Latest news with #Tock
Eater
6 days ago
- Business
- Eater
An IYKYK Duck-Centric Menu Just Launched at Mister Jiu's
Power diners in San Francisco know all about where to get their hands on crackly-skinned, Beijing-style roast duck, but one of the best-known spots is undoubtedly Mister Jiu's in San Francisco's Chinatown. It's a frequently referenced dish in chef Brandon Jew's repertoire, earning praise in the Michelin Guide, receiving its own ode in Eater SF, and even spawning a cheeky t-shirt declaring it the top roast duck in America. Whether you believe that sentiment to be true or hyperbole, diners can find out for themselves as Mister Jiu's is finally unleashing its roast duck from the tasting menu and launched two new options for diners: a four-course, duck-centric, banquet-style menu and a limited availability (read: very limited) a la carte option at the bar. Mister Jiu's switched to a tasting menu format in 2023, and while it made the restaurant more sustainable and allowed the team to curate a dining experience for guests, it relegated the hit duck dish to an add-on component. Now, diners can experience the Beijing duck in its umpteenth update and in all its glory — meaning, with pancakes, peanut butter hoisin, duck liver mousse, and cucumber — as part of a four-course dinner, at a much lower price of $125 per person. It's a small gift to diners and coincides with the news that the tasting menu is now expanding to eight courses for $175. But if circumstances coincide with luck, as mine did last year, the secret is that the duck has been on and off the a la carte menu at the bar since the 2023 menu change. Dipping into the bar at Mister Jiu's after a San Francisco outing on the water, it felt like such a boon to order the duck at the bar with a friend, cocktails in hand, for a Michelin-starred experience a la minute (i.e. no reservations and no advance planning on my end). I haven't seen the duck on the a la carte menu since, but a rep for the restaurant confirmed that it can still be ordered at the bar, although it's subject to availability — namely, you're third in line behind the already-ordered ducks in the dining room. Still, if you're willing to roll the dice, this isn't a bad bet to place and perhaps your next Move this summer. Mister Jiu's (28 Waverly Place) is open from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday. Reservations are available via Tock . Sign up for our newsletter.
Time Out
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Time Out
The first-ever Chicago Cocktail Classic will let you drink your way around the world
Chicago, get ready to raise your glass: The inaugural Chicago Cocktail Classic is landing Sunday, June 15, and it's bringing some serious international flavor with it. Early bird tickets are on sale now for $89 via Tock, which includes 10 drink tokens, each good for a perfectly portioned cocktail and access to all three venues. Consider it your all-inclusive boarding pass to a globe-trotting happy hour. 'The Chicago Cocktail Classic offers the perfect opportunity to immerse guests in world-class mixology, all in one unforgettable evening,' said Kevin Beary, the drink wizard behind Three Dots and a Dash and Gus' Sip & Dip. 'Collaborating with some of the top bars around the globe is always an incredible experience.' Beary hopes to make the Classic an annual staple for serious sippers and curious cocktail enthusiasts alike. Confirmed talent includes a who's-who of the mixology world: from NYC's Sip & Guzzle and Angel's Share to Paris's Bar Nouveau and San Juan's Identidad. Whether you're into rum-forward tiki creations, high-concept martinis, or daring flavor experiments, chances are someone at the Classic is serving it. Guests are encouraged to hop between the three venues at leisure, as each will host a rotating lineup of guest bars. Translation? If you want to say you've truly done the Cocktail Classic, you'd better pace yourself.
