TheFork, a restaurant booking app, warns of the dangers of not planning ahead

Finding the right restaurant is daunting, but TheFork makes online reservations that much easier. 

The European app partnered with Droga5 London to produce a comical new commercial highlighting the platform’s benefits, such as “unique filters, intuitive booking system, trusted reviews and discounts on restaurants.” 

The commercial starts with a man narrating, “Sure, you could book a restaurant without using TheFork ...” as we see a man and his date trying to order lunch but annoyed by the piercing noise of kids running around the place.

The narrator explains, in subsequent vignettes, that we do practically nothing without preparing for it—like checking the weather before skiing, booking our next hotel, buying a house. So why not plan for your restaurant reservations? 

When you book with TheFork, the narrator claims, “you leave nothing to chance,” as the scene transitions to the same man and woman sitting and enjoying dinner in a beautiful restaurant.

The campaign also includes outdoor and digital executions.

“Every meal takes prep, even those eaten out,” Shelley Smoler, chief creative officer at Droga5 London, said in a statement. “With no prep, it’s like leaving things to chance and we’ve all experienced the unlucky outcome of doing something we haven’t prepared for properly.” 

Smoler said the team had fun imagining the downsides of living life without planning, and even had to cut several scenarios because of health and safety.

The commercial was directed by Frank Atlantic, who has also directed commercials for Captain Morgan Fiverr, Audible and other major brands.