Making Reservations
How can I make a reservation at Sailor?
For starters, thank you for your interest in dining at Sailor! All reservations are made online through OpenTable or through a link on our website. We release dinner, brunch, and lunch reservations each day at 11 AM for the same date two weeks in advance.
What if no reservations are available for the dates and times I'm seeking?
We are grateful to have a demand that is greater than our capacity, and we thank you all for your support thus far. We are a small restaurant, and we think our intimate size is part of our charm; however, it does mean we have limited reservations to offer for each service.
We envision Sailor as restaurant where you can either pop in announced or make a reservation. To that aim, we hold half of our seats for walk-ins without reservations on a first-completed, first-seated basis. As a result of this approach, more than half the people who dine with us each night do so without reserving in advance.
Please know whether or not you are able to get a reservation, there is always an opportunity every night to dine with us at Sailor.
How does one go about getting a walk-in seat?
Short answer: just show up! If seats are not available, the Maitre D' will take your name and number and quote a time.
Please note that on weekends and latter half of the week, a queue sometimes forms outside the restaurant just before our 5:00pm opening. When there's a queue, we'll seat completed parties in the order they've arrived, then we'll begin taking names and phone numbers for our second and third seatings. We generally fill in the first set of walk-in seats by 5:30 PM. Our second seating is typically between 6:45 PM and 7:30 PM, and our third seating usually sits between 9:00 PM and 10:00 PM. It’s not an exact science when it comes to walk-in seats, but we'll always do our best to provide an accurate quote and update you if or when anything changes.
We only take names and numbers for walk-in seats in person. You cannot add your name to the list remotely.
As seats become available, we contact the next name on the list in order, allowing 10 - 15 minutes before offering the seats to the next group on the list.
You are welcome to queue early and put your name on the list for the second and third seating, but you still have to do that in person.
Can you tell me more about the walk-in options?
We save seats throughout the entire restaurant for walk-in guests and for party sizes up to 4. The majority of the seats are at the bar and -in fair weather- the outdoor cafe.
Reservation Availability
Every time I look for reservations, there's nothing ever available…
We are a small restaurant, but trust us, we want to take care of you! If you can't find what you’re looking for, we also offer brunch on the weekends and lunch Wednesday to Friday, which tends to be less competitive than the evening services.
How many tables are available for reservations?
At dinner service, we have twelve tables and some bar seating available for reservations each night. Each table has two or three reservations on it per service.
Do you have outside tables and do you take reservations for outside tables?
In fair weather, we do have a beautiful sidewalk cafe, most of the seats are held for walk-ins and the remainder are released for reservation on a same-day basis.
In the event of inclement weather or unexpected rain, we do not have the ability to transfer outside reservations to the inside and therefore, reservations that are made outdoors are exclusively for outdoors.
Tell me more about the Notify list.
The notify list is a great resource for reservations at Sailor! It is a completely automated process managed directly by OpenTable. If you add your name to the notify list, you will become automatically alerted by OpenTable in the event of any cancellations. In our experience, there have been multiple groups each night who were able to secure their spots by using the notify list. If you have some flexibility with your dining destination, add your name as early as possible and keep your eyes out for news from OT that a table has become available.
Do you take reservations for parties of 1?
We do take reservations for parties of one at our bar. Additionally, there's not a service that goes by that doesn't see multiple solo diners walking in. We'd love to feed you - please, come on down!
I didn’t see any tables for 3…
We rarely take reservations for parties of three because of the table configuration. However, we absolutely can and do accommodate parties of three as walk-ins at the bar, on unbooked tables for four, and at (in fair weather) at our outdoor cafe.
We acknowledge the frustration of not being able to make a reservation for three people in advance, but we certainly encourage groups of three to walk-in using the above advice.
What is the largest party size you can offer?
At this time the largest size party we can accommodate at the restaurant is a party of 5 people. We have only one table that we reserve that can accommodate that many people. Depending on the service, it has either two or three seatings.
Changes in party size…
We will do what we can, to assist you in modifying your party size. However, we are often at capacity, which limits our ability to make adjustments.
For instance, if you made a reservation for four people and now you’re only two, we would not be able to offer you the table that you had originally been plotted for as a full group. With so few tables, we are not in a position to deny other parties of four that are waiting to dine with us in order to accommodate a party of two where there are four seats. In such an instance, we'll make every effort to find an alternative to canceling or rebooking your reservation.
If you have a reservation for two and you wish to increase your party size, we run into similar obstacles in our ability to accommodate. If the larger tables are already reserved, we don’t have anything to physically offer you to increase your party size. We don't hold any reservable inventory back, so the best place to check to see if there's space for a larger party is OpenTable.
Changing or Canceling Reservations
What happens if I need to cancel my reservation?
