Dining Coupons and Deals

This is a guest post by Melissa from Dining Out Challenge on how you can save on going out to eat so you can still afford to go out to eat.

When I was little, going out to eat was a treat; now, however, it is part of the culture. People are too busy to cook every meal at home, or their schedules require them to be away from home during meal time. Whatever the reason, more and more families are dining at restaurants weekly or more frequently.

Kristin reached her goal of going to Disney by saving money in a variety of ways. The nice thing about the age of the Internet is that you don’t have to give up your way of life to save money. You can employ simple techniques as Kristin writes about to spend your money in a smarter way. When you employ savings techniques, you can live the same lifestyle while saving money for your goals (whether that is going to Disney or another goal).

My family and I treat ourselves to a meal out once a week, but we make it a goal to not spend more than $25 a week (or $100 a month) dining out with our family of 5. (We are only feeding 4 because one is just starting on solids).

Here are the top 20 techniques we utilize:

Deals Directly From the Restaurants

More than ever, restaurants are trying to entice you to patronize them. Here are some of the more popular ways:

1. Join your favorite restaurant’s e-mail list. There are several benefits from joining e-mail lists—you are often given a discount to use within 2 weeks of first joining, the restaurants often e-mail you coupons, you often get a free meal or dessert on your birthday and the restaurants let you know when they have special features on their website such as games, etc., which leads me to my next point.

2. Play restaurants’ online games. Several months ago, Qdoba had an online game asking people to build a better burrito. Their prizes varied from buy one get one free to getting an entire meal free. Likewise, at Halloween, Penn Station Subs had a Hangman game that was simple to play and rewarded players with free food. Many of these games let you play every day until the game’s run is over.

3. Sign up for a restaurant’s rewards card. If you go to Starbuck’s, you can buy a gift card, register it at starbucks.com, and the rewards you receive increase the more drinks you buy. For instance, after the first 5 drinks you buy with your card you can regularly get free drink upgrades such as no charge for soy milk (normally an additional .50 to.60 a drink). Qdoba gives you a free meal after you purchase 10 meals.

4. Like your favorite restaurant on Facebook. Famous Dave’s was running a campaign to get a certain number of followers on Facebook. I liked them on Facebook as did my husband, and we were each rewarded with a free meal. (I would only like them on Facebook when the restaurant is running a specific campaign for some amount off or a free meal.)

5. Complete the survey request on the restaurant receipt. Often the bottom of your restaurant receipt will have a place you can call or go online to complete a survey about your visit. Sometimes you can get a free dessert or appetizer by doing this; other times you will be entered into a pool to win a monetary amount.

6. Check your favorite restaurant’s website. My husband and I were thinking about visiting a local Mexican restaurant, so we found their website and right away we saw a coupon for 10% off.

Deals for Kids’ Meals

Restaurants benefit by making kids brand loyal. One way they do that is by sponsoring kids’ programs. Here are two of our favorite programs:

1. Take advantage of kids’ reading programs. Last summer my son took part in the reading program at our local library. Each week that he met his goal, he earned a prize, often a coupon for a free kids’ meal at a local restaurant. Likewise, his school has a program that rewards kids with a free personal pan pizza at Pizza Hut if the kids read 400 minutes a month.

2. Take advantage of days kids can eat free. I love going to Stir Crazy. At our local Stir Crazy, kids eat free on Tuesdays and Thursdays. If you have a favorite restaurant, it is worth it to find out when kids eat free and go to the restaurant on those days.

Coupon Free Ways To Save:

Beyond coupons, there are plenty of ways restaurants offer coupons. Here are some conventional and unconventional ways to save:

1. Take advantage of daily specials. Many restaurants feature a daily special; the savings on those particular meals can be significant. Always look at or ask for the specials before you order.

2. Ask for the lunch menu if you go early in the evening. Many restaurants end their lunch menu at 4 p.m. If you come in at 4:30 or 5 p.m., you may nicely ask if you can still order off the lunch menu. I have success with this about 50% of the time. The worst thing a server can say is no, and it can save a significant amount of money if they say yes.

