These two NYC restaurants were named the hardest to get reservations in the world

It is no surprise that booking a table in New York is no joke—our constant Resy alerts confirm this. But Dojo dropped its list of the hardest tables to get and, somehow, only two restaurants are in New York.

According to the restaurant booking website, the waiting times are based on how long customers can be expected to wait for a table to become available, including restaurants that release tables in waves and others having a backlog due to Coronavirus-related closures.

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Over 100 miles north of Manhattan lies the number two spot on the list: Damon Baeherel (76 Co Hwy 45, Earlton). Since 1989, chef Damon Baerehel has run this solo operation out of his own home, foraging and harvesting ingredients from his 12-acre property and farm for his native harvest tasting menu.

“Guests are shown to the table by Damon himself and then experience a five-hour dinner (approximately 20 courses),” reads the Dojo ranking.

According to the website, the restaurant hasn’t taken new reservations in over six years stating, “Due to a large reservation backlog, we had taken an extended break from accepting new reservation requests for our regular days of operation for nearly 6 years (since March 2014) to work through a portion of the waiting list.” 

The number three spot goes to Masalawala & Sons (365 5th Avenue). One of the latest restaurants from the Unapologetic Foods group, Masalawala & Sons is a revived version of the original run by restaurateur Roni Mazumdar and his father, Satyen Mazumdar. While the previous restaurant lasted a decade, the new restaurant explores the homestyle recipes from Mazumdar’s youth. With this latest iteration, Mazumdar now has the restaurant he wished he had all those years ago, telling Resy, “This is the restaurant I wanted to open 10 years ago, but couldn’t.”

Dojo reports, “Masalawala & Sons on Fifth Avenue is known for their incredible Indian food, and their waiting list proves it with over 600 people waiting for a reservation! They do accept some walk-ins, but be prepared that there are only four barstool tables on a weekday at 5pm!”

Since its opening, the restaurant has been booked and busy. Not surprising as we awarded it four stars when it opened in 2021 and listed it on our Best Restaurants of 2022.

While we could easily see a few more restaurants to add to the list, at least we will revel in the fact that it doesn’t take four years to get into Misi, as long as you time your reservation alerts right.

Check out the full list of hard-to-get reservations across the world:

1. Bank Tavern, Bristol, UK: four years
2. Damon Baehrel, Earlton, NY: one year
3. Masalawala & Sons, New York, NY: six months
4. La Mesita de Almanza, Tierra del Fuego, Argentina: six months
5. Mesa 1, Punta de Mita, Mexico: six months
6. Disfrutar, Barcelona, Spain: five months
7. The Fat Duck, Bray, UK: four months
8. Noma, Copenhagen, Denmark: three months
9. The Cove Club, London, UK: three months
10. Brae, Birregurra, Australia: two months