How to get a reservation at Friends Only

Friends Only, American in Nob Hill

Findable to book. 53% of the 30-day booking window was open at the last check. SnagRes has recorded 217,998 open time slots at Friends Only across 50,010 calendar checks. Of those openings, 48% were before 6:00 PM and 52% fell in prime time, 7:00 to 8:30 PM.

Holds for
At Friends Only, a table for two stays bookable about 3.4 days once it appears; a table for four, about 3.4 days.
Best odds
8:30 PM is the slot most often still open at Friends Only, since prime dinner times go first.
Source
SnagRes checks Friends Only on Tock continuously. Last checked 7 September 2026.

Good news: Friends Only is usually within reach. About 53% of the next 30 days was open for two when we last looked, so shifting the night or the time is normally all it takes. It books on Tock in Nob Hill, San Francisco.

Booking statistics last measured 2026-09-07. How we measure this.

How hard is it to get a table at Friends Only?

52% of the open slots recorded at Friends Only fall between 7:00 and 8:30 PM, out of 217,998 observed, so prime time genuinely does surface here.

The times we see open run from 5:30 PM to 8:30 PM, and the single slot that opens most often is 8:30 PM.

We have never once seen a Sunday or a Monday or a Tuesday come open, which usually means Friends Only is closed then rather than simply full.

Tock began as a prepaid ticketing platform and still behaves like one. Seats tend to go on sale in blocks at a set moment, often weeks ahead, and a returned seat can reappear without warning when someone cancels a prepaid booking.

Observed booking pattern at Friends Only
MeasureValue
Share of the 30-day window open, party of 253%
Share of the 30-day window open, party of 453%
Open slots falling between 7:00 and 8:30 PM52%
Time that opens most often8:30 PM
Range of times seen open5:30 PM to 8:30 PM
Never observed openSunday, Monday, Tuesday
Booking platformTock
Open time slots observed217,998

Availability figures are measured from our own checks of Friends Only (217,998 open time slots, 50,010 date checks). No official release time has been confirmed for Friends Only yet, so the timing notes here are inferred from when tables have actually appeared.

Which night is easiest to book at Friends Only?

Across 4 nights measured at Friends Only, Saturday holds longest at about 3.8 days. A night that holds longer is a night you can still book after the release has passed; a short one means the table is gone before most people look.

How long a table stays bookable at Friends Only, by night
NightStays bookableTimes observed
Wednesdayabout 3.4 days10
Thursdayabout 3.3 days10
Fridayabout 3.1 days10
Saturdayabout 3.8 days8

What is the best way to book Friends Only?

  1. Check what is open at Friends Only right now. Start from the live calendar on this page rather than from Tock. It shows every date in the 30-day window with its current status, so you can see at a glance whether anything is bookable before you spend time on the platform.
  2. Widen your time to include 8:30 PM. 8:30 PM is the slot that opens most often at Friends Only. The full range we see open runs 5:30 PM to 8:30 PM.
  3. Set an alert instead of refreshing. Tock began as a prepaid ticketing platform and still behaves like one. Seats tend to go on sale in blocks at a set moment, often weeks ahead, and a returned seat can reappear without warning when someone cancels a prepaid booking. Cancellations arrive on no schedule at all, which is why refreshing by hand does not work. Star Friends Only on SnagRes and you get an email the moment a table appears, with a link straight to Tock.

Where can you actually get a table instead of Friends Only?

These are SF restaurants close to Friends Only in cuisine or neighbourhood that were measurably easier to book at the last check. Ranked by how much easier, not by similarity alone, because a list of equally impossible restaurants helps nobody.

Alternatives to Friends Only, ranked by how bookable they actually are
RestaurantWhy it is similarWindow open
Elena'salso American, West Portal100%
Bar Jabronialso American, Lower Haight100%
Rich Tablealso American, Hayes Valley90%
7 Adamsalso American, Presidio Heights87%
Boulevardalso American, Embarcadero83%
The Progressalso American, Fillmore83%

Frequently asked questions about booking Friends Only

How hard is it to get a reservation at Friends Only?
At the last check, 53% of the 30-day booking window had a table open for two at Friends Only. About 52% of open slots land between 7:00 and 8:30 PM. SnagRes checks Tock continuously and emails you when that changes.
What time can you actually get a table at Friends Only?
The open times recorded at Friends Only run from 5:30 PM to 8:30 PM, and 8:30 PM is the slot that comes open most often. These are the times left available, not the restaurant's full service hours.
What is the best party size to book Friends Only?
Two and four book about equally at Friends Only in our data, 53% of the window open for two against 53% for four, so party size is not the lever here. Shifting the night or the seating time moves availability more.
Is Friends Only open on Sunday?
We have never recorded an open table at Friends Only on a Sunday or a Monday or a Tuesday, which normally indicates a closing day rather than a full book.
What time do Friends Only tickets open?
Tock began as a prepaid ticketing platform and still behaves like one. Seats tend to go on sale in blocks at a set moment, often weeks ahead, and a returned seat can reappear without warning when someone cancels a prepaid booking. We have not yet measured a fixed drop time for Friends Only, so we do not claim one. SnagRes watches it continuously instead, which catches cancellations and off-schedule drops alike.
How far ahead does Friends Only release tables?
The furthest-out date we have seen bookable at Friends Only was 30 days ahead, so its window runs roughly that far. New dates land at the far edge and cancellations surface in between, which is why watching beats checking once.
Which booking platform does Friends Only use?
Friends Only takes tickets on Tock. Tock began as a prepaid ticketing platform and still behaves like one. Seats tend to go on sale in blocks at a set moment, often weeks ahead, and a returned seat can reappear without warning when someone cancels a prepaid booking. SnagRes watches Tock for Friends Only continuously and emails you the moment a table opens.
Can you walk in at Friends Only?
SnagRes tracks reservations rather than walk-ins, so we cannot see a live bar or counter count at Friends Only. Many rooms do hold a few seats for walk-ins, often early or at the bar, so it is worth calling ahead. If you would rather lock in a table, star Friends Only and we will email you the moment a reservation opens.
Is using a reservation alert legal?
Yes. SnagRes only notifies you when a table opens; the booking itself is an ordinary reservation you make yourself on Tock, under your own name. It does not resell tables, run bots to hold them, or automate the booking, so it does not cross the lines a resale or auto-booking service does.
Does SnagRes book Friends Only for me?
No. SnagRes tells you the moment a table opens at Friends Only and links you straight to Tock with the date prefilled, then you complete the reservation yourself. It never logs into your account and never books on your behalf, which is what keeps your account in good standing.

More SF restaurants like this