Source: The Wall Street Journal (paywall)
American Express, Chase, and Citi are using their stakes in OpenTable and Resy to reserve prime dining slots for premium cardholders, creating a two-tier reservation system where card tier determines table quality and timing. Restaurants now manage competing claims from financial services firms and must either fragment their inventory or risk losing high-margin card-spending customers. The shift inverts the traditional hierarchy: cardholders shop for restaurants based on card perks rather than cuisine, and restaurants no longer control access to their own tables.