Diners get in quick for cheap eats

New Plymouth diners have been quick to take up the chance to eat early - and cheaply.

Online booking site First Table was launched in the city on Thursday, with hundreds signing on during the first 24 hours to take advantage of half-price deals to dine out at 13 top eateries.

First Table, founded by Mat Weir in Queenstown in 2014, offers 50 per cent off meals for two or more people at 250 restaurants across 17 cities in New Zealand - but the catch is that diners must book the first tables of the night.

Weir said he had noticed most eateries around the town offered early bird specials or happy hours, and he thought there was a way to market that successfully online.

Most of the booking times were for 5:30 or 6pm and restaurants were often quick to jump on board to drum up new business, Weir said.

He is confident it will grow to include more than the 13 New Plymouth restaurants who initially signed up, with many businesses choosing to see how well the idea takes before opting in.

Weir said burger joint Prohibition had received ‘‘heaps of bookings’’ on the first day.

When asked what made the site so successful, Weir replied: ‘‘It’s just the fact that the platform works - we don’t charge restaurants anything and what they like is we give them control over it. They choose the nights so they’re not doubling up with events or really busy periods.’’

Part of the site was also posting the ‘‘reviews of the week’’ on their Facebook page, which doubled as another free form of advertising for restaurants, he said.

Emma Puletaha, the marketing director for Sauce, Butler’s Reef hotel and bar in Oakura, Crowded House, Westside Grille, and Stumble Inn, said she was quick to sign up their group of eateries.

More people would be willing to try somewhere new because the cheaper price meant you could experiment, she said.