How to deal with restaurant waits

Here is some advice on handling restaurant waits from Deseret News readers and restaurateurs:

Know the policies. Ask if a restaurant takes reservations or lets diners call ahead, said James Small, manager of Mimi's Cafe in Murray. And know which policies you like or don't like, added Payson resident Lindsay Wolsey: "At (a local steakhouse) you can get a reservation to pick up a pager. That's really annoying."

Make reservations when you can. It's amazing how few people neglect this step, even when it's available, said restaurant critic Stuart Melling. When reservations aren't available, Melling likes to dine midweek: "I have never encountered anywhere in Salt Lake where you cannot just walk in, from low-scale joints to high end."

Choose the right time. Iggy's Sports Grill general manager Rich Trujillo advises arriving at a restaurant between 2:30 and 5 p.m. for instant seating and said this usually works, even on weekends.

Keep kids occupied. Midvale resident Andrea Person makes extra preparations when taking her two sons out to dinner: "I try to go at times where they've just had a snack, so they're not too hungry, and I bring books or get the menu and have them look at it with me."

Pick the right places. Holladay dentist Richard Curtis gives his business to restaurants that make serious efforts to seat customers promptly: "I've never liked to wait. I run my business that way. I try not to make people wait when they come in (to the dental practice), and I like the ones that try as hard as I do."