Restaurant owners are a nice bunch of people. As service-oriented professionals, it's their business to be polite. They never would say this to you, so I'm going to say it for them:

        If you can't keep the reservation you've made for dinner at a restaurant, make a phone call! Let the restaurant know you're not coming.

        It may seem like a small thing to you: Something comes up and you can't make it. You don't call, figuring the restaurant will fill the table and, besides, it's a business, it's not like a dinner party at a friend's house.

        Meanwhile, at the restaurant, the table you reserved for 7 p.m. is set and waiting. Most restaurants will hold it 15 minutes to half an hour after your reservation time. Someone else may have called for reservations and been turned down, or had to take a time they didn't want. Some customers who walked in at 6:30 weren't given the table because it was saved for you, and they left. The restaurant may lose income, and they risk angering customers.

        The impact is greatest on small, independent restaurants. Daveed's in Mount Adams for example has 16 tables, and most diners spend two hours at their table. Even a couple of no-shows can weaken its bottom line.

        On a Saturday night, almost all the tables at the Brown Dog Cafe are reserved. And because the restaurant is in a strip mall in Blue Ash, there's little business from walk-ins. If one table doesn't show up, often there's no one to take the table, and it's a little late to call someone who'd been turned down earlier.

        Liz Cook, co-owner of Daveed's, says they always call to confirm the day of the reservation. Even then, people who have confirmed sometimes don't show.

        George Bernas, chef-owner of the Brandywine Inn in Monroe, recently had a party of 12 call, reserve a table for the next day and ask for fresh fish. That required a special trip to the seafood distributor. The party never showed. Because the Brandywine does not have a dining room full of people to eat the fish, it took a loss.

        Some restaurants will take a deposit by credit card and charge no-shows, usually larger parties. Domenico Germano, owner of Germano's in Montgomery, thought about doing that but decided against it, not wanting to risk offending customers.

        When Paul Sturkey opened his second restaurant, Encore, he decided not to take reservations, mostly because it's a faster-paced restaurant and he can serve people without making them wait too long, but it certainly eliminates the hassle of no-shows that can be a problem at Sturkey's in Wyoming, his other restaurant.

        Most chain restaurants have given up reservations entirely. They hand you flashing beepers and line you up so their tables are always full. I think it's a most uncivilized way to dine, but more and more restaurants may find it's the way to go. Or worse, the no-show problem may be one more thing that makes it hard for independent restaurants to stay afloat, and it will be a sad day when the flashing beeper is our only alternative.

        Restaurants may be businesses, but unlike many businesses, the good ones are treasures that become a part of our lives.

        So, in the politest way, restaurant owners have this to say, and I concur:

        Mr. Germano: “Believe me, we understand things come up and you have to cancel. Just call and let us know.”

        Mr. Sturkey: “Go ahead and cancel, even if it's 15 minutes before your reservation time. Just call and let us know.”

       Contact Polly Campbell by phone: 768-8376; fax: 768-8330; e-mail: pcampbell@enquirer.com.

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