Restaurant Deposits and No-Show Fees Explained
92 percent of Michelin-starred restaurants require a credit card to hold a reservation, and above a menu price of €150 per person, all of them do. Deposits typically run 25 to 50 percent of the expected spend, or the full menu price at fixed-menu restaurants, and are forfeited for cancellations inside a window of 24 to 72 hours. The card is the norm now, not the exception.
Why restaurants moved to deposits
A restaurant with twenty covers and a €300 menu loses €600 of revenue and the food already prepared when a two-top does not arrive. At that scale, a handful of no-shows a week is the difference between a viable restaurant and a closed one. Deposits are not a penalty; they are how a small room with a fixed menu stays open.
Knowing that makes the policy easier to work with. It is not aimed at you.
It is also one of the quieter arguments for eating in on some nights: a chef at the villa has no cancellation window. What that costs is in what a private chef at your villa costs.
What is actually charged
| Restaurant type | Deposit structure | Published example |
|---|---|---|
| Full-service, à la carte | Card held; 25–50% of expected spend on no-show | Industry guideline |
| Fixed tasting menu | Full menu price prepaid or held | Industry guideline for fixed-price |
| Starred, flat fee | Flat charge, same amount forfeited inside the window | €500 flat, forfeited ≤72 h (Enrico Bartolini) |
| Starred, full prepayment | Entire experience paid at booking | DKK 14,900 (≈€2,000) per guest (Alchemist) |
Sources. The 92 percent figure and the €150 threshold from the IntoTheMinds study of Michelin-starred restaurants; deposit guidelines and the named examples as published by DineCard and Reslify. All consulted 16 September 2026. Individual policies change; the figure that matters is the one in your confirmation email.
Want this for your dates? Message the concierge
The cancellation window is the number to know
Most restaurants forfeit the deposit for cancellations inside 12 to 24 hours. The most sought-after run 48 to 72 hours, and a few longer. Outside the window, cancellation is free and the card is not charged. Inside it, the deposit is kept — regardless of reason, in most cases.
This is the one line to read in the confirmation. A 72-hour window on a Saturday booking means Wednesday is the last free cancellation, and a plan that firms up on Thursday is already inside it.
How to cancel without losing the deposit
- Cancel before the window, in writing. A call is fine; an email or the booking platform is proof. Keep the confirmation.
- Reduce the party rather than cancel. A table of six that becomes four is usually accepted without charge if notified early; a table of six that becomes zero is not.
- Ask to move, not cancel. Many restaurants will transfer a deposit to another date if the request comes before the window closes. Few will after.
- Send someone. If the table cannot be cancelled and you cannot go, the deposit is spent either way. A table used by someone else is at least a table used.
Same-day tables and deposits
A table found on the day is almost always inside the window from the moment it is booked, which means the deposit is at risk immediately. That is reasonable — the restaurant is holding a table it could otherwise re-release — but it means a same-day booking is a commitment, not an option. How those tables are found is in last-minute tables at booked-out restaurants.
When a concierge holds the card
Some concierge services book on their own card and re-bill you. It is convenient and it means the restaurant's deposit terms are between them and the restaurant — but the cancellation terms you agree to with the concierge may be different, and stricter. Ask which card is on the booking and whose terms apply. If a concierge is absorbing the risk, they are charging for it somewhere, and you should know where.
Common questions
Can a restaurant charge my card without telling me the policy?
The policy must be disclosed at booking for the charge to be enforceable, and reputable restaurants state it plainly in the confirmation. If you were not told, dispute it. If you were told and did not read it, the charge stands.
Is a deposit refunded if I attend?
A held card is simply not charged. A prepayment is credited against the bill. A flat booking fee at some restaurants is not refunded and is not credited — it is the price of the reservation. The confirmation will say which.
What if I am late rather than absent?
Most restaurants hold a table for a grace period, commonly 15 to 30 minutes, then release it and treat the booking as a no-show. Call ahead if you are running late; a call almost always extends the hold, silence almost never does.
Do these policies apply to private dining rooms?
Usually more strictly. A private room is booked as a space with a minimum spend, and cancellation inside the window often forfeits the minimum, not just a per-head deposit. Read those terms with particular care.
Booking without surprises
We confirm the deposit, the window and whose card is on the booking before you commit, so the terms are in front of you rather than in the small print. Tell us the restaurant and the date.