can reply, flag reviews that break OpenTable’s guidelines and use the feedback to fix what diners notice.

Because OpenTable asks diners for reviews itself, restaurants don’t need a request campaign on this platform. Your job is to deliver a consistent experience, read the feedback and respond well.

How OpenTable reviews work

OpenTable’s review system is built around verified reservations.

• Only seated diners can review. A review is tied to a reservation made through OpenTable, and the diner is invited to review after the booking is marked as seated or completed.
• OpenTable sends the invitation. Diners typically receive an email or app prompt after their meal, and reviews can only be submitted for a limited time after dining.
• Diners rate several aspects. Alongside an overall rating, OpenTable asks about food, service, ambiance and value, and may ask about things like noise level or whether they’d recommend the restaurant.
• Reviews are moderated. OpenTable checks reviews against its content guidelines and can remove those that break them.

The reservation requirement makes fake reviews much harder to post than on open platforms. It doesn’t make every review fair, but it does mean the person writing almost certainly ate with you.

Where OpenTable reviews show up

Your OpenTable reviews and ratings appear on your restaurant’s OpenTable page and in its app, where diners compare options before booking. Your overall rating and recent reviews are among the first things people see when browsing a neighborhood or cuisine.

OpenTable also uses diner reviews for recognition such as its Diners’ Choice awards, which highlight restaurants that diners rate highly. Those are based on review data, so they can’t be bought or applied for directly.

Because OpenTable reviews are tied to reservations, the diners who write them may be different from those who write on Yelp or Google. Many are regulars, special-occasion diners or people who planned ahead. Reading all three together gives a fuller picture of how your restaurant comes across. Our guide on Yelp for restaurants and our guide on Tripadvisor for restaurants cover the other main platforms.

How to reply to OpenTable reviews

OpenTable gives restaurants tools to respond to reviews through its restaurant software. Depending on your setup, you may be able to reply publicly, so future diners see your response, or privately to the diner. Labels and options change, so check your restaurant dashboard for what’s available to you.

When to use each:

Situation	Better choice	Why
Service complaint future diners will care about	Public reply	Shows readers you listen and what changed
Detailed positive review	Public reply	A specific thank you reads well to browsers
Personal matter, allergy incident or billing detail	Private reply	Keeps sensitive details out of public view
A regular with a one-off bad night	Private reply, possibly both	Lets you reach out personally without a public exchange

A good reply follows the same shape on any platform:

1. Thank the diner and mention something specific.
2. Address the complaint plainly, without blaming the guest.
3. Say briefly what you changed or are checking.
4. Offer a direct contact, without offering anything in exchange for changing the review.

Thank you for celebrating your anniversary with us, and for being honest about the evening. You waited too long for your table even with a reservation, and that’s on us. We’ve since changed how we pace late seatings on Fridays so tables turn on time. We’re glad the duck and the wine pairing lived up to the occasion, and if you’d like to plan your next visit directly with me, please reply here or call the restaurant.

For more examples across different situations, see our review response examples.

Flagging reviews that break the rules

You can’t remove a review because it is critical, but you can report one that breaks OpenTable’s content guidelines. Typical grounds include:

• Hate speech, threats or harassment.
• Personal information about staff or other diners.
• Content that isn’t about the dining experience.
• Reviews that appear to come from someone with a conflict of interest.

Report through the options in your restaurant dashboard or through OpenTable’s support channels, and explain which guideline the review breaks. Keep the report factual and specific. OpenTable decides the outcome, and there is no assurance a review will be removed.

Using OpenTable feedback to improve service

OpenTable’s category ratings are more useful than a single star rating because they point to where problems sit.

• Food scores slipping while service holds steady may point to a new dish, a supplier change or a kitchen staffing issue.
• Service scores dipping on particular nights may point to scheduling or a new team member who needs support.
• Ambiance or noise complaints might mean a table layout, music level or seating choice for certain party sizes.
• Value scores falling after a menu change are worth taking seriously, even if other scores are fine.

Review the scores and comments weekly with your front-of-house and kitchen leads. Pick one recurring issue at a time, fix it, and watch whether later reviews mention it less. That habit is what moves ratings over time, on OpenTable and everywhere else.

A worked example

Here is an illustrative scenario, not a real client. A mid-sized steakhouse has strong OpenTable food ratings but notices service scores dropping over two months. Written reviews mention long waits for the bill and servers disappearing after mains.

The general manager checks the schedule and finds the drop lines up with a switch to fewer servers on Thursday nights. The restaurant adds a server back, trains the team to present the check without being asked once dessert is cleared, and replies publicly to the most detailed reviews explaining the change.

Later reviews mention attentive service more often. The restaurant’s scores may recover gradually, depending on how diners rate future visits, but the team now has a simple way to spot problems early.

Common mistakes

• Offering credits for better reviews. Rewarding diners for positive reviews breaks OpenTable’s rules and can conflict with the FTC’s 2024 rule on consumer reviews.
• Using reservation data against a reviewer. Mentioning a diner’s booking history or notes in a public reply looks like retaliation and can breach their privacy.
• Canceling or marking reservations to avoid reviews. Manipulating reservation status to stop review invitations misrepresents your records and risks trouble with OpenTable.
• Ignoring the category scores. They often reveal a problem before it hits your overall rating.
• Replying only to complaints. Thoughtful replies to positive reviews show future diners a warm, attentive restaurant.

When to get help

Most restaurants can manage OpenTable reviews in-house with a weekly routine. It helps to bring in support when you run multiple locations, when replies fall behind or when reviews on OpenTable, Yelp, Google and Tripadvisor need to be handled consistently. Our review management service handles replies and monitoring across platforms, and our restaurant reputation management page explains how we approach the whole picture, including Yelp.

Frequently asked questions

Are OpenTable reviews verified?

Yes, in the sense that a review is tied to a reservation made through OpenTable and the diner is invited to review after being seated. That makes fake reviews much harder, though reviews still reflect individual opinions.

Can a restaurant delete an OpenTable review?

No. Restaurants can’t delete genuine reviews. You can report reviews that break OpenTable’s content guidelines, and OpenTable decides whether to remove them.

Should restaurants ask diners to leave OpenTable reviews?

There’s usually no need, because OpenTable invites diners to review after their meal. If you mention reviews at all, mention them to every diner and never offer anything in exchange.

Can restaurants respond to OpenTable reviews publicly?

OpenTable offers restaurants ways to respond to reviews through its restaurant tools, which may include public and private replies depending on your setup. Check your dashboard for the options available to you.