Melbourne CBD has become Australia’s busiest dining suburb on First Table as value-conscious diners keep eating out and restaurants look for smarter ways to fill quieter tables. The restaurant booking platform says Melbourne’s city centre now leads the country for activity, ahead of Cairns City Centre, Brisbane CBD, Broadbeach and Surfers Paradise. Fitzroy, South Yarra and Frankston also rank strongly within Melbourne. The data points to a dining market that has not disappeared under cost-of-living pressure, but has become far more deliberate. Diners are still trying new venues, while looking harder at value, flexibility and when they book. Restaurants, meanwhile, are using that behaviour to shift bookings into periods that are traditionally harder to fill. Melbourne CBD venue Salted Egg & Q Rooftop Bar is one example. Playing easier to get Venue executive chef Sean Thomas said the shift in diner behaviour already showing up in how guests chose where to spend. “One trend I’ve noticed is that guests are still keen to try new venues, but they’re being more conscious about where they spend their money,” he said. “With rising costs for operators and diners becoming more deliberate, platforms like First Table are more relevant than ever. Since joining First Table in April, Salted Egg & Q Rooftop Bar has used the platform to target early weeknight sittings, particularly its 5 pm service during winter. “First Table has helped us drive bookings into those quieter periods and create a stronger start to service on weeknights.” Rather than offering the same number of tables every night, the venue can adjust its First Table allocation depending on demand, pulling availability when bookings are strong and opening more tables when there is extra capacity. “Some nights we’re fully booked and don’t need to offer any First Table allocations. on other nights we have additional capacity and can open up more tables.” Thomas said. The trend comes as First Table passes one million Australian diner accounts, up 67 per cent year-on-year in June. Its local restaurant network has also grown 74 per cent to more than 1,231 venues. Italian has been the most-booked cuisine on the platform over the past three months, followed by family dining, Modern Australian, Mediterranean and tapas. First Table also rolled out its biggest platform update since launching in 2014 last month, opening bookings to solo diners for the first time, increasing group bookings from four to six people and extending the advance booking window from seven to 14 days. First Table CEO Alex Cappy said the changes were designed to give restaurants more flexibility as competition for diners intensified. “Winter has always been one of the toughest trading periods for hospitality, but it’s also when restaurants look for smarter ways to attract new customers,” Cappy said. “We’re seeing diners continue to eat out, but they’re seeking greater flexibility and better value than ever before.” The update is intended to give diners more choice while helping restaurants target quieter sittings more precisely. “That’s why we’ve evolved the platform with our biggest update since launch, introducing solo dining, groups of up to six and a longer 14-day booking window,” Cappy said. “It gives diners more choice while giving restaurants even more ways to fill quieter tables when they need it most.” Source: little big deal Find more dining out updates on Crumb Wire.