The short version
Before seating a walk-in, check the table’s next commitment and the time you realistically need for the meal and reset. Decide what to offer online before service, and give the host team one shared plan.
A four-seat table is empty at 6:10. A party of four walks in. There is also a reservation for that table at 7:00. The seating decision depends on what can comfortably happen in the next fifty minutes.
This guide uses a worked example to turn that decision into a repeatable host routine. The times below are illustrative. Use your own dining and reset assumptions when reviewing your room.
1. Start with the commitments you already have
Before doors open, review the reservations due that service, their party sizes and any seating requirements. Pay particular attention to groups that need combined tables or a specific part of the room.
Give those commitments a place in the plan. Two separate two-seat tables may look like two opportunities for walk-ins, but if you need them together for a booked party, both matter to that reservation.
In yourturn, review the reservations alongside the floor and waitlist. Keep the table status current as guests are seated and tables become ready, so the next host is working from the same picture.
2. Check the whole seating window
A useful question is: “Can we comfortably finish this seating and reset the table before its next commitment?” Include the time to greet guests, serve them and clean the table. Do not count only the time they spend eating.
On a small screen, swipe to see all columns.
| Step | Example time | Decision |
|---|---|---|
| Walk-in arrives | 6:10 | 50 minutes until the booking |
| Expected meal | 60 minutes | Already longer than the available window |
| Table reset | 10 minutes | Allow 70 minutes in total |
In this example, that table is not a comfortable fit for the walk-in. Look for another suitable table or quote a wait. If you offer a shorter seating, make sure the guest understands and agrees to it before sitting down.
Yourturn has dining-duration rules by party size. Review them against the service your team can deliver; a duration setting is a planning assumption, not a guarantee that a guest will leave at that exact moment.
3. Choose what to offer online
Start with a specific service you understand well. Decide which seating you are comfortable committing to in advance and where you need flexibility for guests arriving without a booking.
There is no single percentage that fits every room. A small counter, a dining room with many interchangeable tables and a restaurant with one large-party table face different choices.
Yourturn’s reservation setup includes table sets with an online-booking setting. Review which sets are available online and which need staff involvement. Check the resulting public availability rather than assuming a change to one setting produces the intended mix.
4. Give the team a short service brief
Write down the decisions that should not depend on who happens to be at the host stand. A useful brief can fit into three lines.
Illustrative host brief
Protect: the tables needed for the 7:00 group booking.
Check: the next commitment before seating a walk-in.
Escalate: requests that need a different seating plan to the shift lead.
Keep the waiting party’s information current, too. If a guest leaves, changes their party size or declines an offered table, update the record. An old queue entry can otherwise shape the next host’s decision.
5. Review one service before changing the rules
At the end of the shift, note where the plan broke down: a meal ran longer than expected, a group needed different tables, or guests were given a wait the team could not meet.
- Was the original reservation commitment realistic?
- Did the host have the information needed at the seating decision?
- Would a different table allocation or dining-duration assumption have helped?
Change one rule for the next comparable service and review it again. Keep a holiday or special event separate from an ordinary service so an unusual night does not become your default plan.