Everyone seems mad at ReservationHop. I mean, it’s not quite the hottest topic on Twitter, but among the folks who have heard about it, the idea seems to have unleashed a shitstorm of creativity.

The idea, basically, is that ReservationHop will help users get a table at in-demand restaurants. How? The company will make reservations in advance, and then allow users to claim those reservations up until four hours ahead of time, for a price. (The startup says pricing starts at $5.)

To be clear, there have been some positive responses, and some neutral ones, but I think it’s fair to say that most of the tweets, particularly the most passionate ones, have been intensely negative. And beyond Twitter, Josh Ong at The Next Web described the idea as “sleazy” and as “tech enabled scalping.”

Others have noted that this could make it even harder for folks who don’t want to use ReservationHop to get a reservation, and have compared it to apps that basically allow users to sell street parking. At least ReservationHop isn’t dealing with public property, so isn’t likely to run into the same legal problems as those parking apps.

Despite the slams, ReservationHop founder Brian Mayer defended the concept itself. He pointed to other startups like Zurvu and Killer Rezzy that do something similar and to restaurants like Alinea that offer pre-paid tickets. He also said that he’s open to working directly with restaurants (which should help avoid one of the more awkward things about the current system — the fact that you have to claim a reservation that’s under a different name).

“There are a lot of claims that we are selling something that’s ‘free,’ Mayer added. “But if you think about it, there’s nothing free about restaurant seating. There’s a limited number of tables in high demand and there are very long wait times for walk-ins.”

Personally, I found the response to ReservationHop as interesting, or at least as entertaining, as the idea itself. Something about it must have struck a nerve of the people in the Bay Area. It will be interesting to see if and when the concept will be implemented in Europe. ReservationHop lists only US cities such as Boston, NYC or Seattle on their website as their next targets. More to come…