Platinum concierge restaurant bookings

[chrishond]

Anyone with experience of using platinum concierge for regular restaurant bookings (where website is showing fully booked)?

[trader363]

They recently changed it so will only book a restaurant for you if it’s on their global dining collection list.

Also if you’re abroad, they will only book it for you if you booked the “trip” using your platinum card

[JDB]

I can’t see why one would want to interpose a third party like Amex? It’s an awful lot easier to contact the restaurant oneself and at the same time deal with issues they raise such as what time they can do if full at a certain hour/day, where you want to sit etc. Adding Amex into the mix just complicates things and deprives one of control, like booking via a travel agent.

[rogernet]

Because Amex may well have more sway than a random caller. If Concierge is calling on your behalf and it’s Plat (or Centurion) they may well have a ‘spare’ table.

Try it with The Ivy for example.

[can]

I think the Plat concierge is utterly useless — they never managed to get me a ticket for sold out shows even if they had sponsorship deals with the venue.

But they used to advertise that the restaurants used to hold tables for them. If you buy that argument…

[JDB]

rogernet wrote:

Because Amex may well have more sway than a random caller. If Concierge is calling on your behalf and it’s Plat (or Centurion) they may well have a ‘spare’ table.

Try it with The Ivy for example.

They have absolutely minimal sway. If you call the ‘concierge’ service you get through to a call centre; it’s not like a real 5* hotel concierge. I trust you also realise that the small number of places that are willing to hold back tables are most often ‘brand’ restaurants that are focussed on celebrity rather than serious about hospitality and food so you’re in the wrong place anyway.

In any event, I’m afraid I have to break it to you that being a Platinum cardholder is hardly a very exclusive club – as Rob says it’s a middle class coupon book, so not quite the type these restaurants are trying to get.

When I first met my now wife 28 years ago, she did tell me that getting taxis and tables in good restaurants was an essential life skill. She was right; I, and most people, I know can successfully carry out these simple tasks on our own. We don’t need a nanny to tie our shoelaces.

Re the Ivy (and I assume you refer to the original one) it was never difficult to get into if you had the night number. Now, anyone can easily get in as the holders of that number no longer go there given it has gone downhill to the LCD of what is now a big overpriced chain. Other Ivy restaurants are unsurprisingly as easy to get into as Tesco given that the latter has better food.