Dining on a Dime

This is random - even for me.  Consider this post a public service announcement.  Only, instead of being for a noble cause such as the American Red Cross or the local animal shelter, I'm providing you with the knowledge I have acquired as a result of my disdain for all things cooking and my love for all things getting out of the house.

Because I'm the world's greatest cheapest person who also doesn't like to cook, but hates paying to dine out, here are a few of the ways we've found to do so inexpensively from time to time.  (And score a treat or two as well.)  I do apologize because this info may be highly regional, but it never hurts to know what's out there.

IHOP - Did you know that Kids Eat Free Every Night?  Plus, the Sunday paper regularly comes with coupons for 20% off the entire purchase (just be sure to read the fine print - sometimes certain days and times are excluded).

Firehouse Subs - Just show up on your birthday with your ID and they'll give you a free sub.

Carino's - On Monday night they put their family dishes on special - 1/2 off!  We can feed our family of five for about fifteen dollars with a tray of chicken parmigiana & spaghetti.  Plus bottomless salads and bread!

WOW Wingery - On Sunday, Kids Eat Free.

Bojangles Famous Chicken 'n Biscuits - The back of our local Kroger receipt (the part with the ads) has included a Buy One Get One Free Chicken Dinner coupon for about the past year.  We're going to cry when this promotion ends because we eat there just about once a week on the nights that Sam works overtime.

Sticky Fingers - Email club sends you a coupon for a free dinner (usually half slab of ribs) for your birthday and continues to send you "exclusive" coupons throughout the year

Steak N Shake - Kids eat free all weekend with every $8 purchased  (Plus, there's Happy Hour from 2-4pm and 2-4am, where all drinks & shakes are half price.)

Applebees - 99cent Kids Meals on Wednesday nights.

Logans - Ongoing promo of 2 adult meals for $14.99 (from an abbreviated menu) with $2.99 kids meals.

Chili's - Email Club gives you a free appetizer on sign-up and a free dessert on your birthday.

Baskin Robbins -  They email you a coupon for a free scoop of ice cream on your birthday.

Dunkin' Donuts perks - You get a postcard for a free med beverage for signing up and the same on your birthday.

Sonic - Happy Hour every day from 7-9am and  2-4pm for half priced drinks.

Another tip...check your receipts.  Many restaurants provide surveys at the bottom of their receipts so that on your next visit you can get a free appetizer/dessert/$ off.

Valpak.com - Enter your zip code online and print your own coupons to local restaurants.  We have scored a lot of BOGO free dinner plates at Georgia Bobs and various discounts at Atlanta Bread company this way.

Central Georgia Flint customers - The Flint card provides discounts various food and service establishments.  Check out the Georgia magazine that comes in the mail for specific offers.  I know that My Father's Place Pizza offers a 10% discount and Dunkin' Donuts offers any size coffee for 99 cents when you present the card.  (Too bad our card is the keychain variety and it's only on Sam's keys.  I think this is how he limits me on my coffee addiction.)

When all else fails, google the restaurant, sign up for their email club and cross your fingers.  They will likely send you offers.  We keep a separate email address exclusively for this reason so that our "real" email inbox won't be inundated with random restaurant spam. 

And there you have it.  I have no idea why I was compelled to share this "wealth" of information with you, but I was.  If I think of anything else, as always, I will take the liberty to come back and revise this. 

Happy Eating!  

(And if that's not redundant, then I don't know what is.)