Life happens, and we understand. To avoid cancellation fees, please let us know at least 24 hours in advance of your reservation. A $40 per person charge may be applied for late cancellations or no-shows if we are unable to fill the seats.
Courtesy Window
We can hold your table for up to fifteen minutes if you are running late. If that ends up being the case, please let us know as soon as possible by texting or calling 201-565-0978
Can I change the time of my reservation ?
In most cases, the answer is unfortunately no. Because of our small size, we proscribe specific reservation times to each table throughout the evening. We provide the adequate amount of time for your meal, which varies based upon party size and meal period (i.e., dinner versus lunch or brunch). Although you may be comfortable dining with less time, we may not be able to realize the full meal with reduced parameters. Moreover, we can only feel confident honoring the appointment that follows yours if we have the sufficient amount of time for your experience. As such, it’s difficult for us to accommodate changes to your reservation time without it impacting every other reservation on that table for that service.
I can’t make my reservation, or I booked the wrong day: can I move it to another day?
We're sorry, but reservations are not transferable to another day.
A note regarding confirmations
Reservations that are not confirmed, perhaps unsurprisingly, often do not show up. Moreover, unconfirmed reservations are often linked to scalpers and bots, which we spend many frustrating hours working against.
As a small restaurant, every seat matters to our success as an enterprise. As such, we are not in a position to risk an unconfirmed reservation being scalped or no-showing when there's plenty of well-meaning guests out there ready to dine with us.
To avoid that outcome, we will attempt to confirm your reservation though all available channels as many as three times. If your reservation is not confirmed, we will more than likely release it to guests who are prepared to confirm. So please, mind your inbox and confirm or cancel your reservations in a timely manner.
Dietary Preferences
Are you vegan, gluten free/ celiac, or do you have any allergies or dietary aversions?
We believe in hospitality, and we like feeding people. Chances are, whatever your aversion is, we’ve probably encountered and accommodated it before.
We have a small kitchen but a very thoughtful and professional team. While there are some allergens for which we can not guarantee the absence of cross-contaminants, there are many options on our menu as is or with minor modifications that can allow us to accommodate most dietary restrictions.
We encourage you to look at our menus online, and discuss with your server when you arrive. You may not have as many options to choose from because we do celebrate all kinds of food and gluten here, but we confidently serve similarly situated guests eery day.
We will always do our best to accommodate dietary aversions to ensure you have an enjoyable dining experience. However, please note that accommodating multiple dietary aversions simultaneously (ie Gluten Free & Dairy Free) decreases the available options. We appreciate your understanding and look forward to serving you.
Parties and Events
Can Sailor accommodate large parties?
Due to our small size and table arrangement, the maximum party we can accommodate is five people, which can be booked via OpenTable.
How can I inquire about hosting an event at Sailor?
For inquiries about hosting events, please email us at ahoy@sailor.nyc. We'll be happy to discuss your needs and provide more information on our event packages.
General Information
Can I bring my own wine?
We put a lot of energy into our wine list, and we are really proud of it. That being said, we understand and embrace that sometimes you have something special that you’d like to enjoy with our cooking and hospitality. So, we do allow you to bring a wine from your own personal collection. We charge a corkage fee of $40 per 750ml bottle, with a maximum of one bottle per two guests. The only way you can enjoy a magnum is if you are at a party of four or more, and lastly, it cannot be a bottle of wine that we have on the list.
How can I buy a gift card to Sailor?
Please go to the navigation menu of this website, or the footer, you will see a link of when and how to purchase gift cards. We only sell digital gift cards and not physical cards. Any unused balance can be retained and used on subsequent visits. Please note that the selling or gifting of a gift card does not guarantee a reservation.
What about strollers and high chairs?
We love kids, and our owners have 2 young ones of their own. That being said, we do not have the appropriate space for strollers to fit at our tables in the restaurant. We do welcome kids that are able to sit on their own in a regular dining chair or on an adult's lap.
One additional note on the subject of strollers: we can provide cables and locks and secure places for you to lock your stroller up outside of the restaurant. We have created a designated area just for stroller parking.
Is Sailor wheelchair accessible?
Yes, it is. Sailor is fully wheelchair accessible, and we’re always happy to accommodate. If there’s anything we can do to make your visit more comfortable, just let us know—we’re here to help.
What’s the best way to communicate with the restaurant?
Here are three ways to reach us:
For the most immediate communications regarding existing reservations, please contact us via OpenTable direct messaging. Just click on the link from any text message you've received from OpenTable to engage.
You can reach the Maitre D' via text at 201-565-0978, but please note that we do not monitor this line at all times, so response times will vary.
Our main line of communication is email: ahoy@sailor.nyc. We generally respond to messaged Monday through Friday during business hours.
If you have ever found it frustrating or challenging to get in touch with us, we are genuinely sorry. I assure you, we want to speak with you! We are a small team and we are working around the clock. We'll be with you as soon as we can - promise.