Restaurant Booking

Build a complete restaurant reservation system with table management, capacity-based booking, and waitlist.

Domain Mapping

Restaurant Concept	AvailEngine Concept	How to Set Up
Restaurant	Business	Create one business per restaurant
Table	Resource	resource_type: "table", capacity_min: 1, capacity_max: 4
Floor section	Resource section	Group tables by section: "Main Floor", "Patio", "Bar"
Reservation	Booking	capacity = party size, start_time = reservation time
Walk-in list	Waitlist	Parties waiting for a table

Step-by-Step Setup

1. Create the Business

curl -X POST https://api.availengine.com/v1/developer/businesses \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_JWT" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "name": "Trattoria Bella",
    "business_type": "restaurant"
  }'

2. Add Tables (Resources)

Create tables with different capacities. A 4-top, two 2-tops, and a large 8-top round table:

# 4-person table
curl -X POST https://api.availengine.com/v1/manage/resources \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"name": "Table 1", "resource_type": "table", "capacity_min": 1, "capacity_max": 4, "section": "Main Floor", "display_order": 1}'

# 2-person table
curl -X POST https://api.availengine.com/v1/manage/resources \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"name": "Table 2", "resource_type": "table", "capacity_min": 1, "capacity_max": 2, "section": "Main Floor", "display_order": 2}'

# 2-person table
curl -X POST https://api.availengine.com/v1/manage/resources \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"name": "Table 3", "resource_type": "table", "capacity_min": 1, "capacity_max": 2, "section": "Patio", "display_order": 3}'

# Large round table for groups
curl -X POST https://api.availengine.com/v1/manage/resources \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"name": "Round Table", "resource_type": "table", "capacity_min": 4, "capacity_max": 8, "section": "Private Room", "display_order": 4}'

3. Set Operating Hours

curl -X PUT https://api.availengine.com/v1/manage/hours \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "hours": [
      {"day_of_week": 0, "is_open": false},
      {"day_of_week": 1, "is_open": true, "open_time": "11:00", "close_time": "22:00", "last_booking_time": "21:00"},
      {"day_of_week": 2, "is_open": true, "open_time": "11:00", "close_time": "22:00", "last_booking_time": "21:00"},
      {"day_of_week": 3, "is_open": true, "open_time": "11:00", "close_time": "22:00", "last_booking_time": "21:00"},
      {"day_of_week": 4, "is_open": true, "open_time": "11:00", "close_time": "22:00", "last_booking_time": "21:00"},
      {"day_of_week": 5, "is_open": true, "open_time": "11:00", "close_time": "23:00", "last_booking_time": "22:00"},
      {"day_of_week": 6, "is_open": true, "open_time": "11:00", "close_time": "23:00", "last_booking_time": "22:00"}
    ]
  }'

Last Booking Time

Set last_booking_time so customers can't book a table 5 minutes before closing. For a restaurant that closes at 22:00, last booking at 21:00 gives the kitchen an hour to finish.

4. Configure Booking Settings

curl -X PATCH https://api.availengine.com/v1/manage/settings \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "default_slot_interval_minutes": 15,
    "default_slot_duration_minutes": 90,
    "booking_window_days": 14,
    "min_notice_hours": 1,
    "max_capacity": 10,
    "default_deposit_amount_cents": 20
  }'

Setting	Why This Value
slot_interval_minutes: 15	Tables turn over every 15 minutes — customers can book at 18:00, 18:15, 18:30, etc.
slot_duration_minutes: 90	Average dinner is 90 minutes. The table is blocked for this long.
booking_window_days: 14	Accept reservations up to 2 weeks ahead.

5. Check Availability for a Party of 4

curl "https://api.availengine.com/v1/availability/YOUR_BUSINESS_ID?date=2026-06-14&capacity=4"

Only tables with capacity_max >= 4 show as available. A 2-top won't appear for a party of 4.

{
  "business_id": "uuid",
  "date": "2026-06-14",
  "slots": [
    {"time": "18:00", "resource_id": "uuid", "resource_name": "Table 1", "available": true},
    {"time": "18:00", "resource_id": "uuid", "resource_name": "Round Table", "available": true},
    {"time": "18:15", "resource_id": "uuid", "resource_name": "Table 1", "available": false},
    {"time": "18:15", "resource_id": "uuid", "resource_name": "Round Table", "available": true}
  ]
}

6. Make a Reservation

curl -X POST https://api.availengine.com/v1/bookings/ \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "business_id": "YOUR_BUSINESS_ID",
    "customer": {
      "first_name": "Marco",
      "last_name": "Rossi",
      "phone": "+393331234567",
      "email": "marco@example.com"
    },
    "booking_date": "2026-06-14",
    "start_time": "19:00",
    "capacity": 4,
    "customer_notes": "Birthday dinner — would love the round table"
  }'

Response:

{
  "booking_id": "uuid",
  "status": "confirmed",
  "confirmation_code": "AV-XK9M2P",
  "resource_name": "Round Table",
  "customer_id": "uuid",
  "deposit": null
}

Restaurant-Specific Patterns

Deposits for No-Shows

Restaurants lose money on no-shows. Enable deposits to protect revenue:

curl -X PATCH https://api.availengine.com/v1/manage/settings \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"default_deposit_amount_cents": 500}'

This charges €5 per person. A party of 4 pays €20 upfront, refunded if they cancel within policy (set via cancellation_cutoff_hours in your Stripe settings).

Walk-In Waitlist

When the restaurant is full, add walk-ins to the waitlist:

curl -X POST https://api.availengine.com/v1/waitlist/YOUR_BUSINESS_ID \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "customer": {
      "first_name": "Lucia",
      "last_name": "Bianchi",
      "phone": "+39333987654"
    },
    "preferred_date": "2026-06-14",
    "capacity": 2,
    "notes": "Waiting at the bar"
  }'

When a table opens up (a booking cancels), check your waitlist and contact the next party.

Handling Large Parties

For parties larger than any single table, create a "combined" resource:

curl -X POST https://api.availengine.com/v1/manage/resources \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"name": "Combined Tables 1+2", "resource_type": "table", "capacity_min": 5, "capacity_max": 6, "section": "Main Floor"}'

When this is booked, manually block Tables 1 and 2. Or handle large parties outside the booking system with a manual note.

Seasonal Hours

Update hours for summer/winter seasons:

# Summer hours (June-August): open later
curl -X PUT https://api.availengine.com/v1/manage/hours \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"hours": [ ... "open_time": "11:00", "close_time": "23:00" ... ]}'

Holiday Closures

Block off closure dates so customers can't book:

curl -X POST https://api.availengine.com/v1/manage/blackout-dates \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "start_date": "2026-08-15",
    "end_date": "2026-08-22",
    "reason": "Ferragosto — summer closure"
  }'

Widget Integration

// Restaurant booking widget — key considerations:
// 1. Always show party size selector BEFORE date/time
// 2. Only show slots where at least one table fits the party
// 3. Display table options when multiple are available for the same time

const client = new AvailEngine('avail_live_YOUR_KEY'); 
async function getAvailableSlots(businessId, date, partySize) {
  const slots = await client.availability(businessId, {
    date,
    capacity: partySize,
    durationMinutes: 90
  });
  return slots;
}

Dashboard Tips

• Use the Booking List to see tonight's reservations at a glance
• The Waitlist tab shows parties waiting for tables — call them when something opens
• Blackout Dates for holidays and staff vacations
• Set up webhooks to get SMS/email when a booking is created or cancelled

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