Restaurant table turnover: tips for higher efficiency

As dining demand rises, understanding table turnover rates can be a true asset in helping to maximise your restaurant revenue and welcome as many diners as possible during all times of the day.

Understanding how to calculate and optimise the average table turnover rate can prove a complex undertaking. 

Trying to impact turnover rates on the ground can be tricky — rushing or pressuring customers is never a good idea. However, paying little or no attention to table turnover can lead to an unsustainable decrease in revenue potential and customer satisfaction. 

Instead, it is essential to strike a balance between giving guests plenty of time to enjoy their meal without risking the loss of potentially repeat customers to exhausting wait times. 

Fortunately, there are some simple, subtle ways to calculate and optimise your restaurant table turnover without lowering customer satisfaction.

The importance of dining layout in a restaurant

The dining layout of your restaurant is a significant feature you must consider to enhance your service efficiency and table turnover.

How you arrange tables overtly impacts staff movements, affecting the service of every guest.

The dining room layout should be emblematic of the type and style of establishment you run.

• A fast-food restaurant can arrange tables linearly to facilitate quick seating and minimal wait times. 
• A fine dining establishment might benefit from a more spacious and airy layout, as its purpose is to make guests feel special.
• A family restaurant often opts for circular or square layouts, which allow better communication between guests and staff. 

An efficient seating arrangement and a well-structured restaurant will help your business maximise table turnover while ensuring a complete and satisfying customer experience.

How to calculate table turnover?

On the surface, calculating your average table turnover rate is fairly simple: just record the number of guests you seated in any given dining window. 

You can calculate by day or dining time, but the latter is more specific and efficient.

For example

To calculate the average table turnover rate during dinner hours, divide the number of dining parties seated by the number of tables at the end of the dinner period. 

If you have seat 30 parties and have 10 tables, your table turnover will be 3.

Creating table turnover goals as a measure of success can produce varied results, as no two dining experiences are the same. 

Calculating the turnaround time is also useful for determining the length of time your guests might need in your restaurant. The table turnaround time is how long a diner spends in your restaurant, from when they sit down to when they leave. 

Take the time to analyse this data and determine how dining times may vary to better understand your average table turnover rate, successes and future achievable goals.

However, remember that this is not a fixed value and can always be optimised to ensure the best possible results and revenue.

Increase table turnover with more efficient processes 

To increase your average table turnover rate, streamline processes. 

Streamlining processes will improve restaurant management, enhance overall customer satisfaction, secure your seating rate, and improve the quality of your service. 

Increased staff awareness for quicker response times

Always schedule staff members to match the demand. As soon as guests arrive, team members must be there to greet them proactively. 

It’s crucial that there are no lingering wait times during service, as this dead time can affect the table turnover from your end. 

As a golden rule, guests should be seated within 1–2 minutes of arrival and orders taken 2–3 minutes after seating. 

Quick response times and guest reception will guarantee a smooth customer experience, optimise table turnover and increase guest satisfaction.

Going digital 

Many restaurants have already taken advantage of digital menus and digital payment solutions — and for good reason. These additions can play a key role in table turnover. 

With customers having access to your menus straight away — sometimes even before being seated — they are much more likely to know what you offer beforehand and order quickly. 

Digital mobile payment solutions, like TheFork PAY, are great tools for implementing digital payment in your restaurant. Guests won’t have to wait for payments to be processed, or if they are in a rush or the staff are very busy, they could leave earlier than expected.

Avoid seating incomplete parties 

Have you ever tried to make guests sit before everyone has arrived? Well, don’t even consider it — it could be catastrophic for your table turnover!

Whether it is an online reservation, a walk-in, or a party without a reservation, avoid seating individuals prematurely before the complete group has arrived. This will negatively impact table turnaround and turnover. 

Be sure to alert customers that you can only seat complete parties, especially if operating at your maximum capacity. 

Encouraging guests to free up tables politely

While you never want to rush your guests or be pushy, sometimes customers don’t realise how much time they have spent in the restaurant after completing their meal. 

During peak times, you can offer your guests bar seating (if you have some available) or check in to ask if they have finished or would like to order something else.

As long as you remain high-spirited and kind to your guests, they will always be understanding. These subtleties will allow the diner to realise that they may be all set to head home independently.

Optimisation of dining layout and seating arrangements

Make sure your dining room layout and patio utilise all available space to optimise table turnover. In addition, it is very important to seat parties appropriately according to size. By leveraging digital seating optimisation like that on TheFork Manager, you can help parties that make reservations secure their spot while also ensuring that your seating plan is efficient and flexible enough to view and adjust in real-time. 

Even when your occupancy rate is not at its peak, try to keep couples at tables with two seats. You never know when demand could pick up throughout the day. Try to be prepared to greet a group of four people at any time. 

Make the most of this advice and other restaurant-specific tips and tricks to optimise your table turnover. Once you have understood how to calculate and optimise table rates, you can look forward to a restaurant that flows better and increases its revenue.