By The Table desk · Last verified 27 September 2026

Most Singapore restaurants take bookings through their own website, the Chope app, or the phone. Casual places ask only for a name and a number. Tasting menus and omakase counters usually want a card to hold the table, and their cancellation fees can reach the full menu price inside 24 hours. Read that line before you press confirm.

Quick facts

• Booking costs diners nothing; restaurants pay the platform.
• A card guarantee holds your card and charges it only for a no-show or late cancellation.
• A deposit is taken now and taken off the bill later.
• A prepaid booking means the whole meal is paid in advance.
• At strict counters, cancelling inside 48 hours costs half, inside 24 hours all of it, and a smaller party counts as a cancellation.
• Hawker centres never take bookings, and many cafés don’t either.

Where do Singapore restaurants take bookings?

Chope, headquartered in Singapore and now owned by Grab, is the big marketplace, and Quandoo runs one too. Behind many restaurants’ own booking pages sit systems like TableCheck, which is strong with hotels, and SevenRooms, used by luxury hotels and large groups. Eat App and Oddle are also common. The system’s name usually appears in small print on the booking page.

Do I pay to book?

No. Marketplaces bill the restaurant, historically around a dollar per diner, and you pay nothing to reserve.

Guarantee, deposit or prepayment: what’s the difference?

A guarantee is a temporary hold on your card that is released if nothing is owed. A deposit is money taken to secure the table. Prepaid reservations and ticketed dinners are paid in full at booking. A deposit comes off the final bill, and a guarantee costs nothing if you turn up. A prepayment works like a ticket: miss the meal and the money is usually gone.

What does a strict policy look like?

One omakase counter’s published terms are typical of the top end. A card is required but not charged at booking. Cancel inside 48 hours and you pay half the menu price; inside 24 hours, all of it. The same applies if your party shrinks. At S$300 a head, a table of four cancelling on the morning is a S$1,200 bill for nothing.

How do I avoid paying for a dinner I didn’t eat?

Put the cancellation deadline in your calendar when you book, not just the dinner. Change the party size early. If you fall ill, call rather than email. Many restaurants will move a booking rather than charge it, though the policy says they needn’t.

Why is there a charge on my card from a company I don’t know?

It is often the booking system rather than the restaurant, because deposits and no-show fees can appear under the software’s name. Check your confirmation emails from around that date.

How far ahead should I book?

For a casual weeknight dinner, the same day is fine. Popular rooms on a Friday or Saturday need about a week. Tasting counters need booking as soon as the window opens, which can be a month or more ahead. Walk-ins still work at bars before the evening rush and at most cafés.

The WahLiao Verdict

Book direct on the restaurant’s own page when it has one: you get the same table, and the restaurant keeps the per-diner fee. Use the app to search, not to book somewhere you already know. And treat any card guarantee as a ticket you have already bought.

Questions people ask

Can a restaurant really charge a no-show fee?

Yes. It is a term of the booking you accepted when you gave your card, which is why restaurants show it before you confirm.

Can I book at a hawker stall?

No. A few famous stalls run queue numbers, never bookings.

Do large groups pay deposits?

Often, and sometimes a set menu or a minimum spend as well. Ask.

Sources: Published TableCheck booking terms for a Singapore omakase counter; SevenRooms charge explanations; Eat App, comparison of Singapore reservation platforms (pricing checked July 2026).

Read next: What ++ Means on a Singapore Menu · Corkage in Singapore · New Restaurants in Singapore This Month · Back to The Table

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