The Hardest Restaurant Reservations in NYC - And How to Actually Get One

Don Angie. Torrisi. The Eighty Six. Polo Bar. A no-fluff guide to NYC’s toughest reservations by someone who built a better way to get them.

By Snag Reservations

New York City has some of the best restaurants in the world. Getting into them is a challenge. If you've ever set an alarm for midnight, refreshed Resy for 20 minutes straight, and still come up empty — you're not alone. And there's a better way.

The problem isn't you. It's that a handful of restaurants in this city are genuinely impossible to get into through normal channels. Bots, industry insiders, and die-hard regulars have an enormous structural advantage over the average diner. This is a no-fluff guide to who they are, exactly when they release tables, and how to actually get in.

Don Angie. Photo: Kate Previte / The Infatuation.

Don Angie

One of NYC's most coveted tables since it opened in 2017. The pinwheel lasagna has a cult following, and the intimate dining room means there are very few reservations available per night.

HOW RESERVATIONS ACTUALLY WORK

Tables drop on OpenTable 7 days in advance at 9am ET. Released reservations are usually gone within a second or two, so come prepared and know exactly what time you're aiming for. If you are a party of two your options are limited.

With Snag Reservations, if a table is released, you will almost always be able to book it. For parties of two, our data shows that means a 68% chance of securing 5:00pm, a 36% chance of securing 5:30pm, and a 100% chance of securing 9:00pm or later based off actual observations.

The real secret, however, is that availability is much better for parties of four and six. Below, you can see the probabilities of various dining times being released on weekdays and weekends.

Observed Probability of Table Availability at Reservation Drop Time

After the initial reservation drop window, you still stand a chance of getting off the waitlist. However, that chance is much lower at Don Angie than at other restaurants. This is likely because Don Angie books only a week out, while many other restaurants book 20–30 days in advance, allowing more time for getting off the waitlist.

Of the cancellations we have observed, 64% have been same-day and 36% have been one or more days before the reservation time. Additionally, the vast majority have been for off-peak hours, typically 9pm or later.

TIPS (for doing it on your own)

• Be ready at 9am sharp on the day that's 7 days out from your target date — that's when the window opens.

• If you're a party of four, your odds of getting the table you want are much higher.

• It is much better to get a reservation when they are released than to count on a last minute cancellation here.

Or if doing it the hard way doesn't work…

Don Angie — What we recommend

Set your Snag Reservations account to Act When Reservations Open and search as a party of four rather than two for the highest success rate. If you don’t get the table you want, you might still get lucky by setting your account to Watch for Openings.

Carbone. Photo: Kate Previte / The Infatuation

Carbone

One of the most talked about restaurants in New York City, demand for Carbone has never cooled. The spicy rigatoni alone drives thousands of searches a month, and it really is that good, no matter what the haters say.

Carbone — How Reservations Actually Work

Tables drop on a rolling 30-day window. Here’s what most guides won’t tell you: what gets released to the general public is 5pm and 10pm — the two slots most people want least. From what we can tell, prime evening hours are held back by the restaurant for corporate accounts, Dorsia, and regulars.

That said, even a 5pm reservation here can be hard to get without help. Using Snag Reservations, for a 5pm dinner, our data suggests you have up to a 75% chance as a party of two and a 67% chance as a party of four. As a benchmark, during our testing, anyone moving through the confirmation screens slower than 800ms (8/10 of a second) was not successful.

If you have flexibility, your chances are much better at lunch most days. At the time of writing, Snag Reservations beta users have had a 100% success rate booking 11am–2pm reservations for parties of two and four before the drop time.

TIPS

• Lunch is dramatically easier to get than dinner — and the full menu is available.

• If a 5pm or 10pm slot is all you can find, take it. The food is the same.

• If you know a regular, now is the time to call in that favor.

Carbone — What we recommend

Set your Snag Reservations account to Act When Reservations Open and target an early dinner on a Sunday or maybe even a Saturday lunch.

Torrisi. Photo: Kate Previte / The Infatuation

Torrisi

The return of the Torrisi name — this time in a grand, theatrical setting inside the Puck Building — set off a reservation frenzy. One of the city's hottest openings in recent years, the demand has not let up.

HOW RESERVATIONS ACTUALLY WORK

Like Carbone, what actually surfaces for the general public on Resy is almost always a 5pm or 10pm slot. The desirable hours are held tight. Speed is everything — you need to move the instant anything appears.

Using Snag Reservations, based on our data you stand a 65% chance of scoring a table for 2 or 4 on a weekday and a 42% chance of that same table on a weekend. However, unlike Carbone, Torrisi reservations can be regularly obtained after release time. Using Snag Reservations, users currently have a 35% chance of getting a reservation within two days of dining time and a 21% of getting a same day reservation.

TIPS

• A 5pm or 10pm slot is worth taking — the experience is the same regardless of when you sit down.

• Bar seats are an option, but don't mistake them for easy: there's typically a line 10+ deep by the time they open at 5pm. If you're going this route, get there early and don't give up your spot in line.

• Set up Snag's waitlist monitoring and let it catch cancellations the moment they post — your best path to an actual dining room table after the drop window.

