Two platforms handle most online restaurant reservations in Korea: CatchTable (캐치테이블) and Naver Reservation (네이버 예약). Both accept deposits at many popular restaurants, and as of December 18, 2025, the Fair Trade Commission (공정거래위원회) caps how much a restaurant can keep when you cancel late or do not show.
The three booking routes in Korea
Most Korean restaurants fall into one of three booking situations.
CatchTable is worth checking for fine dining and omakase. Restaurants list their own available slots; you pay a deposit and the booking confirms at the moment of payment.
Naver Reservation is worth checking first for an ordinary neighbourhood place. You find it by searching a restaurant's name on Naver rather than going to a separate app. If the restaurant uses the system, a booking button appears in the search result.
Phone only. Some restaurants, particularly smaller neighborhood places, do not list on either platform. A phone call is the only way to book.
This guide covers how each route works, what signing up demands of a foreign resident, and what the Fair Trade Commission's updated consumer protection rules say about deposits and cancellations.
CatchTable: how it works
CatchTable is operated by Wad (주식회사 와드). CatchTable connects you with restaurants but is not the seller. Each restaurant sets its own deposit amount, cancellation policy, and no-show fee.
Signing up
The live CatchTable sign-up screen currently shows four login options:
- Sign in with Kakao (카카오로 시작)
- Sign in with Naver (네이버로 시작)
- Sign in with Apple (Apple로 시작)
- Sign in with phone number (휴대폰 번호로 시작)
The Kakao option signs you in with a Kakao account, and the phone option verifies a phone number. The Naver path routes through a Naver account. The Apple option signs you in with an existing Apple Account. Which path works for you depends on what you already have.
CatchTable also has a section aimed at foreign users. Open the app and check what sign-up options appear on your screen.
You may be asked to complete an identity check through a third-party service at sign-up.
How a booking works
When you book through CatchTable, you enter the information the restaurant requires, complete any required payment, and the booking confirms at that point. Whether a deposit is required depends on the restaurant. Some restaurants list without a deposit; others require one.
Waiting service
For restaurants without advance reservations, CatchTable offers a waiting service (대기 서비스). The platform shows available wait times and passes your waiting request to the restaurant.
Naver Reservation: the search-and-book route
Naver Reservation (네이버 예약) is built into Naver search. The booking button appears inside search results when a restaurant has registered on the system. If the restaurant has not registered, no button appears and booking through Naver is not possible.
How to book
- Log into Naver.
- Search the restaurant's name, or search a keyword (for example, "Gangnam restaurant" or "Mapo barbecue").
- If the restaurant uses Naver Reservation, a reservation or order button appears in the search result. Tap it to book.
If the restaurant uses Naver Pay (Npay), payment happens at the same time as booking. If not, only the booking goes through Naver, and you must contact the restaurant separately to arrange payment.
Pending is not confirmed
A booking can sit in a "예약 확인중" (reservation pending) state after you submit it. This is not a confirmed reservation. Naver's own guidance states that the restaurant can turn you away if you show up while still in pending status. Wait for the confirmation before you go.
Real-name verification for foreign residents
Naver requires an identity-verified account to make a reservation. Naver's reservation help describes the verification requirement using domestic-citizen examples (내국인 기준).
Foreign residents have a documented route. Naver's member help center describes passport verification (여권인증) for users who cannot complete Korean mobile-phone verification. The process works inside the Naver app: photograph your passport and pass a face-match check. Accepted passports must be issued outside Korea, be unexpired, not already be linked to another Naver account, and carry a name and date of birth matching what you entered when you created the Naver account. For users who cannot complete in-app passport verification either, Naver's help center also describes a fallback: submit identity documents directly to Naver's customer center.
If your Naver account is already verified, the reservation flow works without any extra steps.
Cancelling a Naver reservation
Cancellations happen inside MY플레이스 (My Place) in the Naver app or website. Open your upcoming reservations, select the booking, and tap "예약취소" (cancel reservation). The screen shows the cancellation fee and refund amount that applies before you confirm. Once you confirm, the cancellation is immediate and cannot be undone.
The cancellation fee shown is set by the individual restaurant's policy, not by Naver. Check the policy in your reservation details before you confirm the cancellation.
Phone-only restaurants
Each platform carries only restaurants that have chosen to list. If the restaurant you want is not on CatchTable or Naver, you will need to book another way.
