Yeah that's not actually true. Celebrities call and give their real names because being famous means there's always a table available even if when there isn't one for regular people. Source: In a past life I worked at a destination restaurant in the front of the house.

Do non-celebrities try to game this?

Yes I know a guy who looks like a C-list celebrity, he has called ahead and gets a table with bottle service. A little bit of research would show the real celebrity is in another city at the moment but they never do that.

I don't recall that ever happening. I suppose you could although I think most people would be too embarrassed to do so. Seems like a Seinfeld kind of a situation(John Voight's car.)

> Use an alias.

Yes, this is what I was calling out in my original comment. We need to remember to treat physical establishments as attackers.