> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.eat-now.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Common scenarios

> Step-by-step recipes for the situations you hit every service — walk-ins, modifying a booking, late guests, combining tables, VIPs, and special requests.

Service throws curveballs. This page is a set of **quick recipes** for the situations you handle most often. Each one is short, in order, and works on both desktop and mobile.

<Note>
  These recipes lean on two references: the [reservation form, field by field](/operations/reservation-form) and the [reservation statuses](/operations/reservation-statuses) guide. Keep them handy if a step mentions a field or status you're unsure about.
</Note>

***

## Walk-in guest (no reservation)

A party arrives without booking and you have room.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Start a new reservation">
    Tap **New reservation** (or the **+**). Set **source** to **Walk-in**.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Fill the essentials">
    Enter **group size** and the current **time**. Add the **guest name** if you want to keep a profile (optional for walk-ins, but it builds history).
  </Step>

  <Step title="Seat them straight away">
    Because the source is **Walk-in**, you can create the booking already **Seated**. Assign a **table** — tap **Auto** for the best fit, or pick one on the floor plan.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Save">
    Save. The table is now occupied across every view, and your covers update immediately.
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Tip>
  Not sure you have space? Check the Cockpit **Turn** tab first — it shows which tables are about to free up so you can tell the party "5 minutes" with confidence.
</Tip>

***

## Modifying a reservation (time, table, or party size)

A guest calls to change their booking, or you need to rebalance the floor.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open the booking">
    Find it in any view and tap it open. (In **Planning** on desktop you can also right-click for quick actions.)
  </Step>

  <Step title="Change what you need">
    Edit the **time**, **group size**, **room**, or **tables**. If a new time is full, the time picker shows it in red — pick an available slot.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Re-check the table">
    If you changed the time or grew the party, confirm the table still fits — tap **Auto** to re-assign, or pick a bigger table.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Save and decide on notifying">
    Save. If the change is meaningful (time, party size, payment), EatNow offers a **notify the guest** toggle — turn it on to send them the updated details.
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Tip>
  On the **Planning** view you can move a booking to a different table and time in one gesture: long-press the block and drag it. The reservation gets pinned to its new table automatically.
</Tip>

***

## Handling late guests

Their slot has passed and they're not here yet.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Spot them">
    On **Planning**, a late booking shows a red, blinking **⚠ Late** marker. On the Cockpit **Turn** tab, the card gets a **red border and dot**, and the column header counts how many are late.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Reach out">
    Call the guest (or message them — the booking has their phone if it was captured). Open the booking to find their number quickly.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Hold or release the table">
    Decide based on their answer. If they're on the way, keep the table. If you need it, you can offer it to a walk-in via the **Turn** tab.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Close the line if they never come">
    Once it's clear they won't arrive, set the status to **No-show**. If there's a card hold or deposit, EatNow asks whether to capture or release it.
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Warning>
  Don't leave a no-show as **Confirmed**. It distorts your covers and the guest's history, and you lose the chance to act on a deposit or card hold. See [Reservation statuses](/operations/reservation-statuses#closed-and-negative-statuses).
</Warning>

***

## Combining tables for a large party

A group is bigger than any single table.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Open or create the booking">
    Set the **group size** to the full party so capacity matching and the kitchen know the real number.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Select multiple tables">
    In the **Tables** field, open the picker and select **every table** the party will use. The reservation can hold several tables at once.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Verify the layout on the floor plan">
    Use the floor-plan picker to make sure the chosen tables are adjacent and their combined seats cover the party.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Assign a waiter and save">
    Pick the **waiter** who'll run the section so it shows the blue flag in the Cockpit, then save.
  </Step>
</Steps>

***

## Managing VIP guests

Make sure the team gives a guest the extra care they're due.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Tag them VIP">
    On the booking, add the **VIP** tag. This raises a **magenta flag** on the reservation card in the Cockpit so the whole team spots it at a glance.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Brief with notes">
    Put the important context in **Internal info (private)** — it's staff-only and never sent to the guest (e.g. "owner's guest, comp the dessert").
  </Step>

  <Step title="Pick the right table and server">
    Assign their preferred **table** and an experienced **waiter**. If they're a returning guest, their customer profile may already carry preferences from past visits.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Call it out in the briefing">
    During the pre-service briefing, the magenta flags on the Cockpit Flow tab make every VIP of the night obvious — no printed list needed.
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Tip>
  Tags and notes you put on the **customer** (not just the booking) follow them to every future visit, so a VIP stays flagged automatically next time.
</Tip>

***

## Handling complaints & special requests

A request before the visit (allergy, occasion, seating wish) or an issue during it.

<Steps>
  <Step title="Record dietary needs where the kitchen sees them">
    Put allergies and food requests in **Allergies & comments**. This alerts the kitchen and raises a **yellow flag** on the Cockpit card.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Note non-food requests internally">
    Seating wishes, occasions, or sensitivities go in **Internal info (private)** so the floor is briefed without anything reaching the guest.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Act during service">
    Open the booking from the grid to read its notes before approaching the table. For a complaint, capture what happened and any goodwill (e.g. a **discount**) on the reservation so there's a record.
  </Step>

  <Step title="Follow up after">
    For a guest with an email, you can let the post-visit **review request** go out, or hold off if the visit didn't go well — your call.
  </Step>
</Steps>

***

## A note on mobile

Every recipe above works the same on a phone or tablet. The differences are in *how* you act, not *what* you can do:

* **Quick actions:** tap a block for the action menu; tap **See details** for the full form (right-click is desktop-only).
* **Moving a booking:** long-press, then drag — you'll feel a short vibration when drag is armed.
* **Scrolling a grid:** swipe horizontally, starting on an **empty cell** (starting on a block begins a drag).

For the full breakdown, see [Mobile vs desktop](/operations/daily-workflow#mobile-vs-desktop).

***

## FAQ

**A walk-in won't give a name — can I still seat them?**

Yes. Leave the booking anonymous, set source **Walk-in**, add the group size and table, and save as **Seated**. You can attach a name later if they decide to share one.

**I moved a booking to a new table by mistake — how do I undo it?**

Open it and reassign the original table (or tap **Auto**), or in **Planning** drag it back. Then save.

**Can two reservations share the same table back-to-back?**

Yes. In **Planning**, when you drop a booking onto a slot another booking already holds, EatNow asks whether to **chain** them (one after the other), mark the first **Done**, replace it, or cancel the move.