CBS News
19-04-2025
- Business
- CBS News
Some of Chicago's hottest restaurants are losing business to reservation piracy; Illinois state lawmaker wants to stop it
If you like to go out to eat in Chicago, you know how tough it can be to score a reservation. Scammers saw that opportunity and are trying to cash in. Bad actors are scooping up reservations at hot spots and trying to sell them for big money. It's known as reservation piracy or reservation scalping. Whether it drinks or food, many restaurants require reservations, and at Piccolo Sogno in West Town, the tables fill up quickly, especially on weekends. "We are 99% always fully booked," owner Ciro Longobardo said. Across the city, some restaurants relying solely on electronic reservations are running into a problem. "We have these third-party software companies. They're going on, they're taking up all of the reservations that are free on OpenTable, Resy, Tock; and then they're reselling them, for sometimes hundreds of dollars," said Illinois state Rep. Margaret Croke (D-Chicago). Yet when customers purchase the third-party reservation, rather than from legitimate sites like OpenTable, they hit a snag, and find out they don't actually have a reservation. Croke introduced legislation to prevent restaurant reservation piracy after hearing from several restaurant owners. "They told me about how people would come in thinking they had a reservation when they didn't, and how angry people were," Croke said. "They told me about how they didn't even have people wanting to walk in in the neighborhood, because they always thought the restaurant was going to be fully booked." It's costing restaurants big time. "I don't like at all, the buying of the reservations, the selling. You know, I'm going to prepare for a busy night, and all of sudden I have 50-70 customers not show," Longobardo said. That's why at Piccolo Sogno, they refuse to rely entirely on reservation apps. "It's good, but I'm not going to let an electronic system to run my business," Longobardo said. It's not just restaurants getting targeted. OpenTable is sending users emails reminding them to be suspicious of emails, text messages and calls from restaurants trying to verify reservations. It's all in attempt to get passwords and access to credit cards numbers. "It's always in a situation where it's imperative that you answer questions quickly, and that's what we call the tip off to the rip off," Better Business Bureau Chicago president Steve Bernas said. "Ultimately it comes down to identity theft, which is still the fastest growing white collar crime today." The measure Croke has introduced in Springfield would prevent third-party services from listing, advertising, promoting, or selling reservations for restaurants without a written agreement. It also would allow restaurant owners to take legal action and sue unauthorized third-party companies that buy their reservation spots without authorization. Violators could face fines of up to $1,000 per reservation posted.
Yahoo
18-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
American Express CEO says his business is in great shape because its wealthy Gen Z clients aren't hurting at all
American Express is in great shape even as the outlook of the global economy remains shaky. CEO Stephen Squeri said total billed business on Amex cards jumped 7.5% year over year and new-card growth was fueled by Gen Z and millennials, who made up the bulk of new customers. The world economy is looking increasingly uncertain, but the CEO of American Express says its wealthy customers are doing just fine. The financial services company on Thursday reported a 7.5% year-over-year increase in total billed business on Amex cards in the first quarter, which helped push the company's revenue up 8% year over year to a better-than-expected $17 billion for the period. Driving the results was solid spending from its wealthy customer base, said CEO Stephen Squeri. 'Through the first 10 to 12 days, it's [spending] as strong as it was last quarter, maybe slightly, slightly stronger, and credit still continues to look really good,' he told Yahoo Finance. Billings on restaurants and lodging stayed strong during the quarter, even as the company saw a slight spending pullback in the airlines category. Squeri also said the company had seen no effect from 'pull forward'—the idea that the delayed effect of purchases from late 2024 could be artificially buoying earnings. Another boon for the company was the 3.4 million new cardholders it added during the quarter, 60% of which were Gen Z and millennials, Squeri said Thursday during the company's first-quarter earnings call. Those younger cardholders spent 14% more in the quarter, while Gen X and boomers spent 5% and 1% more, respectively, CNBC reported. While Amex has traditionally been seen as the elite card of the gray-haired upper class, the brand has increasingly caught the eye of Gen Z and millennials, who have sought out the card for its 'lifestyle' perks. In 2023, 75% of new consumer platinum and consumer gold accounts belonged to these two cohorts, Fortune reported. The company is increasingly catering to younger customers through its restaurant and hotel perks, Squeri said, adding that Gen Z and millennials spent more on eating out than any other customer demographic. Amex has focused on this effort especially with its acquisitions of reservation apps Resy and Tock as well as its relaunch of the Gold Card, Squeri added. 'Gold could have been renamed 'the Restaurant Card' between the rewards accelerator, the Resy credit, and the Global Dining collection,' he said. Despite some economists forecasting a recession on the horizon, Squeri said Amex was expecting strong growth for the rest of the year and reiterated the company's guidance of 8% to 10% revenue growth. This story was originally featured on Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