Torrisi — What we recommend

Similar to Carbone, your best bet for dinner is to target the 5:00 - 5:30 time slot and use the Act When Reservations Open on Snag Reservations rather than waiting for availability to pop up later. If you can make it to a weekday dinner you increase your odds even further.

The Corner Store. Photo: Kate Previte / The Infatuation

The Corner Store

The Corner Store is one of the most buzzed-about openings of its year and has never lost momentum. Here you can find elevated comfort food, a fabulous room, and a scene without being pretentious.

HOW RESERVATIONS ACTUALLY WORK

The Corner Store books through DoorDash (the new owners of Seven Rooms) and has no consistent release schedule — despite what you may have read elsewhere. There is no magic time to be at your phone. Availability surfaces unpredictably throughout the day, which makes manual monitoring almost useless.

What we have found is that between 9 am and 1pm is when the majority of reservations seem to pop up between day of and 14 days out.

TIPS

• Don't wait for a specific drop time — there isn't one you can rely on.

• This is exactly the kind of restaurant that Snag Reservations was built for: continuous, around-the-clock monitoring that books the moment anything opens.

The Corner Store — What we recommend

Set your Snag Reservations account to Watch for Openings over a large area of dates and times that you would be willing to go to. We frequently see 5pm, 5:30pm and 9pm reservations for both weekdays and weekends popping up.

Polo Bar. Photo: Daniel Krieger / Eater

Polo Bar

Ralph Lauren’s restaurant is less about the food, which is very good, and more about the room, the clientele, and the feeling of being somewhere genuinely exclusive. It’s one of the hardest reservations to get in the city, and certainly one of the most effort-intensive.

HOW RESERVATIONS ACTUALLY WORK

Polo Bar doesn’t take reservations online. It’s phone calls only, and the line moves slowly. People have reported being on hold for as long as three hours, though we personally haven’t experienced anything longer than about an hour. The restaurant prioritizes regulars and industry contacts, so even getting through is no guarantee. If that sounds insane, that’s because it is. But we’re all mad here, so plenty of people still try. The best way to get a reservation is to have someone else do it for you — usually a personal assistant, or a friend pretending to be one.

Polo Bar is the ideal use case for Snag Reservation's AI voice assistant. We call for you at exactly 10am and sit on hold for as long as it takes, so you don’t have to — every day until we get you a table. Sign up to get updates on the feature and be the first to know when it launches.

TIPS

• Call exactly at 10 (pre-dial the phone number at 9:59).

• Lunch service is noticeably more accessible than dinner.

• If you don't get through, keep trying — persistence is the only play here.

• You can also try walking in, many people have reported success with this approach.

The Polo Bar — What we recommend

Snag Reservations will be rolling out AI calling shortly. In the meantime, we recommend calling at 3pm on the day of to ask about cancellations. A few extra tables often become available then.

4 Charles Prime Rib. Photo: The Infatuation

4 Charles Prime Rib

Tiny, makes no compromises, and a 'White Whale' for many. Tables for 4 Charles are considered a unicorn, but there is actually a simple trick.

HOW RESERVATIONS ACTUALLY WORK

4 Charles reservations are only on Resy and they have recently changed their reservation policy to 'Crown' users only. This is a Resy feature which allows restaurants to create a VIP list and offer reservations only to them. What that means is if you haven't been before, you won't be offered a reservation. However, in the case of 4 Charles, the crown list is something you just need to ask to be added to (in person). Next time you are in the west village, pop in and ask nicely, and your Resy account will start seeing reservations pop up after that.

After that, reservations are only regularly available early or late. They drop two weeks in advance at exactly 9am and are one of the hardest in the world to snipe.

TIPS

• Ask to be added to the Crown list first!

4 Charles - What we recommend

Once you are on the list, set your Snag Reservations account to Act When Reservations Open and target an early (5pm) or late (9pm+) reservation. These are the most likely besides weekend brunch!

The Eighty Six. Photo: The Infatuation

The Eighty Six

Perpetually full despite never having a dramatic reservation-drop moment, this 10-table restaurant might be the hardest reservation to land in New York right now.

HOW RESERVATIONS ACTUALLY WORK

The Eighty Six books through DoorDash and, like The Corner Store, its sister restaurant, has no consistent release schedule. Tables surface unpredictably throughout the day. There is no single window to camp. Anyone telling you otherwise is guessing.

TIPS

• Forget waiting for a specific drop time — it doesn't work that way here.

• Snag Reservation's continuous monitoring is the only reliable approach — it's watching when you're not, and books the instant something opens.

• Same-day slots do appear, but only automation catches them consistently, they are usually taken before the push notifications go out.

The Eighty Six — What we recommend

Set your Snag Reservations account to Watch for Openings across a broad range of dates and times you’d actually be willing to go. We frequently see 5pm reservations for both weekdays and weekends pop up.

More Worth Knowing

A few other NYC spots that deserve a mention — perpetually hard to get into, consistently worth it.

Or’esh
From the same owners as The Eighty Six and The Corner Store — and the same rules apply.

Via Carota
Everyone thinks this is walk-in only. In reality, they do regularly offer 5pm and lunch reservations if you’re fast enough, or if you have Snag Reservations on your side.

L’Artusi
A great place to have Snag Reservations Watch for Openings for you. About 70% of waitlists for 7pm tables are filled within 7 days.