How to reserve "Ungettable" tables in Paris

[John Talbott]

In the weekend WSJ there was an article entitled "How to Get the Ungettable Table." While it mainly focused on US and NYC restaurants, it did deal with three French ones, passing on the following advice:

At Le Comptoir du Relais stay at the hotel or go at 7:30 PM

At Mori Venice Bar call Ms Mori at 33.6.22.14.08.02

At l'Astrance call after one of its "numerous vacations" and book three months ahead.

We've had several threads about snaggin a rez, for instance here, here and here and the compendium but I thought a new thread might help further the discussion on how to get into hard to reserve at places.

[SDyson]

Last week one of the waiters at Le Comptoir du Relais told us that it can also work occasionally if you drop in about midday on the day you want to go for dinner and ask if there are any tables available for that night. I guess by then they feel reasonably confident they know how many tables they are going to need for their house guests.

[John Talbott]

  SDyson said:

Last week one of the waiters at Le Comptoir du Relais told us that it can also work occasionally if you drop in about midday on the day you want to go for dinner and ask if there are any tables available for that night.  I guess by then they feel reasonably confident they know how many tables they are going to need for their house guests.

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That trick/truc has worked for me in New York as well. It's amazing that it works but not surprising that places either "hold back" some tables as do theaters some seats, for VIP's, or that when they look at the reservation book, they realize with a cancellation or reduced number in a party, they can squeeze you in. Another trick I've found works as well is to offer to eat at the bar or in the lounge of say hotel restaurants. The other trick I'll pass on comes from my experience this week which is a school holiday for some kids in the Paris region and had led to near empty restaurants and piles of A Nous Paris sitting in their bins untaken on Wednesday - plan your trip around Parisian school holiday schedules.