09-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
New York cracks down on trading
Fancy some pasta at New York City's posh Italian restaurant Carbone or maybe a whiskey at Ralph Lauren's Polo Bar? Hold onto your wallet because some folks are shelling out hundreds of dollars just for the privilege of booking a table, not even for the food. In a city that never sleeps, money talks, especially when it comes to dining out. As it's often impossible to get a table in the city's most popular restaurants weeks in advance, an online marketplace for table reservations has developed. On these portals, people with deep pockets can bid for reservations others have previously purchased. But that may change soon. A law that recently came into effect in the state of New York is now intended to put an end to "restaurant reservation piracy," as the business model is also known. Third-party platforms are no longer allowed to sell reservations without the restaurants' consent. Fight against bots and the 'predatory black market' This is because providers of the highly coveted reservations are often said to be automated bots that snatch up free seats to profit from the high demand. While life in New York is becoming increasingly unaffordable for some, others spend more than $3,000 on New Year's Eve to get a table at The Corner Store in Soho. New York Governor Kathy Hochul describes the "predatory black market" as unfair exploitation and emphasizes that the new law will give more customers access to the city's hippest restaurants again. It's a smokescreen, says Jonas Frey, founder and chief executive of Appointment Trader, one of the platforms on which reservations can be purchased. Frey, originally a German citizen who now lives in Miami and arranges around 80,000 reservations a year with his team, argues that instead of a general ban, the use of bots could have been specifically prohibited. "We wouldn't mind that at all, they are largely banned on our platform anyway." The sellers are mainly people who are unable to honour a prepaid reservation or restaurant employees who are earning extra money. The system is not new. The law does not make it any easier for ordinary people to get a seat in most exclusive restaurants. Instead, they have to go through any contacts they might have, individually negotiated deals with restaurants, such as American Express, which keeps exclusive seats free for customers, or authorized sellers, who often charge even higher prices, says Frey. Many large companies have now recognized that a lot of money can be made with restaurant and event management. Platforms such as Resy, OpenTable, Dorsia and Tock, which co-operate with restaurants for a fee, are not affected by the new law, even if customers are charged for some services. American Express, which has already acquired Resy, also took over Tock last year for $400 million, a platform that is aimed in particular at affluent customers with bookings for upmarket restaurants and luxury events. More and more restaurants in New York are also opening exclusive clubs with membership fees and annual subscriptions of tens of thousands of dollars, private dining rooms and exclusive top chefs. Deposits of several hundred dollars for reservations made directly with the restaurant are not uncommon - and can be withheld in the event of cancellations. Empty tables as a result? Pablo Rivero, chief executive of Resy, welcomes the new law, also on behalf of the restaurant partners: "It is a big step forward in the industry's efforts to protect restaurants and guests from reservation fraud." State Senator Nathalia Fernandez, who proposed the law, and the president of the New York Restaurant Association, Melissa Fleischut, charged that the sale of reservations on third-party platforms has led to an increase in no-shows and last-minute cancellations - with empty tables, loss of sales and missing tips for staff as a result. Frey rejects this criticism. Unlike a black market, his platform offers a money-back guarantee for customers if a reservation does not work out, and strict checks are carried out to ensure that sellers actually sell the majority of their reservations so that restaurants are not left with empty tables. In addition, the traded restaurants are so expensive that reservation fees averaging $100 are not a major factor for guests. Demand also increasing in Europe "More people want to visit exclusive restaurants in New York than there are tables - and that's why there is a price," argues Frey. "But we didn't invent or create the problem. Of course, those who pay have an advantage over those who pay nothing. Will demand disappear as a result of the ban? No, it will increase and probably shift to illegal channels." Frey plans to continue despite the law. Appointment Trader is not standing with its back against the wall due to strong sales in the millions, but wants to defend itself, he says. And new markets are already in sight thanks to rising demand - including in Europe.
