Depending on the popularity of your restaurant of choice, a table can be tough to clinch. Good luck trying to get a reservation at one of the most exclusive restaurants in the U.S. unless you’re famous, well-connected, extremely lucky — or willing to wait months and even years for a table. Even if you’re visiting an establishment that normally has plenty of availability, there are certain popular reservation times that are particularly tough. If you want to have a stress-free celebration, you should always remember to book in advance for the restaurant industry’s biggest day of the year: Mother’s Day.
Mother’s Day, which is celebrated on the second Sunday of May, is notorious to restaurant industry workers as the most lucrative Sunday of the year and consistently one of its most popular for dining out across the board. In 2024, 43% of consumers surveyed by the National Restaurant Association planned to celebrate Mother’s Day at a restaurant (dine-in or takeout). If you’ve ever visited a nice restaurant on Mother’s Day, you might actually be surprised by how relatively low that figure is. But trust us, competing with 43% of the population for a last-minute reservation is still a pain, so to best pamper the maternal figures in your life, secure your reservation as early as possible.
Why Mother’s Day is so busy for restaurants
The reasons for Mother’s Day popularity have a lot to do with the traditions and motivations associated with the holiday. In their survey, the National Restaurant Association found that 56% of people who planned to dine out on Mother’s Day were motivated by a desire to “pamper the mother-figures in their lives.” Other significant motivations included the want to create a special experience with family and friends, avoid home cleanup, and try new cuisines. The idea behind Mother’s Day is to honor the hard work that maternal figures do for their families, and what better way than to let someone else do the work for a change?
Interestingly, though Mother’s Day is commonly associated with brunch — you can practically taste the go-to brunch cocktail aka mimosas just thinking about it — the survey found that the most popular Mother’s Day meal choice for diners was dinner, followed by lunch and then brunch. To encourage the holiday’s dining frenzy, many restaurants also offer a special Mother’s Day menu, discounts, or even free perks, all of which consumers say are likely to help attract them to a particular restaurant.