3. Visit a restaurant during happy hour. Restaurants such as Applebee’s offer ½ off appetizers during happy hour (typically 3 to 7, M-F). I had a friend who would only order appetizers as his meal to save money. Or, you could order an appetizer and share an entrée to save money.

4. Eat where the college students eat. College students often don’t have much money or time. Rather than cooking, some choose to eat out, usually at restaurants that are not expensive and serve a large portion of food. True, some of these restaurants will not be that tasty, but you can find an unexpected gem this way. When we were in grad school, my husband and I found a delicious Chinese restaurant that had the best food and offered very generous sizes. All meals were under $5. I could get 3 meals out of the one meal I ordered. I wish we still lived close by.

5. Before trying a new restaurant, check out the ratings on Yelp.com. If my husband and I see a Groupon for a restaurant we have never tried before, we often check the reviews on Yelp.com to see what others think of the place. Likewise, we always read the discussion about a particular Groupon. If people rave about the restaurant we may buy several Groupons; if they complain, we pass on the deal and save ourselves money.

6. Ask the reviewers on Yelp.com for a good restaurant recommendation. My husband and I love sushi, but it doesn’t always fit our budget. We went to Yelp and asked for a restaurant that was budget friendly but still had tasty sushi. Several people referred us to a small Japanese store we had never heard of that also has a small eat-in area and serves sushi. Delicious. We will be back again!

Take Advantage of Deal Sites & Other Offers

There seems to be a new deal site popping up every week. Our favorites are Groupon and Restaurant.com.

1. Buy Entertainment books. The Entertainment Book contains many coupons for restaurants in your area, often buy one, get one free. In addition, buy through Ebates and you will get cash back on your Entertainment book purchase. I just bought the 2011 Entertainment Book for $20.00 with free shipping, and I got $3.50 back from Ebates, so my end cost was $16.50. The book will pay for itself in one or two uses, and the coupons in the book are good through November! (You can also find the Entertainment Book even cheaper than this; keep reading Couponing to Disney for periodic sales.)

2. Buy certificates from restaurant.com when they are 80 to 90% off. Instead of paying $10 or $15 for a certificate, you will only be paying $2 or $3. You will then get $10 or $25 off your order, depending on the certificate you buy. Read the fine print carefully. I try to only buy from the restaurants that let me use a $25 certificate on a $35 order. (Some restaurants require a $50 order or won’t let you use the certificate on weekends.)

3. Respond to restaurant.com surveys. After you use a restaurant.com certificate, you will often be sent a survey from the restaurant asking about your visit. Take the time to complete the survey. A few restaurants have rewarded me with a free meal on my next visit just for taking the survey.

4. If you are a college student, look for dining cards. My aunt works at a university, and they have reusable restaurant cards for the students. You buy one card that has perhaps 20 restaurants listed, and you can use the card all year long.

5. Look for deals on Grubhub. Type in your address, and then click on the box that says, “Offers coupons.” Then click on the “Info” tab for the restaurant you choose, and you will see their free offer. Our favorite Thai place offers a free egg roll.

6. Use the coupons in the back of the phone book or on grocery store receipts. Many people don’t look in these places, but you can often find good deals here. Our favorite Chinese restaurant always advertises 20% off on the back of our grocery store’s receipt. We have access to a coupon every week.

While dining out is a luxury, it is a luxury you can still afford while Couponing to Disney if you look for ways to save money. With so many offers and deal sites available, there is no reason to pay full cost when dining out. Enjoy!

Melissa is a mom to three little ones. She documents her family’s eating out adventures and shares current restaurant deals on her blog, Dining Out Challenge. She also has another blog about learning to live a fulfilling life on less at Mom’s Plans, where she shares her quest to feed her family healthy meals on a budget, stock her freezer with delicious, convenient freezer meals, and share her experiences saving money while not sacrificing her family’s standard of living.