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“Last night a reservation for 11 people never came. This represents half of our capacity.” The team at the St Kilda restaurant, avenue Coghen in Uccle, is still in shock at this finally empty table. “The average cover is 50 € with us. This represents around €550”explains Antoine Jaumaux, co-manager of the establishment, who regrets the “disrespect” of such an act.
And this is far from the first time that customers cancel at the last minute or do not show up after having reserved several covers. “Unfortunately, it has always existed.” But the cancellation of this Monday of such a large number of guests remains across the throat of the restaurateurs, so much the shortfall is significant.
Annoyed, the Ucclois establishment takes a radical measure: a bank guarantee system with credit card will be introduced, with a deduction of €40 per customer in the event of late cancellation. “This is a way to secure the reservation. We’ve been thinking about it for a long time, because it can’t go on like this, especially with the hard times that we, the Horeca, are experiencing.
”Forced to go there”
This penalty practice in the event of a “no-show” is rare in traditional restaurants and brasseries in Brussels. It can be found in gastronomic establishments, and at a few other addresses, such as Old Boy in the Tenbosch district, Le Tournant in Ixelles… But in London, for example, the bank guarantee has become almost a standard for reservations. “I think we will have to go through this”sighs Ludivine de Magnanville, president of the Brussels Horeca Federation, who recalls that the system already exists for hotels.
“Restaurants often go crazy, play the smartest. The Brussels horeca suffers a lot from this”
”It’s terrible to come to this, because it implies in particular the obligation to have a Visa card for the direct debit. It’s a barrier that is absolutely not nice. It also places the restaurateur in a police role.”
But in great evils, great means, according to the president of the Brussels Horeca, for whom the “no-show” becomes “more and more frequent”, and also affects other professions, such as hairdressers and care professions. “People have less and less common sense. There is growing individualism.”
Restaurants in the capital have even started systems of “blacklists”. “Notifying the restaurateur should be normal. We can’t imagine not going to a friend’s house for dinner without warning. Same thing with the dentist or the doctor. It’s a lack of respect.”
“Last night a reservation for 11 people never came. This represents half of our capacity.” The team at the St Kilda restaurant, avenue Coghen in Uccle, is still in shock at this finally empty table. “The average cover is 50 € with us. This represents around €550”explains Antoine Jaumaux, co-manager of the establishment, who regrets the “disrespect” of such an act.
And this is far from the first time that customers cancel at the last minute or do not show up after having reserved several covers. “Unfortunately, it has always existed.” But the cancellation of this Monday of such a large number of guests remains across the throat of the restaurateurs, so much the shortfall is significant.
Annoyed, the Ucclois establishment takes a radical measure: a bank guarantee system with credit card will be introduced, with a deduction of €40 per customer in the event of late cancellation. “This is a way to secure the reservation. We’ve been thinking about it for a long time, because it can’t go on like this, especially with the hard times that we, the Horeca, are experiencing.
”Forced to go there”
This penalty practice in the event of a “no-show” is rare in traditional restaurants and brasseries in Brussels. It can be found in gastronomic establishments, and at a few other addresses, such as Old Boy in the Tenbosch district, Le Tournant in Ixelles… But in London, for example, the bank guarantee has become almost a standard for reservations. “I think we will have to go through this”sighs Ludivine de Magnanville, president of the Brussels Horeca Federation, who recalls that the system already exists for hotels.
“Restaurants often go crazy, play the smartest. The Brussels horeca suffers a lot from this”
”It’s terrible to come to this, because it implies in particular the obligation to have a Visa card for the direct debit. It’s a barrier that is absolutely not nice. It also places the restaurateur in a police role.”
But in great evils, great means, according to the president of the Brussels Horeca, for whom the “no-show” becomes “more and more frequent”, and also affects other professions, such as hairdressers and care professions. “People have less and less common sense. There is growing individualism.”
Restaurants in the capital have even started systems of “blacklists”. “Notifying the restaurateur should be normal. We can’t imagine not going to a friend’s house for dinner without warning. Same thing with the dentist or the doctor. It’s a lack of respect.”
In summary, the Ucclois establishment, avenue Coghen, has had enough of customers canceling last minute or not showing up at all, leading to significant financial loss. They have decided to introduce a bank guarantee system with credit card, deducting €40 per customer in the event of a late cancellation. While this practice is rare in traditional restaurants and brasseries in Brussels, it may become the norm, as it has in London. The president of the Brussels Horeca Federation believes that people are becoming more individualistic and lack common sense, leading to a growing issue of no-shows across various professions. Although this new system may create a barrier and place the restaurateur in a police role, it is a necessary step to combat the lack of respect shown by some customers.