Restaurant Booking Brief Prompt for a Helper

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Paste your own rough notes into any ordinary AI chat that accepts text. The prompt is the full text appended below; copy it as-is, then add your notes after the line about what you will paste.

Minimum inputs to include: city or neighborhood, date and arrival-time window, number of people, dietary constraints and who they apply to, budget signal, and contact preference. Write "not sure" where you genuinely do not know rather than guessing.

What you get back: a one-sentence goal, a constraints table, a short venue brief, a booking script, fallback options, a confirm-back checklist, your own decisions before booking, and open questions.

How to check the output: every allergy must appear as must-have and be phrased as a question to the venue; the script must include both the preferred and fallback time windows; nothing invented such as venue names, phone numbers, prices or opening hours should appear; missing items must be labelled MISSING. If any of these fail, ask the assistant to correct that point.

Introduction

Booking a table through someone else usually fails on small details: the allergy gets softened into a preference, the fallback time is dropped, or nobody confirms the cancellation rule. This prompt does not book anything. It converts your notes into a consistent brief, a script a helper can adapt, and a checklist you can verify against the confirmation. It suits a friend calling on your behalf or an assistant you delegate the first contact to.

Prerequisites, permissions and limits

You need a chat tool that accepts long text pastes, and you need to be willing to read the output carefully. There is no install step and no terminal or API work.

The prompt itself performs no calls, messages, browsing, account access or scheduling. Anyone telling you the pasted text booked a table is wrong. You keep the decisions: approving venue, time and deposit, providing payment, and confirming allergy wording. The tool may not know local availability, prices or policies, and it is told not to invent them.

Privacy: your notes may contain names, phone numbers, a home area and health details such as allergies. Share only what the helper needs, and remember the copied text also leaves your notes in the chat history.

source reviewed; runtime not tested

FAQ

Can I paste incomplete notes? Yes. The prompt is designed for that: unknown critical items should come back labelled MISSING and as open questions, and vague constraints should trigger one clarifying question with a safe default.

Does this place the booking for me? No. It produces preparation material only. A person or an assistant still performs the call, message or online booking and returns the confirmation details for your review.

Complete reusable prompt

You are helping me prepare a restaurant table booking brief that I can hand to a person or an assistant. You do not make bookings, place calls, send messages, browse, or access any account. You only turn my notes into a clear, consistent delegation brief and flag missing or risky information.

INPUT I WILL PASTE Provide the following, using "not sure" where unknown:

• City or neighborhood and any preferred area
• Date and acceptable arrival-time window, plus an earlier/later fallback window
• Number of people, including children or older guests
• Seating preference and accessibility needs
• Dietary constraints: allergies, intolerances, religious or ethical restrictions, and who they apply to
• Budget signal: cheap, mid-range, or special occasion, and whether a card deposit is acceptable
• Cuisine or venue preferences, likes, and hard dislikes
• Occasion and tone, for example quiet birthday dinner or casual catch-up
• Language needed for the booking conversation
• Whether I want counter/bar seating, outdoor seating, or a private area
• Contact preference: I will call, I will book online, or a helper handles first contact
• Deadline by which the booking must exist

YOUR TASK

1. Restate my booking goal in one sentence as a request to a helper, not as a command to book.
2. Build a constraints table with three columns: Need, Must-have or nice-to-have, and Consequence if unmet. Mark any allergy as must-have.
3. Create a short preferred-venue brief I can paste into a search or read aloud, containing area, cuisine, party size, timing window, dietary needs, budget signal, and occasion.
4. Write a booking script the helper can adapt for a phone call or message. Include: greet, state date, time window with fallback, party size, dietary needs as questions, seating or accessibility request, budget or deposit question, and a closing line asking for confirmation details.
5. List fallback options if the first choice is unavailable: same cuisine nearby, later time, smaller or split table, different day, or a different venue type that fits the same constraints.
6. List exact information the helper must confirm back to me: venue name, address, date, time, party size, any deposit or cancellation rules, allergy handling, seating, and the booking reference.
7. List what I must personally decide or do before any booking proceeds: approve venue, approve time, approve deposit, provide payment, and confirm any allergy wording.

OUTPUT FORMAT Use Markdown with these headings: Goal; Constraints Table; Preferred-Venue Brief; Booking Script; Fallbacks; Confirm-Back Checklist; My Decisions Before Booking; Open Questions. Keep the total under one page where possible. Use plain language and short lines.

UNCERTAINTY AND MISSING INPUT If a critical item is missing, write "MISSING" next to it and continue with what is known. Do not invent a venue, phone number, price, availability, opening hours, or allergy policy. If a constraint is vague, such as "vegetarian-ish", ask one clarifying question and give a safe default interpretation. Never soften an allergy into a preference.

WORKED EXAMPLE Input: "2 people, Saturday around 7pm, one shellfish allergy, mid-range Thai or Japanese, quiet enough to talk, I can book online but a friend may call instead, neighborhood near the river, deposit under $40 is fine." Possible output shape:

• Goal: Ask a helper to find and hold a quiet mid-range Thai or Japanese table for two on Saturday near the river, arriving about 7pm, with a shellfish allergy clearly communicated.
• Constraints Table: Shellfish allergy | Must-have | Cannot book if the kitchen cannot confirm handling. Quiet table | Nice-to-have | May accept an earlier time at a quieter venue. Deposit under $40 | Must-have | Choose another venue if higher.
• Preferred-Venue Brief: Quiet mid-range Thai or Japanese, two people, Saturday 7:00pm, fallback 6:30pm or 7:30pm, shellfish allergy, riverside area, deposit under $40.
• Booking Script: Hello, I would like a table for two on Saturday at 7:00pm, or 6:30pm if that is not available. One guest has a shellfish allergy. Can you confirm the kitchen can handle that? We would prefer a quiet table. Is there a deposit, and is it under $40? Please confirm date, time, address, and any cancellation rule.
• Fallbacks: another Thai or Japanese place within walking distance, 6:30pm or later window, counter seating if quiet, Sunday lunch, or a different quiet cuisine that can handle the allergy.
• Confirm-Back Checklist: venue name, address, date, time, party size, allergy handling, seating, deposit and cancellation rules, booking reference.
• My Decisions Before Booking: approve venue, approve time, approve deposit, provide payment if needed, confirm allergy wording.
• Open Questions: exact neighborhood, whether outdoor seating is acceptable, whether the friend will call or I will book online.

REVIEW CHECKS BEFORE I SEND ANYTHING

1. Does every allergy appear as must-have and is it stated as a question to the venue, not assumed handled?
2. Does the booking script include both the preferred and fallback time windows?
3. Did you invent any venue, price, opening hour, or availability? If yes, remove it.
4. Does the brief state that I approve venue, time, and deposit before any booking proceeds?
5. Is the confirm-back checklist specific enough that I can verify the booking without calling again?
6. Are missing items labelled MISSING rather than guessed?

BOUNDARIES Do not claim to have called, messaged, reserved, or checked availability. Do not write in a way that implies the pasted text can access an account, browse, send, or schedule. This is preparation for delegation, not execution. A helper or I must perform any call, message, or booking and return the confirmation details for review.

References and reuse

• ChatGPT release notes · Reviewed 2026-10-04

Original TokRepo prompt · CC BY 4.0. Reference documents retain their own rights.