New Website Tracks Restaurant Wait Times Using Webcams
If you suspect something’s not right, you might want to check online.
A new site, DamnLines.com, aims to provide real-time predictions of wait times by using webcams set up in the windows of nearby apartments. The initiative, however, has drawn the ire of some local businesses and discomfort from residents.
The project is the brainchild of Lucas Gordon, a 24-year-old software engineer, who launched it this month. He aims to help people find the best times to visit popular restaurants in New York City.
His website states that they “pay tenants across New York City to install IP cameras outside their rooms to monitor their lines.” While this may sound innovative, the site acknowledges that it’s “not really sustainable yet.”
So far, cameras have been installed outside just four restaurants, all located in Gordon’s own West Village neighborhood.
Among these are Breakfast by Salt’s Cure and John’s of Bleecker Street Pizzeria. The restaurant manager, Joey S., has expressed concerns, calling the system “misleading” due to the lack of consideration for various factors influencing wait times.
According to Joey, the algorithm does not account for whether groups are part of the same party or if some are waiting for take-out. He also mentioned that he was unaware the restaurant’s wait times were being monitored.
Based on data collected over the past month, the website estimates that on a Thursday evening, the wait at John’s could reach nearly 40 minutes around 7 p.m. Joey, however, argued that this estimation is inaccurate.
“The longest waits happen during Christmas week, but the line stretches way down the block instead of just in front of the restaurant,” he explained.
Passersby outside another monitored restaurant, Lindastree Pizzeria, were caught off guard by the surveillance. Some voiced their discontent, feeling that their privacy was compromised.
One customer remarked, “Look at what’s in front of you. You don’t have to use your phone,” while a visiting tech worker from California shared their worries about privacy violations tied to the convenience aspect.
“If there’s a mistake, it could hurt your business—like saying there’s a long wait when there’s none,” he cautioned.
Gordon, who is funding the project independently, refrained from giving further comments, citing his employer’s media policies. He mentioned he had not considered the implications of the site on the businesses being monitored and declined to reveal how much he compensates his neighbors to use their cameras.
According to the site, its approach involves “60-year-old theorems, service rate observers, and real-time people counters” to assist customers. They assert that no surveillance occurs outside of business hours.
The wait time metrics are derived by dividing the number of people in line by the number leaving in what they call a “rolling time window.” They claim this principle applies universally to queuing systems.
The fourth restaurant included in this venture is Salt Hank’s. Despite the controversy, some managers, like Cole Labedeau from L’Industrie, expressed indifference to the cameras.
However, Joey maintained that the calculations used by the site don’t truly reflect the dynamics at his restaurant, insisting that cameras can’t capture every nuance of their operations.
