Posts tagged win

Austin Restaurant Week is on until September 29th, and offers a great way to sample great, upscale restaurants around town for a fixed $25 or $35 price. The menus are prix fixe, must offer three courses including dessert, and (to my knowledge) aren’t allowed to skimp on portion sizes or service. Last night for my birthday I made some plans to head to NoRTH on a whim, walked in, and was immediately deflated by the Maître d’ who informed me that the restaurant was completely booked.

Despondent, I hopped on The Domain’s free wifi and started looking through the Restaurant Week menus for some of the other places within walking distance, and noticed that the ARW website offers reservations online. Since ARW hooks in to OpenTable, which (appears) to be some sort of cloud-based offering for reservation management, I was able to bypass the smarminess and find out the truth. After a few taps on my phone, I had a confirmed dinner reservation later that evening at the supposedly 100% booked restaurant.

Twenty minutes later we stepped back into the restaurant, and asked the same woman for our reserved table. I think she mis-heard me, since she reaffirmed that they were completely booked, and that I once again couldn’t make a reservation. I asked her to check her list for my name, and five minutes later, we were seated at our supposedly impossible-to-get table.

I guess this is the equivalent to penciling in your name on a reservation book when no one’s looking.

I love technology.

NoRTH, by the way, was excellent. I’ve been here once before just after they opened, and was completely turned off by the pretentiousness of the staff, and the deconstructed chicken lasagna that I ordered. I realize now that this place is absolutely stellar. Check out their Bruschetta, which is served with creamy crescenza cheese, lightly-caramelized grilled asparagus, super-thin prosciutto, and a drizzle of truffle oil. It’s decadence on a plate.