Table for 2 at Tatiana? There Used to Be a Bot for That.

Good morning. It’s Friday. Today we’ll look at a new state law that targets apps that make restaurant reservations available — for a price. We’ll also get details on entries in the notebook Luigi Mangione was carrying when he was apprehended in Pennsylvania.

Credit…Nico Schinco for The New York Times

Before the waiter brings the check, some customers in pricey Manhattan restaurants have paid for the privilege of being there. They booked the table through third-party services that make reservations available — for a price.

A table for two at Carbone tonight could be had for $255, according to one such service on Thursday.

Such services connect people who are willing to pay with people who have snagged hard-to-get reservations. But services that use bots are the targets of a bill signed into law by Gov. Kathy Hochul, who said that it would clamp down on “the predatory black market for restaurant reservations.”

Supporters of the law say that apps snatch up prime-time slots as soon as they appear on reservation platforms like Resy, which specifies that users cannot sell or trade reservations they have made through its site. Hochul, in a memo explaining her decision to sign the bill, said that apps that grab “the most in-demand reservations are getting an unfair advantage over both diners and restaurants.” She said that she supported the effort “to level the playing field.”