I will probably get flamed for saying this, but I think the problem you are experiencing with the last minute cancellations (or even worse, the no-shows) stems from the narcissism that seems to be a feature of the typical porteño personality. Or more precisely, the porteña personality. It is not “politically correct” to do so, but if I were you I would charge a non-refundable deposit before accepting reservations from porteñas or from concierges at fancy hotels (the latter because they tend to book reservations at several restaurants, then let the hotel guest choose at the last minute).

I don’t think deposits would be necessary for most other guests. I would bet that ex-pats and tourists who book on their own at least have a sense of what last-minute cancellations or no-shows must do to a small restaurant like yours (assuming they have looked at the website and realize what sort of a restaurant it is).

Dining at Casa Saltshaker is similar to accepting an invitation to a small dinner party. Not bothering to show up at a dinner party, after the host has made all the arrangements and the other guests are expecting you, would appallingly rude. Most ex-pats and tourists who book at Casa Saltshaker probably recognize that, and would at the very least feel ashamed or guilty if they canceled at the last minute for no good reason, or if they just failed to show up. But this is a culture “sin vergüenza” — shame just isn’t part of the average porteño’s emotional repertoire!

Here’s my recommendation: insist on a 30-peso deposit made to your PayPal account, non-refundable if cancellation occurs within 24 hours before the scheduled dinner. You will hear some bitching, but that’s to be expected. Probably if the same well-heeled ladies were no-shows for appointments with their cosmetic surgeon, they would still have to pay for the appointments, so a non-refundable deposit is probably not an entirely foreign concept to most upper-class porteñas.

Paz