This article describes the nuances of booking tables in a cafe, and talks about what a deposit is. Consider the question of how to properly use your deposit, and what is the system of deposit reservation. Let's talk about the pros and cons of this payment system.
What is a deposit in a cafe?
A deposit in a cafe is a contribution of a certain fixed amount. It allows you to pay an invoice for using the bar and kitchen facilities. In short, this is a way to pay bills for cafes and restaurants.
For example, you and your colleagues decided to celebrate a corporate holiday in one of the cafes in your city. Before the celebration, you meet with the administrator of the institution, discuss the date and time of the event, and then pay, say, twenty thousand rubles in advance. This action will mean that your company can order any food and drink at this place within twenty thousand and not worry about paying all evening. This is called a deposit on the table.
This payment method is very convenient for those who do not want to spend more than they planned. The advantage is that the established amount will not allow you to go beyond the budget of the celebration or the usual Friday evening.
Is such a payment system beneficial for institutions?
Of course, deposits are beneficial both for guests of restaurants and cafes, and for their owners. Today, a large number of establishments require a deposit on the table to make sure that their guests do not intend to spend the smallest amount.
For example, some people can occupy tables and take only cocktails, while others also want to spend time in the same place, but intend to leave good revenue to the bar, restaurant or cafe in which they are located. Naturally, the second option is more profitable for owners, therefore, in order not to lose their money, they establish mandatory deposits.
The essential question is whether everyone can afford to spend the amount requested by the administration of the institution for a deposit. It is very convenient when the customer is given a price choice, whether it is 5, 10, or 20 thousand rubles. Then a person will be able to pick up a deposit depending on his abilities.
The difference between deposit and reservation
If a person decides to spend time in a nightclub, bar, restaurant and worries that when he arrives there, all the tables will be occupied, he will call the restaurant in advance and reserve a table in the necessary cafe. Such a service is usually paid and is not included in the main account of the order. This is called armor.
The difference in booking tables and deposits is that after the reservation you will need to pay the kitchen and bar services on the account plus pay the table reservation in the amount established by the institution, while the deposit already includes the reservation and the main account. From this comes the name "deposit reservation system." Simply put, table reservations can be booked with or without a deposit. The deposit reservation system already implies booking a table with a deposit.
In what cases will the deposit be returned to you
Refunds are made by the administrative staff of the institution. The return policy is individual for each cafe, bar or restaurant. Refundable and non-refundable deposits also exist. Deposits are those that are not returned to you in any of the outcomes of the events. The administration of the cafe will not be held responsible for the non-return of funds, since in a transaction between two parties these conditions must be negotiated.Deposits are those deposits for which in some cases the money will be returned to you, or administrators will allow you to transfer the deposit to another date and time.
If you purchased a returnable deposit, warned in advance of the impossibility of being present in the institution and using their services for certain reasons, the administrative staff cancels the reservation of the table in the cafe and makes a refund to the customer. Most likely, for this you will need to provide a receipt for payment, so you must save it until the beginning of the planned evening.
Benefits of using deposits
Deposits in cafes are a very convenient and advantageous offer from the owners of establishments for guests. Of course, this proposal has its advantages. For example:
- Convenience of payment. The client pays all services for the amount that he expects to spend on a specific event, in advance of the event. You don’t have to think about payment anymore.
- The opportunity to think through the menu in advance or to allow yourself and your friends to choose from the menu those dishes and drinks that they or you like.
- Booking is included in the deposit system in the cafe, this guarantees a free table for you and your company at the appointed time in the place where you would like to relax.
- Saving a budget. It is unlikely that the guest of the institution, having paid a deposit on the table, will spend more than the amount that he has already paid. Of course, not everyone is safe from this.
- The existence of returnable deposits. If you used the return option, then the deposit in the cafe is returned. All funds paid are compensated.
Cons of using a deposit reservation system
Not every system is perfect. Where there are pluses, there are often disadvantages. So, the minuses of deposits are:
- Non-refundable deposits. Not always the staff of the institution goes towards its guests. And even in cases of death, they stand their ground and do not return funds.
- No one will ever refund the difference in order and deposit. For example, you ordered three thousand, and paid a deposit for five, no institution will return a difference of two thousand.
- You have to constantly consider the cost of each dish and drink in your mind in order to keep within the amount set by the deposit.
Is a deposit in a cafe convenient?
The main issue remains the convenience of such a system for both guests and owners of institutions.
For guests, this option of paying for bars, cafes and restaurants is both convenient and not very convenient. Of course, it all depends on the importance of the event, on the amount that the guest has, on the company with whom he intends to spend the evening, on the price list of the establishment. Based on these criteria, everyone decides for himself, it is more profitable for him to pay a penny bill for a penny or to use a deposit and not count funds.
For example, a person wanted to spend a birthday with three friends and book a cafe table. He expects an amount of 8,000 rubles. Naturally, it is more profitable for him to use the system of deposit reservation of tables, having previously warned his friends that there are two thousand each. Then each of the guests will be able to choose drinks and dishes to their liking and taste, but will understand that they need to keep within a certain framework. In this case, the birthday person will keep within the planned budget and will not spend more.
For the owners of the institution, of course, this payment option is very, very convenient. Firstly, guaranteed payment for services. Secondly, not all guests spend the entire amount of the deposit, and the balance is automatically added to the proceeds. Then it is worth recalling the existence of non-refundable deposits, when the guest does not come, the money paid by him also becomes the property of the owners.