For the 58 percent of diners that don’t decide where to eat until after climbing in the car, Yelp has a new tool for you. On Friday, November 2, Yelp Reservations launched in the Buick Marketplace, bringing restaurant searches and reservations to the dashboard. The app will also be launching to the GM Marketplace.
Available in 2017 and newer vehicles (some trim options excluded), the Yelp reservations app is now available inside the Buick Marketplace. The app allows for on-the-go reservations, along with accessing a restaurant’s details, rating, and location. Yelp Reservation searches using up to a 25-mile radius from the vehicle’s location to reserve a table for up to ten people.
“Getting a table at an amazing restaurant should be easy, and we’re excited to be making that possible by bringing Yelp Reservations directly into vehicles across the country,” Natarajan Subbiah, vice president of Products, Marketplaces at Yelp, said in a press release. “By embedding the Yelp Reservations booking experience into Buick vehicles, drivers have a fun, easy way to discover and secure a table at the best restaurants in their area.”
GM Marketplace is powered by car software company Xevo. In a recent survey, Xevo found that more than half (58 percent) didn’t decide where to eat until after getting in the car. In that same survey, 68 percent that making a reservation from inside the vehicle would be a helpful tool.
“Whether drivers want to make a dinner reservation on the go, or get recommendations for restaurants in a new city, the newly added Yelp Reservations brings simple convenience to the car,” said Sam Russell, director of Buick Marketing. “Making new features like this available for vehicles already on the road enhances our vehicles with unexpected new benefits for our customers.”
The Yelp Reservations app joins other tools inside the Buick Marketplace, with apps that range from ordering food to paying for gas and finding service offers at dealerships. The Yelp Reservation app launched on Friday after beta testing, where a majority of drivers searched inside the American/burgers category, followed by Asian/vegetarian and Mexican categories. Buick Marketplace is available in 2017 and newer vehicles, excluding some trim options.
