toptable press centre

toptable diners reveal their top 50 Italian restaurants in the UK Local neighbourhood restaurants trump the list

toptable reveals today their diners’ top 50 Italian restaurants across the UK for 2011. The list demonstrates the versatility and popularity of Italian cuisine with the inclusion of restaurants covering the length and breadth of the United Kingdom.

“Italian cuisine is one of toptable diners’ favourite cuisines and one that they are familiar and comfortable with”, comments Lucy Taylor, Head of Restaurant Relations.  “The list includes such culinary stars such as Angela Harnett’s Murano and Theo Randell but it also features many popular local neighbourhood restaurants proving that wherever you are in the UK, you are not far from a good Italian restaurant.”

Owner, Leo Pierotti and Manager, Andrea Graasso of the ever popular family run Italian restaurant Piccolo Mondo in Glasgow which tops the list commented, “We are obviously delighted to be included in the list.  Italian cuisine is not only delicious but it is the ultimate comfort food.  When this is coupled with a warm Italian welcome and great value you have a very popular formula.”

The rankings are based on over half a million reviews submitted by toptable diners for more than 3000 restaurants across the UK between October 2010 and November 2011.  Based on toptable diners’ feedback the following 50 Italian restaurants received the highest ratings.

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About toptable
More than12 million diners have been seated via toptable, making it the leading online consumer destination for restaurant bookings in the UK.  toptable.com provides a free and easy-to-use service, allowing diners to browse and book at more than 3,000 restaurants across the UK.  More than 200,000 diners are seated at restaurants each month through reservations booked via toptable.com.  toptable is owned and operated by OpenTable, Inc., the world’s leading provider of free, real-time online restaurant reservations for diners and reservation and guest management solutions for restaurants.  OpenTable has more than 20,000 restaurant customers and has seated more than 250 million diners around the world.  The Company is headquartered in San Francisco, California, and the OpenTable service is available throughout the United States, as well as in Canada, Germany, Japan, Mexico, and the UK.

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OpenTable, OpenTable.com, OpenTable logos, toptable and other

service names are the trademarks of OpenTable, Inc. and/or its affiliates

For further information:
Ros Choate, Head of PR, toptable
t. 07889 232 970/ 020 3311 2274
e. ros.choate@toptable.com
http://press.toptable.com/
twitter: @toptable_ros

New toptable mobile apps unveiled – Brand new Android and iPad apps and major updates to iPhone app and mobile website

OpenTable announces today the launch of a new mobile suite for its consumer site toptable, the leading destination for online restaurant bookings in the UK. The toptable mobile suite has been completely revamped to include new Android and iPad apps as well as major updates to the popular iPhone app and toptable mobile website.

The three new toptable native apps are available today for download from the Apple AppStore and Android Market.  The new native apps, along with the updated toptable mobile website, make it even easier for diners to find and book the best restaurants on the go. The apps automatically display restaurants and special offers based on the diners’ current or desired location, and the new streamlined interface makes it simple to create a list of favourite restaurants and manage bookings on the move.

“Our mobile products already account for a significant share of our bookings and customers are increasingly wanting to be able to book restaurants whilst on the move”, comments Chris Wood, Managing Director of toptable.  “Our new mobile suite will help them do this and help drive diners to our restaurant partners.”

“People now expect to be able to carry out pretty much all their online activity on their mobile devices and toptable’s mobile offering means that we are accessible to diners on any mobile,” comments Claude Bosi, Chef Owner of the popular and critically acclaimed London restaurant, Hibiscus.  “The toptable apps help us attract all sorts of diners; regulars, new visitors to the area and last minute diners.  Even when we are fully booked, toptable online reservations can help us see an uplift in custom by filling those last minute cancellations.”

toptable.com/mobile
Apple AppStore
Android Market

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About toptable
More than12 million diners have been seated via toptable, making it the leading online consumer destination for restaurant bookings in the UK.  toptable.com provides a free and easy-to-use service, allowing diners to browse and book at more than 3,000 restaurants across the UK.  More than 200,000 diners are seated at restaurants each month through reservations booked via toptable.com.  toptable is owned and operated by OpenTable, Inc., the world’s leading provider of free, real-time online restaurant reservations for diners and reservation and guest management solutions for restaurants.  OpenTable has more than 20,000 restaurant customers and has seated more than 200 million diners around the world.  The Company is headquartered in San Francisco, California, and the OpenTable service is available throughout the United States, as well as in Canada, Germany, Japan, Mexico, and the UK.

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OpenTable, OpenTable.com, OpenTable logos, toptable and other

service names are the trademarks of OpenTable, Inc. and/or its affiliates
For further information:
Ros Choate, Head of PR, toptable
t. 07889 232 970/ 020 3311 2274
e. ros.choate@toptable.com
http://press.toptable.com/
twitter: @toptable_ros

toptable adds Celebrity Chef Auction to ‘Love Food Give Food Festival’ – an appeal to save the lives of malnourished children

toptable, the leading online consumer destination for restaurant bookings in the UK, and Action Against Hunger have added a celebrity chef auction to the ‘Love Food Give Food Festival’ which is inviting food lovers across the UK to join the fight against hunger and to make a positive difference in helping malnourished children and their families worldwide by simply eating out.

