Planning Your Visit
The gap between a good expensive meal and a great one is usually decided before you sit down. These are the decisions that move the needle.
By The Reservation Desk Editorial Team · Published April 2, 2025 · Last updated · 9 min read
Early seatings get a fresher kitchen and a quieter room; late seatings get a looser one and, sometimes, more generous service. Neither is better — but they are genuinely different evenings.
If seating preference matters to you, ask when you book rather than on arrival. Requests noted in the reservation are honoured far more often than requests made at the host stand.
Birthdays, anniversaries and proposals are noted in the booking system and quietly acted on. Restaurants at this level are good at this and enjoy it.
Do not spring a proposal on the room without warning. A discreet email a week ahead gets you a better table, a better moment and, often, something on the house.
Distinguish clearly between an allergy, an intolerance and a preference. Kitchens treat allergies as a safety protocol and preferences as a menu adjustment, and conflating them wastes everyone's effort.
Give at least 48 hours' notice; for vegan versions of a tasting menu, several days. Late notice on a fixed menu is the hardest thing you can ask a kitchen to absorb.
By the glass for the first course, then a bottle chosen with the sommelier once you know how the menu is going, is almost always better value than committing to a full pairing before you have eaten anything.
Half bottles and coravin pours are underused. Ask; they are frequently not printed on the list.
Arriving genuinely hungry is the cheapest upgrade available. A light lunch and no snacks after mid-afternoon transforms a nine-course menu.
Equally, drink water through the day. Dehydration plus wine plus a four-hour meal is why people remember the first five courses and not the last four.
Ask for a copy of the menu — most restaurants will print one, and many will sign it. It is a better souvenir than a photograph.
If the meal was exceptional, say so to the person who served you rather than only in a review. It travels back to the kitchen the same night.
The Reservation Desk Editorial Team — Independent research and editorial team
Our editorial team researches fine-dining access, booking windows and menu formats across the Thomas Keller Restaurant Group. Every guide is compiled from restaurant-published information, official reservation platforms and first-hand dining notes, then re-checked before each update.
This guide is compiled and checked against our verification process and editorial policy.
Availability at Thomas Keller's restaurants moves quickly. Check what is open now, then use our guides to prepare for the release.