With Christmas nearing and people eager to gather and celebrate after a tough year, restaurants are seeing an increase in reservations.
That’s according to the website OpenTable Canada, which says reservations for December 2021 are currently higher than they were in December 2019, before the pandemic began.
“After more than a year of restrictions, diners are eager to experiment and make up for lost time,” said Matt Davis of OpenTable Canada.
OpenTable updated its top 100 reviewed restaurants on Nov. 30, stating that more than 540,000 verified reviews were used to compile the list.
The list does not use a 1-100 ranking, opting to simply name them alphabetically.
Still, included on that list are four restaurants in the Okanagan:
- Block One Restaurant at 50th Parallel Winery, Lake Country
- Home Block at CedarCreek Estate Winery, Kelowna
- Terrace Restaurant, Mission Hill Family Estate, West Kelowna
- Waterfront Wines, Kelowna
British Columbia had the most restaurants in the top 100, with 36, while Alberta was second at 33 and Ontario third at 28.
Mark Filatow, executive chef and sommelier at Waterfront Wines, said the restaurant also cracked the top 100 four years ago, “so it’s good to repeat the award. I think it speaks to the job that we’re doing and the demand that we’re seeing (through OpenTable bookings).”
As to the increase, Filatow said this month resembles a normal December, noting that Waterfront Wines has been around for 16 years.
“People are sort of warming up to the idea that things are returning to normal,” said Filatow, adding the restaurant strictly follows B.C.’s vaccine passport policy.
“It’s a great group of 100 to be in. A lot of great restaurants in there.”
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