If a restaurant appears on neither platform, expect to book by phone, and expect the call to be in Korean. If you are not comfortable calling in Korean, ask a Korean-speaking friend or colleague to call for you. Some restaurants also accept direct messages through their Naver Place page or social media accounts.
For help finding and assessing a restaurant before you try to book, see the guide to finding good restaurants in Korea. For the taxonomy of restaurant types including omakase (오마카세) and fine dining (파인다이닝), see the Korean restaurant types guide.
Deposits: how they work and who sets them
A reservation deposit (예약금 or 예약보증금) is the amount a restaurant collects upfront to hold your booking. It goes toward your total bill when you arrive. If you cancel late or do not show, the restaurant keeps part or all of it under its cancellation policy.
On CatchTable, each restaurant sets its own deposit and refund policy. Naver Reservation follows the same structure: the cancellation fee you see at cancellation time reflects the individual restaurant's own rules, not Naver's.
What the restaurant cannot exceed is set by the Fair Trade Commission.
What the Fair Trade Commission rules say about no-show fees
The Fair Trade Commission publishes the Consumer Dispute Resolution Criteria (소비자분쟁해결기준) under Article 16 of the Framework Act on Consumers (소비자기본법). The FTC itself describes these criteria as a non-binding mediation and recommendation standard. Restaurants can post policies that differ from it. In practice, most Korean businesses build their own cancellation rules around it, and a dispute mediator applies it as the reference standard.
The criteria were amended and took effect on December 18, 2025 (as of December 2025; verify at ftc.go.kr if the rules have been updated further). The amendment changed restaurant deposit and no-show rules significantly.
The two restaurant categories
Before December 2025, a flat 10% cap applied to all restaurants. The amendment created two categories.
| Restaurant type | Definition | Deposit and no-show fee cap |
|---|---|---|
| General restaurant (일반음식점) | All restaurants not classified as reservation-based | Up to 20% of the total bill |
| Reservation-based restaurant (예약기반 음식점) | Restaurants that prepare customer-specific ingredients per booking, such as omakase or fine dining, where a cancellation forces them to discard those ingredients with little time to replace the booking | Up to 40% of the total bill |
The higher 40% cap comes with a mandatory condition: the restaurant must disclose, in writing, by text message, or by email, that it is a reservation-based restaurant and what its cancellation penalties are. A restaurant that does not make this disclosure in advance is treated as a general restaurant with the 20% cap, even if it otherwise qualifies as reservation-based.
Group orders (a large advance order, for example) and bookings for a specific private room inside an otherwise general restaurant can also fall under the reservation-based cap. But the restaurant must define the threshold for this (a headcount for group orders, the room name for a private space) and disclose it to the customer in advance. Without that disclosure, the general restaurant cap applies.
If the deposit is larger than the penalty
If the restaurant collected a deposit larger than the penalty the FTC criteria allow, the restaurant must refund the difference to the customer.
The cancellation refund schedule (effective December 18, 2025)
The FTC criteria set specific refund tiers based on how far in advance you cancel. Before the December 2025 amendment, the single rule for all restaurants was: cancel at least 1 hour before for a full refund; cancel less than 1 hour before or no-show and you forfeit the entire deposit.
The amendment added a middle tier for reservation-based restaurants and expanded the full-refund window.
General restaurant (일반음식점):
| When you cancel | Deposit refund |
|---|---|
| 1 hour or more before reservation time | Full deposit returned |
| Less than 1 hour before reservation time | 25% of the deposit returned |
| No-show (예약부도) | No refund |
Reservation-based restaurant (예약기반 음식점):
| When you cancel | Deposit refund |
|---|---|
| 24 hours or more before reservation time | Full deposit returned |
| Between 1 hour and 24 hours before reservation time | 50% of the deposit returned |
| Less than 1 hour before reservation time | 25% of the deposit returned |
| No-show (예약부도) | No refund |
These are the FTC mediation reference tiers. The restaurant's own posted policy is what you agreed to when you booked. If the posted policy matches or is more favorable than the FTC standard, it applies directly. If a dispute arises, the mediator uses the FTC criteria as the benchmark.
What to check before you book
These four points avoid the most common deposit problems.
1. What category does the restaurant claim? If the booking confirmation or the restaurant's website describes it as omakase, fine dining, or otherwise reservation-based, the 40% cap and the 24-hour full-refund window apply. Look for a written disclosure of the category and the penalty terms.
2. What is the deposit amount? The deposit cannot exceed 20% or 40% of your anticipated total bill. A deposit that seems very large relative to what you expect to spend is a reason to read the full cancellation policy before you pay.
