Foodie on a budget? Four ways to maximize restaurant discounts.
My wife and I love to go out and try new and exciting restaurants. It's our way of聽enjoying some quality time together, and over the last five years there have been so many amazing restaurants opening up here in Denver. Unfortunately,聽since聽our daughter was born a couple of years ago, our nights out don't come quite as frequently as we would like, so when we do get the chance to go out we do all聽we can to cut down our bill.
聽Below are聽are four different ways that we try and maximize discounts and rewards to save money.
1. 聽Booking聽reservations
When I look into booking a reservation for a night out, the first place I go is to聽. 聽They have a huge selection of some of the best restaurants all across the country.聽The best part is that they offer a reward for each completed reservation. 聽The standard reward is 100 points, however they occasionally will offer 1,000 points for certain restaurants. 聽Once you accumulate 2,000 points you can cash them out for a $20 dining check that can be used at any restaurant on OpenTable.
My wife and I have a restaurant that we love eating at and it's almost never booked, but even if we make a last minute decision to go, I will still book a reservation so that I can earn the points.
2. 聽Using a coupon
My wife hates using coupons,聽but if I can save a few dollars here and there then I am all about them. 聽If we are going to be going to dinner and don't have a particular restaurant in mind, I check out聽听补苍诲听. 聽They both feature a bunch of restaurants and you can usually save 50 percent off your meal.
聽is another great place to go and purchase discounted restaurant certificates. 聽I find a lot of the restaurants offer $25 worth of food for just $10; some even go higher then that. 聽Just make聽sure you read the fine print, because some restaurants require your bill to be a certain amount, which might not make sense for your family. 聽Before you purchase from Restaurants.com check and see if there is a coupon code available because a lot of times there will be.
3. 聽Connect your credit card to a dining program
Most airline and hotel loyalty programs having dining programs. 聽All you need to do is sign up and sync your credit or debit card to your account. 聽Every time you eat at a participating restaurant you will earn bonus loyalty points or miles.
Right now聽听补苍诲听聽are offering 2,000 bonus miles when you sign up for their dining program and make a visit to a participating restaurant within 30 days. 聽聽is a little more lucrative because they will give you 2,500 miles after your first dining trip.
Both American Airlines and US Airways offers three points per $1 spent and Delta offers up to five points per $1 spent.
4. Credit card rewards
If you don't use your credit card when you go out to eat then you really need to start. 聽There are quite a few cards that offer bonus rewards when you dine at restaurants. 聽It's a great way to rack up your rewards even faster. 聽Here is a list of some of my favorite credit cards that offer bonus dining points.
- 聽- You will earn 2x points on travel and dining. 聽Every first Friday of the month you can earn 3x at restaurants.
- IHG Rewards Card聽- You will earn 2x points on purchases at gas stations, restaurants and grocery stores.
- US Bank Flex Perks Rewards Card聽- 聽With this US Bank card you will earn 2x points on cell phone bills, restaurants, airlines, gas and groceries.
- 聽- During the second quarter of 2015 (April through June) you will receive 5% cash back at movie theaters and restaurants.
- BarclayCard Arrival聽- With the Arrival Plus card you will earn 2x points on all purchases. 聽With the no annual fee Arrival card you will earn 2x points on travel and dining.
- Chase Freedom聽- During the second quarter of 2015 (April through June) You will receive 5% cash back on up to $1,500 at restaurants.
- Citi ThankYou Premier聽- You will earn 3x points at restaurants.
- Hilton HHonors Surpass聽- This version of the Hilton card will give you six HHonors points at restaurants.
The next time you are planning a night out make sure you grab a deal from聽,辞谤听聽and book your reservation on聽. 聽And聽don't forget to use the best credit card in your wallet for earning bonus points at restaurants.