This additional fundraising activity sees top chefs such as Jun Tanaka, Atul Kochhar and Cyrus Todiwala putting up auction lots of dinner for  up to 12 people, prepared and hosted by themselves in their respective restaurants; Pearl, Benares and Café Spice Namaste.  Other auction lots include a one off VIP Diwali Banquet experience when six of London’s top Indian chefs unite at the highly acclaimed Cinnamon Club to prepare a Diwali dinner on Sunday 30th October.  Bids can be made on ebay until the 6th October.

During the festival, which runs until the 31st October, hundreds of participating restaurants on toptable are helping raise funds by running special restaurant offers, encouraging their customers to add a discretionary donation to their bill or donating money from the sales of a popular dish. The proceeds go directly to Action Against Hunger’s lifesaving programmes which help over 6 million people in over 40 countries worldwide every year.

toptable, which is owned and operated by OpenTable, are also making a donation to Action Against Hunger for every promotional reservation booked throughout the ‘Love Food Give Food Festival’.

“We are very proud to be supporting Action Against Hunger by launching the ‘Love Food Give Food Festival’ which gives us, our restaurant partners and our diners the opportunity to make a real difference in the fight against hunger in an extremely easy yet effective way,“ commented Chris Wood, Managing Director, toptable.  “By simply taking part in the promotional opportunities on toptable our restaurant partners will be saving lives as will our diners by just doing what they love best – dining out in great restaurants.”

Jean Michel Grand, Action Against Hunger’s Executive Director, said: “We are thrilled that toptable is supporting Action Against Hunger’s Love Food Give Food Appeal. The bespoke festival enables us to continue to build upon the fantastic support of food lovers nation-wide. With the devastating food crisis in East Africa, their support could not be more timely in helping raise as many funds as possible towards our life-saving work.”

The ‘Love Food Give Food Festival’ is part of the wider Love Food Give Food appeal which is supported by hundreds of chefs and restaurants across the nation. For a list of participating restaurants and to find out more visit www.lovefoodgivefood.org.

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About toptable
Founded in 2000 toptable.com, the leading online consumer destination for restaurant bookings in the UK, provides a free and easy-to-use service, allowing diners to browse and book at more than 3,000 restaurants across the United Kingdom.  Nearly three million diners are seated at restaurants each year through reservations booked via toptable.com.  toptable is owned and operated by OpenTable, the world’s leading provider of free, real-time online restaurant reservations for diners and reservation and guest management solutions for restaurants. OpenTable has more than 20,000 restaurant customers and, since its inception in 1998, has seated more than 200 million diners around the world.  The Company is headquartered in San Francisco, California, and the OpenTable service is available throughout the United States, as well as in Canada, Germany, Japan, Mexico, and the United Kingdom.

For further information:
Ros Choate, Head of PR, toptable
t. 07889 232 970/ 020 3311 2274
e. ros.choate@toptable.com

http://press.toptable.com/

twitter: @toptable_ros

About Action Against Hunger
Action Against Hunger | ACF International is a humanitarian organisation committed to ending child hunger. Recognised as a leader in the fight against malnutrition, Action Against Hunger saves the lives of malnourished children while providing communities with access to safe water and sustainable solutions to hunger. Action Against Hunger has mounted one of its biggest humanitarian interventions in response to the devastating food crisis in the Horn of Africa, with operations taking place in Kenya, Somalia, Ethiopia and Djibouti.

For further information:
Christine Kahmann
Communications Manager
c.kahmann@aahuk.org
ACTION AGAINST HUNGER | ACF-UK
www.actionagainsthunger.org.uk
T: 020 8293 6197 | M: 077 382 60500

10 Best iPhone apps

TrustedReviews.com includes the toptable iPhone app in its July list of top 10 iPhone apps

toptable diners name top 50 French restaurants

caterersearch, BigHospitality, Eat Out Magazine and Technology4Hospitality.com covered the announcement today of toptable diners’ top 50 French restaurants in the UK.

toptable diners name their top French restaurants in the UK

toptable, the UK’s leading online restaurant booking service, announced today their diners’ 50 top rated French restaurants across the UK.  The list is based on the ratings of over half a million diners who have booked and dined via toptable during the last 12 months.

Some of the UK’s finest French restaurants are included in the list.  Michelin starred Martin Wishart and Le Gavroche share the top spot with Gordon Ramsay’s Petrus,  Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester, the River Restaurant at The Savoy Hotel and William Drabble’s Seven Park Place following closely behind.   Local gems are also favoured by toptable diners with restaurants such as Alan Murchison’s La Bécasse in Ludlow,  Richard Phillips’ Kent restaurants the Hengist and Thackery’s and The Waggoners in Hertfordshire featuring high up in the top 50.

“French is many toptable diners’ favourite cuisine”, comments Lucy Taylor, Head of Restaurant Relations.  “It is a cuisine that most diners are familiar and comfortable with whether it be Michelin starred haute cuisine or relaxed brasserie food and this is reflected in the breadth and range of French restaurants in our diners’ top 50.”

