How Should a Restaurant Price a Buyout?
A buyout quote is easy to get wrong. A minimum that is too low gives away a night the dining room would have filled, and a contract with gaps leads to arguments during and after the event. This guide covers how to set the minimum, how to change it by day and season, how to add fees, and how to write the contract.
How do you set a buyout minimum?
Build the number in three steps: start from a normal night’s sales, weigh what the night costs you in regulars, then check it against the market.
Start from a normal night’s sales for that daypart
OpenTable recommends setting minimum spends based on typical revenue for that time of day, factoring in staffing costs, seasonality, and demand. Take a Friday with 50 covers at a $100 average check. That is $5,000 on a normal night, so $5,000 is your starting minimum before staffing.
Count the regulars a busy night turns away
A buyout on a busy night costs more than the covers you give up. Regulars who can’t get a table may book somewhere else next time. Before you block a night, compare the minimum against a normal night’s sales plus that risk.
Slow nights clear the bar easily. Busy Fridays and holidays may not, so price them higher or offer a different night.
Check your number against the market
Most buyouts carry a minimum between $1,500 and $10,000, according to DiningRated’s June 2026 guide. Its ranges climb with group size:
| Guests | Typical minimum |
|---|---|
| 20 | $1,500 to $3,500 |
| 40 | $3,000 to $7,000 |
| 60 | $5,000 to $12,000 |
| 80 | $7,000 to $16,000 |
If your number lands far outside the range for your headcount, check your math before you quote it.
High-end rooms can sit well above it. Huso, a one-Michelin-star restaurant in New York, starts a full restaurant buyout at a $25,000 minimum spend. Its main dining room seats up to 28 guests for a dinner.
How should the minimum change by day and season?
The same room is worth a different amount on a Tuesday in February than on a Saturday in December. Your minimum should follow that.
Charge more for nights and seasons you’d fill anyway
Bouchon in Santa Barbara asks $9,000 Sunday to Thursday and $12,500 on Fridays, Saturdays and holidays. That is 39% more for the same room, because those are the nights the dining room is already full. Raise minimums the same way for holiday party season and other weeks you sell out. Scout in Decatur, Georgia draws the same line: its full buyouts require a $12,000 minimum Friday through Sunday and $5,000 Monday through Thursday.
Lower the minimum to fill slow nights
A buyout on a quiet Monday is money you weren’t going to make. Event software like Tripleseat lets venues set minimums that change by day, time and room, and some venues lower the minimum to sell an off night. If you’re not sure there’s demand, start with rentals before or after your peak service instead of a full evening.
How much do service charge and tax add to a buyout?
Bouchon hosts buyouts of up to 60 guests. On its $9,000 weeknight minimum it adds a 20% service charge before tax and 8.75% California tax. The service charge alone adds $1,800. Quote both on top of your minimum spend or room fee, and say whether tax applies to the service charge and whether the service charge goes to staff.
Other restaurants publish different mixes. Scout charges a minimum 20% gratuity on every event, with taxes and fees separate. Huso adds 8.875% tax and 25% for gratuity and administrative fees to its minimum.
Should you publish your buyout minimums?
Yes, if you run one restaurant. Put your capacity, minimums by day, service charge, deposit terms and cancellation terms on your private events page. That saves your team time on planners whose budget never fit. Bouchon charges no room fee, so its minimum does that job. Pick one model and make it easy to understand.
If you run several event spaces, publish a starting range and ask for the date and headcount by inquiry. That lets your events team or software place the lead in whichever room fits best.
What should the buyout contract say?
A buyout contract needs four parts: a deposit to hold the date, a final headcount deadline with a rule for when the minimum isn’t met, the menu and bar, and an end time. Clear terms give you something to point to when a dispute starts.
Take a deposit that holds the date
Bouchon takes a $1,000 non-refundable deposit to reserve the date, then $1,500 more 30 days before the event. That is $2,500 in hand against a $9,000 minimum. Say whether deposits count toward the minimum, when the balance is due, and which deposits come back if the host cancels, and until when.
Set a final headcount date and a rule for when the group spends less
Pick the date the final count is due and decide whether the minimum drops if the count does. Then write down that the host pays any gap. If the group spends $4,200 against a $5,000 minimum, the host owes the other $800.
Write the menu, bar and end time into the BEO
A set menu, like Bouchon’s $95 per person dinner, makes the math simple. The bar format matters too, since an open bar reaches the minimum faster than a bar billed by consumption. Fix the end time as well. DiningRated puts a typical dinner buyout at two to four hours. Put all of it in the BEO (banquet event order) so the kitchen, the floor and the host work from the same plan.
How do you sell more buyouts once they’re priced?
Assume the planner is writing to several restaurants at once, so your first reply should carry a date, a room and a price. If your minimums are already set by day, you can quote the number instead of promising to follow up.
Keep the event system and reservation book in sync
Double bookings happen when you confirm an event in your event system but your reservation book still sells tables for that night. Then you either cancel public reservations or, after a cancelled event, leave the room empty. OpenTable and SevenRooms both document a built-in sync with Tripleseat. If your reservation platform has no built-in sync, ask whether a connector can hold the tables for confirmed events.
Invite past hosts and big parties before the busy season
The person who booked your last birthday dinner may book the next one if you ask, and so may guests who often come in big groups. A guest CRM like Loyalist can pull every past host and every party of 8 or more into one list from your reservation history.
Restaurant buyout pricing FAQ
How much should a restaurant charge for a buyout?
Start with a normal night’s sales for that daypart, add staffing, then adjust for the day and season. Most buyout minimums land between $1,500 and $10,000, depending on headcount.
Should you charge a room fee or a minimum spend?
Either works, but pick one and publish it. Many restaurants, like Bouchon, skip the room fee and let the food and beverage minimum do that job.
What if the group spends less than the minimum?
The host pays the difference. Write that into the contract, along with whether service charge and tax apply to the minimum or to the actual spend.
Should you lower the minimum for a smaller group?
Only if the final count drops before your deadline. Set that rule in the contract so it isn’t a negotiation the week of the event.
How far ahead do guests book buyouts?
Private dining can book weeks ahead around busy seasons. Have your holiday minimums set by late summer, so you can quote them the day the first inquiry arrives.
What is the difference between a buyout and a private dining room?
A buyout takes the whole restaurant, and no other guests are seated. A private dining room takes one space while the restaurant stays open, so its minimum is often lower.
Sources
- OpenTable, How private dining can work for any restaurant, checked October 19, 2026.
- DiningRated, Catering vs. Restaurant Buyout, June 13, 2026.
- Tripleseat, Embrace the Power of Dynamic Minimums for Events, March 27, 2024.
- Bouchon Santa Barbara, Restaurant Buyout, published pricing and deposits.
- Scout, Private Dining FAQ, checked October 22, 2026.
- Huso, Private Dining brochure (PDF), checked October 22, 2026.
If your hospitality group is looking to supercharge your data, we’d love to chat.