Do you use Restaurant.com?

[MelanyAurson]

Nice tool for savings.... Are there any alternative apps?
Recently, I've realized that I can't save greatly with Restaurants.com. First of all: there almost no coupons for my area, secondly: my husband never use coupons, codes etc, even if I give them him...already printed

[Thrif-t]

I wanted to check back in and give an update.

All the certificates you buy stay in your account. You can see them when you go online. If you no longer want whatever you bought or the place goes out of business or what not, you can exchange your certificates for another place.

I've been using Restaurant.com since the early 2000's and a place by my work had went out of business and I just exchanged a bunch of certificates I had for something else.

[FLA]

they are having a $3 for $25 certificates special now, it's on slick deals.

I figured out they must make money off the people like me who stopped using them like I did in 2010 and had already paid for the certificates. But then they don't have an exp date so someone like me can go back 6 yrs later and use them.

So I don't get how they make money. The restaurants pay them? I guess I am surprised they have been in business this long

[disneysteve]

So I don't get how they make money. The restaurants pay them?

I would assume that the restaurants pay a fee to restaurant.com to be listed. Now if you are wondering how the restaurant makes money on the deal, the answer very often is that they don't. The same goes for Groupon and Living Social. Businesses (not just restaurants) often make nothing or even lose money on the deals they offer but they do it in hopes of gaining new customers who will come again on their own dime.

I have a friend who used to have a collectibles store (Lenox, Lladro, Swarovski, etc.). He was approached about doing a Groupon deal but when he heard the details, he said, "No way" because it actually would have cost him money to participate.

[FLA]

interesting, thanks

[FelicitaHarper]

I never used it, but thanks for the suggestion.

[DoreneHanson]

Never heard about it, would love to use it if its still there.

[sv2007]

Most restaurant.com restaurants are ones I've never heard of before. At least when I first checked them out a few years ago. It seems like the way it works it that restaurants use it as advertisement to get new customers to try their food. And hopefully to gain repeat visits once they like it.

I've never tried restaurant.com because I don't like to pre-pay for things that I don't know. If they have restaurants that I go (and liked) then that's different. But they don't.

I use this free Passport unlimited card that my employer gave me (well, now that I'm retired, my ex-coworkers would give me theirs because they don't use it). It just so happens to have a couple of my favorite restaurants on it. You don't have to mention the card, just include it with your payment (i.e. instead of putting your credit card on the check tray , you also put this card on it). The deal varies for restaurans like buy 1 get 1 free or 30% off check.

But I still go to other restaurants since I have many that I like. Without the passport card, I'd probably would still visit those 2 just as often.