3. What are the refund tiers? Read the restaurant's cancellation policy before you confirm the booking. That policy is what controls your refund if something changes.
4. Is your Naver reservation confirmed or still pending? Do not go to the restaurant while the status reads "예약 확인중." Wait for the confirmed status.
For dining behavior once you arrive, the Korean etiquette guide covers what to expect at the table.
Frequently asked questions
Can I sign up for CatchTable without a Korean phone number?
The live CatchTable sign-up screen shows four options: Kakao (카카오로 시작), Naver (네이버로 시작), Apple (Apple로 시작), and phone number (휴대폰 번호로 시작). The Kakao option signs you in with a Kakao account, and the phone option verifies a phone number. The Naver path routes through a Naver account. The Apple option signs you in with an existing Apple Account. CatchTable also has a section aimed at foreign users. Open the app and check what sign-up options appear on your screen.
Can I use Naver Reservation without a Korean phone number?
Yes. Naver documents passport verification for foreign users who cannot complete Korean mobile-phone verification. The process works inside the Naver app: photograph your passport and pass a face-match check. Accepted passports must be issued outside Korea, be unexpired, not already be linked to another Naver account, and carry a name and date of birth matching what you entered when you created the Naver account. If you cannot complete in-app passport verification, Naver's help center also describes a fallback: submit identity documents directly to Naver's customer center.
How much can a Korean restaurant charge as a no-show fee?
Under the Fair Trade Commission's Consumer Dispute Resolution Criteria, effective December 18, 2025, the maximum no-show fee is 20% of the total bill for a general restaurant and 40% for a reservation-based restaurant such as omakase or fine dining. The higher 40% cap applies only if the restaurant disclosed its category and penalty terms to you before you booked. A restaurant that does not make this disclosure defaults to the 20% cap. Before the December 2025 amendment, the cap was 10% for all restaurants.
What refund do I get if I cancel a reservation?
It depends on the restaurant type and how far in advance you cancel. For a general restaurant: cancel at least 1 hour before your reservation time and you get a full refund; cancel less than 1 hour before and you receive 25% of your deposit back. For a reservation-based restaurant (omakase, fine dining): cancel at least 24 hours before for a full refund; cancel between 24 hours and 1 hour before and you receive 50% back; cancel less than 1 hour before and you receive 25% back. A no-show in either category means no refund. These tiers took effect December 18, 2025.
What is Naver Reservation and how is it different from CatchTable?
Naver Reservation (네이버 예약) is built into Naver search rather than a separate app. Search the restaurant on Naver, and a booking button appears if the restaurant is registered. CatchTable (캐치테이블) is a dedicated reservation app focused on fine dining and popular restaurants. Each platform carries only restaurants that have opted in, so the selection on each differs.
What does "reservation pending" mean on Naver, and is my booking confirmed?
A booking in "예약 확인중" (reservation pending) status has been submitted but not confirmed by the restaurant. This is not a confirmed reservation. Naver's own guidance states that the restaurant can turn you away if you arrive while the booking is still pending. Wait for the confirmation message before you go.
Are the Fair Trade Commission's no-show fee rules legally enforceable?
The Consumer Dispute Resolution Criteria is a non-binding mediation and recommendation standard, not a directly enforceable law. A restaurant's own posted cancellation policy governs your specific booking. If you file a consumer dispute, the mediator applies the FTC criteria as the reference standard. A restaurant that posts a policy exceeding the FTC caps can enforce that policy in the moment; the FTC standard is your tool in a formal dispute process, not a rule you can cite on the spot to refuse a charge.
What should I do if the restaurant I want is not on CatchTable or Naver?
Call the restaurant. If a restaurant appears on neither platform, expect to book by phone, and expect the call to be in Korean. If you are not comfortable in Korean, ask a Korean-speaking friend or colleague to call for you. Some restaurants also accept direct messages via their Naver Place or Instagram pages; check whether a message option is available before calling.
If the restaurant charged me more deposit than the FTC rules allow, can I get the excess back?
Under the FTC's Consumer Dispute Resolution Criteria, the deposit cannot exceed 20% or 40% of the total bill depending on the restaurant type. If the penalty after cancellation or no-show is less than the deposit the restaurant collected, the restaurant must refund the difference. If you cannot resolve this directly with the restaurant, you can raise the issue through the Korea Consumer Agency (한국소비자원, kca.go.kr).