What the official pages establish
| Decision | Dojo Bookings | OpenTable UK |
|---|---|---|
| Operating tools | Advertises reservations, virtual queues, deposits and guest profiles. | Lists reservations, table management, waitlist and deposit/card-hold tools across its plans. |
| Booking cost | Obtain an itemised quote by channel; do not infer a complete tariff from the product page. | Marketplace/network seated covers can attract fees; direct website, phone and walk-in covers are described as free. |
| Guest acquisition | Offers consumer discovery routes; ask what reach is relevant to your location. | A consumer booking marketplace is part of the proposition; measure the value of guests it brings you. |
| Commitment | Confirm package, trial conditions, term and exit in writing. | Check the quoted plan, contract and optional charges, not only cover fees. |
Sources: Dojo Bookings and OpenTable UK plans. Feature availability and commercial terms require confirmation for your account.
Model covers by source, not every diner
Start with seated diners attributed to each channel in your invoice or reporting. Use chargeable marketplace covers for any marketplace-fee calculation, then add the subscription and other agreed costs. Do not include cancelled reservations or no-shows as seated covers in that calculation.
Next consider what the bookings are worth operationally. Are they genuinely incremental or existing regulars? Which services need help filling? Does the platform reduce administration for your team? These are questions to investigate, not promised outcomes from changing software.
When each deserves closer consideration
Investigate Dojo if you want to examine bookings and walk-ins alongside your wider Dojo setup. Ask for a demonstration using your table combinations and busiest service. Existing Dojo payments do not prove every booking feature is included or integrated in the way you expect.
Investigate retaining OpenTable if it is a valuable source of new guests or its workflow suits your team. Before switching, estimate the effort and cost of replacing that demand. A cheaper software line alone is not enough evidence.
Use the same demonstration checklist
- Show a large party, a late arrival, a walk-in and a table combination during a busy service.
- Demonstrate deposit collection, cancellation, refunds and the audit trail.
- Check guest-data export, permissions and the limits of any migration.
- Request a quote using the same monthly booking-source assumptions for both services.
- Agree an implementation owner and fallback plan before cancelling anything.
Our cost worksheet and setup checklist turn these questions into a practical enquiry. We introduce Dojo, not OpenTable, and this is not a whole-market booking-platform review.
Sources and method
Author: Time Consulting editorial team. Checked: .
We checked the public primary sources below and separated published product information from our practical planning suggestions. This is desk research, not a hands-on product test or a whole-market recommendation. Features, eligibility and terms can change; confirm your own written offer before committing.
- Dojo Bookings — Published booking, queue and guest-management features.
- OpenTable UK plans — Cover charges by booking channel and current plan features.
We may receive an introducer fee. Provider approval, pricing and contractual decisions remain with the relevant provider. Ask about a source, correction or our commercial relationship.