# Resy and Eater: Ben Leventhal

- Show: [How I Built This](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this)
- Published: 2025-01-20
- Length: 55m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-01-20-resy-and-eater-ben-leventhal

## Summary

Ben Leventhal, co-founder of Eater and Resy, explains how he pivoted from a snarky restaurant blog to building a $200 million reservation platform. He details the failure of Resy's initial 'surge pricing' model, which clashed with hospitality norms, and the successful pivot to a SaaS reservation widget and table management system. Leventhal also discusses his current venture, Blackbird Labs, which aims to create a coalition loyalty currency for the restaurant industry.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-01-20-resy-and-eater-ben-leventhal#t=0) Introduction: Ben Leventhal and the Resy Story
- [3:53](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-01-20-resy-and-eater-ben-leventhal#t=233) From VH1 to Eater: Building a Snarky Restaurant Blog
- [22:17](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-01-20-resy-and-eater-ben-leventhal#t=1337) The Resy Idea: Surge Pricing and the First Pivot
- [41:04](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-01-20-resy-and-eater-ben-leventhal#t=2464) Why Surge Pricing Failed and the Pivot to SaaS
- [45:18](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-01-20-resy-and-eater-ben-leventhal#t=2718) Scaling Resy: Widgets, Guest Databases, and Airbnb
- [49:49](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-01-20-resy-and-eater-ben-leventhal#t=2989) The American Express Acquisition and Blackbird Labs

## Topics

- [Starting a product company](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/starting-a-company)
- [Validation & product-market fit](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/validation-and-product-market-fit)
- [Growth, exits & acquisitions](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/growth-exits-and-acquisitions)
- [Direct-to-consumer & e-commerce](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/direct-to-consumer)
- [Pricing, margins & unit economics](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/pricing-and-unit-economics)

## Most relevant to

founders before launch, early-stage companies, companies scaling up, large enterprises

## Mentioned

- Eater (product)
- Resy (product)
- Blackbird Labs (product)
- American Express (company)
- OpenTable (product)
- Airbnb (company)
- Gawker (company)
- Curbed (product)
- Vox (company)
- VH1 (company)
- Kitchen Surfing (product)

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- [97: Plateaus](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/thoroughly-considered/2023-04-06-97-plateaus) (Thoroughly Considered)
- [The Recipe For Creating a Culinary Connected Device](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/over-the-air/2021-11-09-the-recipe-for-creating-a-culinary-connected-device) (Over the Air)
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- [Investor Spotlight: Josh Resnick, OpenSky Ventures](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2026-03-28-investor-spotlight-josh-resnick-opensky-ventures) (The Startup CPG Podcast)

## Citing this page

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