Not too excited about the rash of paid table reservation services cropping up? Well, now you have a pair of WSJ reporters to thank for another cheapo option for the junior bankers out there not quite ready to BBall. Instead of just responding to inconvenience by throwing cash at it, as most NYCers tend to do, these two ladies took a bit of elbow grease, dug their heels in, put their noses to the grindstone, and actually collected the cell phone numbers and email addresses of the bouncers of the restaurant world.

So what works? The surprising thing is that explanations seem to be one real way to secure a table. Ben Chekroun, maitre d’ of Le Bernadin, suggests that supplicants should call him to “explain their case.” Same goes for Le Cirque. Who to call and what to say? Be curious to find out what works, but the numbers are all here.

Then there’s also the cancellation vulture strategy. That depends on luck as well as calling at the right time. For Nobu London, that’s between 5pm and 7pm, whereas the best time for Nobu Malibu is in the morning.

The other strategy that probably won’t work for 99% of you is to actually book tables right when they open, typically a month in advance. Gramercy Tavern opens its reservation window 28 days before the day you want on Opentable, at 9am on weekdays and 9:30am on weekends.

And if all that doesn’t work? No sweat. Hell, Even P. Diddy gets turned down.

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