"OpenTable" news and stories

OpenTable users aren't just logging on to the site to make reservations anymore -- they're coming back to tell others what they think. What are diners loving this year? The website's Diners' Choice awards tell all.

The company's list of 50 "2011 Hot Spot Winners" was fun to read, but many of the picks are perennial favorites. We were most interested in what's new on the scene. Lucky, the site delivered -- after compiling 7 million reviews, OpenTable has come up with a list of the 10 hottest restaurants to open in the past year.

Get the full list after the jump.

Earlier today, Gail Simmons chatted with us about Top Chef Just Desserts, which got our mouths watering and our imaginations running. Seems the folks at OpenTable had the same reaction: in honor of tomorrow night's premiere, they've declared September 15th "Free Dessert Day" at participating restaurants. (The hundreds of restaurants on the list span 10 different cities in which OpenTable offers reservations.)

What do you need to do to earn the complimentary last course? Make your reservation through OpenTable, order at least 1 entrée, and come prepared to share -- it's one dessert for every two diners. Sounds like a sweet deal to us.

It's looking like a good week for budget-minded foodies (did you catch our post on BlackboardEats Everywhere edition?). We have a couple more ways to get you fed for less, with super-new restaurant deals at familiar discount sites:

• OpenTable Spotlight (weekly): OpenTable.com has been spotting open reservations in major cities since the late '90s, but now they'll be sending discounts to your inbox each week for restaurants in Boston and New York (more locations to come). Typical payoffs are at least 50% off meals: Sign up once, watch your email, buy the deal, print receipt, then go eat a $50 meal for $25 or less. Just don't forget to make a reservation with the restaurant, too -- wouldn't want to be the estranged coupon-pusher, now.

• Top Chef Deals on Groupon (till Sunday!): Turns out good things come when Bravo and Groupon.com team up. Groupon launched in 2008 with a reputation for bringing crazy daily discounts from the worlds of food and culture. Till Sunday (Aug 8), five former Top Chef contestants (including Carla Hall from season 5 and Douglas Rodriguez from season 1) are offering deals at their own restaurants or catering companies. This includes an $85 deal (down from $172) for a cooking class with Carla Hall at Alchemy Caterers in Washington, D.C. -- or some discounted cookies from her caterers delivered to your door. There's nine deals in total, including in Miami, Atlanta and California, but it all ends Sunday.

Yelp helps you find a restaurant but doesn't let you book. OpenTable allows you to make reservations at a restaurant but doesn't make any recommendations or suggestions.

Are you thinking what I'm thinking? Why don't these two kids get together and make some magic for us to macerate.

Good news they have. According to an article in the New York Times, Yelp and OpenTable are joining forces for the power of good dining. Find a restaurant you want to go to through Yelp and make the reservation right there through Open Table using your Yelp account. You no longer have to use your OpenTable account just your Yelp one.

From conversations with neighbors in the elevator as well as with friends around my dining room table, I know that the state of the economy has forced many folks to reduced or, in some cases, erased their budget for restaurant meals. Restaurants across the country are feeling the pinch as we tighten our belts and eat at home and so have joined forces with the online reservation service OpenTable in the hopes that a good deal might lure you back.

From November 17th through the 21st, they're offering an 'Appetite Stimulus Plan' in 13 cities across the country. All participating restaurants are offering a three-course meal that will cost $24 for lunch or $35 for dinner. Here in the Philly area, there are more than 60 restaurants have signed on, and many are places that typically cost far more than $35 for dinner.

The other participating cities include Atlanta, Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, New York, San Francisco, Seattle and Washington, D.C.

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