OpenTable goes beyond reservations, opens private beta for new dining payments service

OpenTable may soon make getting out of a restaurant just as easy as getting in.

After teasing the service back in September, OpenTable last night revealed new details about its “pilot” payment program — a feature which lets users pay for their meals via the app.

Kashyap Deorah, the general management of Payments at OpenTable, says the service is currently only available in 11 restaurants in San Francisco; new restaurants will be added “over the next few weeks.” Eventually, users will be able to request access to the beta, but it appears that a public launch is a long ways away.

Unfortunately for Android users, the private beta is only available on iPhone. Take a look at the checkout screen on the right.

This move is unsurprising for OpenTable, as the company claims to work with 30,000 restaurants and 530 million users for its reservation service. Entry into payments simply opens up new revenue opportunities. That said, the company is also extremely late to the game. It’ll have to compete with startups like New York-based Cover, TabbedOut, and LevelUp — in addition to Square, Dwolla and other payment services. In such a crowded space, gaining traction won’t be easy.

VentureBeat contributor Rocky Agrawal tested out the OpenTable payments service last night, and he came away impressed:

https://twitter.com/rakeshlobster/status/431638690511593472

https://twitter.com/rakeshlobster/status/431643890798448640