I get asked for restaurant tables at least once a week
This piece was originally shared on LinkedIn in response to recurring conversations with founders and leadership teams around this topic.
I’m publishing it here as part of an ongoing body of thinking around restaurant strategy, market entry, and operational decision-making.
Usually friends of friends. Often for places I haven't worked at in months or years.
Recently, someone messaged asking for a table at Sirene for that day. On a Saturday. In Dubai.
The answer was no, obviously. But the request itself is telling. There are certain venues where these requests never stop.
Hakkasan, Zuma, Gaia, Carbone, Chiltern Firehouse - different cities, different concepts, but the pattern is the same.
People visiting the city have heard the name. Regulars book weeks in advance because they know what to expect.
It's not manufactured scarcity - these venues are just genuinely full because they've consistently delivered at a level that creates sustained demand.
In Dubai especially - a market with incredible levels of newness - the venues that remain fully booked have simply maintained standards long enough for reputation to compound.
The best measure of a restaurant is whether people are still trying to get tables years later.