Bonito

JoR

SBH Insider
My sister and her husband were charged 600E by Bonito for failing to cancel dinner reservations 24 hours ahead of time (they were hosting 2 guests, hence 150E X4). 3 of the 4 of them became sick after a dinner out the night before at a new restaurant I recommended to them encouraged by reviews here (their concierge also recommended it). They had to cancel lunch at Eden Rock for the same reason with just 2 hours notice…no issue. They were able to give Bonito 9+ hours notice. So, quite a shock. Is this the norm? Any ideas about recourse?
 
When we visited the island recently and were making advanced dinner reservations we were advised by our villa concierge that two of our selected restaurants required advance credit card guarantees and had no-show penalties: Zion had something like a 25 Euro per person no-show penalty and Bonito had a 150 Euro per person no show penalty. We opted to dine at Zion but we cancelled Bonito because we thought that penalty to be outrageous. I hope that you can appeal the charge based upon the circumstances. Good luck.
 
Your sister's only recourse is to try to dispute the charge with her credit card company.
 
We have several reservations made for our stay..only place that wanted credit card info was Ti Corrail...guess we better show up!!!
 
We have reservations for lunch for 4 at Eden Rock later this month. This is the disclaimer on my booking. You better believe we will be there. Lol. I booked through the villa concierge last month and no cc was required.

“You can cancel your booking up to 24 hours before the booked time without incurring a penalty. In the event of a no-show or late cancellation you will be charged EUR 800.”
 
We are currently on island and had a fantastic dinner last night at Bonito. In addition to Bonito, we had to guarantee with a CC (all with no-show penalties) at Ti’Corail (another fantastic lunch!), L’isola, Zion, and Sand Bar. I would definitely try to dispute the charge with your credit card company.

If faced with a 600eu penalty, I think I’d drag myself there and get a to-go order! LOL

I, too, would love to know the new resto - just in case it’s on our upcoming list (please tell me it’s not Fouquet’s) lol
 
Made reservations through our agency and only Orega asked for a "voucher" (CC number). Langouste and L'Esprit did not.
 
Papillon Ivre also asks for a cc# and have penalties for no-shows. Interestingly enough, there was no penalty when she canceled on me the day before... twice! ;)
 
This sounds like an abusive charge. Not the right way to treat customers.

Did Bonito clearly inform the customers during the reservation process that a penalty of 150 euros/pp would apply in case of cancelation made under 24 hours? And if yes, how did they do that? (verbally, in writing...). The credit card company will probably ask these details to dispute the transaction.

Personally, I would never accept to give my cc details to book a restaurant. If that's a policy, I just go somewhere else. On the other hand, I always try to show up exactly on time, and cancel as early as possible if needed. It works both ways. I can understand that restaurants have many no-shows, and it's probably frustrating.

Reasonably, I think a cancelation notice of 9 hours is plenty of time.... giving the restaurant the opportunity to rebook the table. 4 people is not 20. They obviously found other customers..... and still charged the cancelation fee. Not good!
 
I don't have a problem with having a fee for no-shows, or giving a credit card number for a reservation - - I have heard first-hand how entitled people make multiple reservations for one night, and pick one last minute and leave the others hanging. The restaurant business has a thin margin on a good day, couple that with the last two years of COVID restrictions,etc. and I feel they all have the right to ask for something up front in case you don't show.

That being said, there is such a thing as common sense, and obviously the circumstances warrant an exception to the rule. It is not like you just didn't show up, you gave them ample time to know that you weren't able to come and why.

Did they talk to Bonito since the charge went through? Perhaps it went through by mistake, or automatically. I would definitely talk to the management at Bonito before I go and do a chargeback through your cc company. Give them a chance to make it right.
 
Speaking of reservations, we did the pop in at Baz Bar last night with no reservation. Nobody there, sat right down on the harbor and had amazing sushi and coconut Thai shrimp soup that was to die for. Their new menu is really good and worth a try.
Bagatelle next door was crowded to the maximum with loud thump thump music and flashing lights...not our cup of tea..
 
Speaking of reservations, we did the pop in at Baz Bar last night with no reservation. Nobody there, sat right down on the harbor and had amazing sushi and coconut Thai shrimp soup that was to die for. Their new menu is really good and worth a try.
Bagatelle next door was crowded to the maximum with loud thump thump music and flashing lights...not our cup of tea..
We had drinks and appetizers at Baz a few weeks ago, and the food was delicious. We regretted having dinner reservations elsewhere that night because the apps were so good.
 
We always have dinner there once a stay to enjoy the view and catch up with Jean Marc ��
 
Yes.. Jean Marc has lots to say about the old days as well as the current days. We all agreed, things they are a changin’
 
I've heard several stories about Bonito and their no-show charging policies, unfortunately all without backup/verification, but consistent.
 
We love Bonito and have always made it our "first night" date since it opened. We did the same this past November, but I have to admit that the new penalty policy created a lot of unnecessary stress. Our flight to SXM got in very late, and there were delays on the SBH side as well. We asked the concierge to call Bonito to tell them we were running late, and were told if we did not arrive within fifteen minutes of our reservation, we would lose our seat and get charged 300E. On top of everything, that was when the road down to Bonito was closed! We made it by one minute, but I was drenched in sweat and my wife had blisters from running up and then down the hill to get there. Food was great, but it really made for a less than desirable evening.
 
Perhaps time has come to initiate a new tradition…one you can look forward to and one you can thoroughly enjoy.
 
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