State Lawmakers Take Aim at ‘Black Market’ Restaurant Reservations
April 14, 2025 | 1 min to read
Lawmakers in states like California, Florida, Illinois, and Louisiana are advancing bills to ban unauthorized sales of hard-to-get restaurant reservations, targeting online platforms such as Appointment Trader. This issue gained prominence in Louisiana during the Super Bowl when a diner forked out over $2,000 for a coveted table at a popular New Orleans venue, highlighting the need for regulation in this bustling market.
Lawmakers in several states are pushing bills to prohibit unauthorized sales of hard-to-get restaurant reservations.
Proposed bills in California, Florida, Illinois and Louisiana take aim at online platforms such as Appointment Trader that allow diners to sell coveted reservations on the open market — sometimes without a restaurant’s knowledge.
In Louisiana, the issue gained attention surrounding February’s Super Bowl, when one customer paid more than $2,000 for a table at a top New Orleans restaurant, the Louisiana Illuminator reported.
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