Book a table by phone, give your reservation name, move the time, and ask how long the wait is.
A reservation needs a date, time, party size, and name. A waitlist needs a way for the restaurant to call you when a table is available. A reservation uses a booking name; a walk-in queue usually uses the number or name given when joining it. Begin by telling the host whether you are making a new booking, changing an existing one, or asking about a walk-in table.
Move a booking without confusing it with a waitlist
1 You already booked a table for four at seven. You call and ask whether the booking can move to eight.
You say
可以改到八点吗？
kěyǐgǎidàobādiǎnma?
Could we move it to eight?
The reply
八点已经满了，八点半还有位。
bādiǎnyǐjīngmǎnle, bādiǎnbànháiyǒuwèi.
We're fully booked at eight, but there's still a table at eight thirty.
Say your next line, then compare
八点半 means 8:30. 还有位 tells you there is space, not that your original booking has already changed.
Listen for the host's available times, then confirm the date, time, and party size you choose. A host saying 八点半还有位 offers an option. Confirm the change explicitly before treating eight o'clock as your new booking time. Keep the original details in the conversation until the replacement is agreed.
The requested slot is unavailable. Ask which nearby times are available.
请留一个联系电话。
qǐngliúyígeliánxìdiànhuà.
Please leave a contact number.
The host needs a way to contact you. Give only the details needed for the arrangement and make sure they were recorded correctly.
已经帮您改好了。
yǐjīngbāngníngǎihǎole.
I've made the change for you.
This reports completion. Read back the final details if you have not already confirmed them.
Dates, party size, and booking names
我想订一张桌子。
Start a new reservation request. If one already exists, say 我有预订 before discussing changes.
今晚七点，四位。
This contains a date, a time, and the number of diners. 四位 gives the party size. Decide on food portions when ordering.
预订的名字是安娜。
Replace the example with the booking name. Show its written form if the host cannot locate it by pronunciation.
可以改到八点吗？
State the original booking first, then request the new time. An offered alternative still needs agreement.
大概要等多久？
Use for an estimated wait. The answer may be a duration, not a clock time or guaranteed reservation.
Getting the table arrangement confirmed
Give information in the order the host needs it
我想订一张桌子 establishes that you want a table. 今晚七点，四位 then supplies tonight, seven o'clock, and four diners. 位 is the polite counter for people in this exchange. 位 counts the people at the table. Give the date as well as the time when booking for another day. Write the name if it is difficult to spell over the phone.
An available table is an offer to finish arranging
还有位 means there is still a table available. 满了 means full. If the requested time is full but another is available, choose whether the alternative works, then repeat the new time and party size. 可以改到… asks for a change; 改好了 says it has been changed. Read back the date and booking name as well if there is any ambiguity.
A clock time is different from a waiting duration
八点半 is half past eight. 半个小时 is half an hour. 大概要等二十分钟 is an approximate twenty-minute wait, not a reservation for a fixed clock time. 大概 matters because the estimate may change. Ask whether to remain at the entrance and how the host will call you if you need to wait elsewhere.
Arrive with the same booking name
你好，我有预订 introduces an existing reservation. Follow it with 预订的名字是… and the name actually used. For a walk-in queue, say 我刚才排了号 and show the number you received. That tells the host which list to check. If you are late, contact the restaurant to check how long it can hold the table.
Conversations
The original time has no table for a larger party
Changing the headcount may change availability. The host offers a later time, and the customer confirms both details.
A
You我订了七点四位，想改成六位。
wǒdìngleqīdiǎnsìwèi, xiǎnggǎichéngliùwèi.
I booked for four at seven and would like to change to six people.
B
Host七点没有大桌了，八点可以吗？
qīdiǎnméiyǒudàzhuōle, bādiǎnkěyǐma?
There are no large tables at seven. Would eight work?
A
You可以，今晚八点六位，对吗？
kěyǐ, jīnwǎnbādiǎnliùwèi, duìma?
Yes. Tonight at eight for six, right?
B
Host对，名字不变吗？
duì, míngzibúbiànma?
Right. Is the name staying the same?
A
You对，还是安娜。
duì, háishiānnà.
Yes, still Anna.
A walk-in asks where to wait
The exchange establishes a waitlist arrangement without pretending the estimated duration is an exact booking time.
A
You没有预订，两个人，要等吗？
méiyǒuyùdìng, liǎnggerén, yàoděngma?
No reservation, two people. Is there a wait?
B
Host大概二十分钟，先取个号。
dàgàièrshífēnzhōng, xiānqǔgehào.
About twenty minutes. Take a queue number first.
A
You我们在门口等，可以吗？
wǒmenzàiménkǒuděng, kěyǐma?
Can we wait by the entrance?
B
Host可以，到了我叫号。
kěyǐ, dàolewǒjiàohào.
Yes, I'll call the number when it's your turn.
Check the reservation details
Does 还有位 say that a requested change has already been completed?
No. It says a table is available. Agree on the alternative and confirm the final booking details.
How do 八点半 and 半个小时 differ?
The first is 8:30, a clock time. The second is half an hour, a duration.
You took a queue number but made no reservation. Should you tell the host 我有预订？
No. Show the queue number and describe the waiting-list arrangement so the host searches the right record.