Based on feedback collected from toptable diners between July 2010 and July 2011, the following 50 restaurants received the highest scores from toptable diners.  For more information about this list, please visit http://www.toptable.com/venues/cuisine/?l=1&id=166&sortby=rating

Martin Wishart, Edinburgh
Le Gavroche, London
Petrus, Gordon Ramsay, London
Alain Ducasse, Dorchester, London
The Savoy, River Restaurant, London
Seven Park Place, William Drabble, London
The French Table, Surbiton, Surrey
The Greenhouse, London
Sketch Lecture Room and Library, London
L’Escargot Blanc, Edinburgh
The Waggoners, Herts
Gauthier Soho, London
Pied a Terre, London
Orrery, London
Galvin at Windows, London
Roussillon Restaurant, London
Hengist, Kent
Retro Bistrot, Teddington
Petit Paris, Edinburgh
L’Ortolan, Reading
The Square, London
Hibiscus, London
Almeida, London
Pearl Restaurant & Bar, London
Koffman’s, London
L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon, London
Thackeray’s, Kent
Chez Roux, Rocpool Reserve Hotel, Inverness
Restaurant at The Bonham, Edinburgh
L’Escargot Bleu, Edinburgh
La Becasse, Ludlow Shropshire
Bel Canto, London
The Savoy Grill, London
Edmunds, Birmingham
Le Pont de la Tour, London
Four O Nine, Clapham, London
Bellevue Rendezvous, Wandsworth, London
Bellamy’s, London
Le Cercle, London
Forbury’s Restaurant and Wine Bar, Reading
Maze, London
Chez Manny, Battersea, London
La Vallee Blanche, Glasgow
Upstairs Bar & Restaurant, London
Brian Maule at le Chardon d’Or, Glasgow
Chez Tonton, Herts
Bully’s, Cardiff
The Box Tree – Marco Pierre Whhite, Yorkshire
Ratatouille, Richmond, Surrey
Racine, London

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About toptable
Founded in 2000, toptable.com is a leading online restaurant booking service in the UK.  toptable.com provides a free and easy-to-use service, allowing diners to browse and book at more than 3,000 restaurants across the United Kingdom.  Nearly three million diners are seated at restaurants each year through reservations booked via toptable.com.  toptable is owned and operated by OpenTable, Inc.

For further information:
Ros Choate, Head of PR
t. 07889 232 970/ 020 3311 2274
e. ros.choate@toptable.com
twitter: @toptable_ros

toptable launches nationwide search for best barbecue dad

Metro UK featured toptable’s Barbecue Dad competition launched in time for Father’s Day

toptable launches nationwide search for ‘Britain’s Best Barbecue dad’

toptable have launched a nationwide search for ‘Britain’s best barbecue dad’  in time for Father’s Day.    Anyone who thinks they know the ‘dad’ that is the King of the coals can nominate them via toptable for a chance to win him a one to one barbecue lesson with Henry Harris, Chef Patron of Racine restaurant, London and one of the top chef’s competing at this year’s Laverstoke Park British BBQ Championships.

“In many families, the barbecue is the territory of the man of the house and they are often fiercely proud of their barbecue prowess”, said Lucy Taylor, Head of Restaurant Relations.  “In time for Father’s Day, we are looking for the dad who can grill a mean steak, barbecue the best ribs and concoct the most delicious marinade.”

Participants can enter the campaign by either nominating themselves or the dad they feel is the King of the coals by uploading a photo and up to 100 words describing why the nominee should be considered  ‘Britain’s Best Barbecue dad’.  The entry period runs from 14 to 24 June.  Then, 5 finalists will be chosen and the winner and runners up will be selected via a public vote on toptable’s Facebook page between the 28th June and the 1st July.

Along with four runners up the winner will also receive a family ticket to The Field and Fork Show on the 31st July, 2011 where they’ll be able to watch the final of the British BBQ Championships.

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Want to critique Taste of London? Then read on…

Women and Home’s food blogger truefoodie encourages readers to take part in toptable’s Taste of London competition to become the official Taste Critic.

Write a restaurant review for toptable and win the chance to try 40 top London restaurants at this year’s Taste of London

toptable is offering diners the opportunity to try their hand at restaurant reviewing and a chance to become the official Taste Critic at this year’s Taste of London, 16th-19th June 2011, Regents Park.

To enter the competition, budding amateur restaurant critics simply need to submit their own written review of a restaurant of their choice by midday on the 10th June.  The entries will be judged and the winning review picked by the Taste judging panel.

The winning critic will receive a Taste Critic Pass that allows entry and the opportunity to taste one dish from 40 top restaurants at this year’s event.   The winner will also receive two additional standard tickets for foodie friends.

Many culinary greats will be taking part at this year’s Taste of London including Michel Roux Jr, Pierre Koffmann, Silvena Rowe, Chris Galvin, Gary Rhodes, Jason Atherton and Tom Aikens.

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