“What’s for dinner?” Whether you’ve got kids at home or not, that’s a question everybody gets tired of answering. You could always just eat out, but that gets very expensive. A few years ago, a friend of mine sent me a link to a really cool site that saved the day: Restaurant.com. Now, when I don’t feel like cooking, am in a rut or just want to relax and go out for dinner without spending a fortune, I click over to Restaurant.com.

What is this site? Restaurant.com sells downloadable, printable restaurant gift certificates to local establishments in your area. But they don’t sell the certificates at face value. They sell them at deep discounts.

How does it work? You ask yourself, “What’s for dinner?” You click over to Restaurant.com and enter your state, city or zip code. A list of participating locations comes up. You choose which discount restaurant gift certificates you want to buy. Pay securely online then print off your certificates.

Pros

The biggest pro for Restaurant.com is their prices. How deep is the discount? Restaurant gift certificates with a face value of $10 are sold for just $4 and $25 certificates are sold for just $10. But… that’s not all. Restaurant.com regularly offers deeper discounts to those in their “Club.” It’s free to join. If you sign up, you’ll get email notices where you can save 50%, 60% – I’ve even seen 80% – off the already discounted price.

I’ve regularly bought $25 restaurant gift certificates for just $2. Once you make a purchase, you’ll be offered a way to sign up for their email discounts.

It’s easy to use the site, payment is secure and delivery of the certificates is immediate. You print them off within seconds after ordering. Don’t be afraid to stock up. Certificates are valid for an entire year after the purchase date. You can even exchange them for other certificates within 90 days of your purchase if you want.

I buy certificates as gifts and I buy them for me and my husband to use when we go out to eat.

Cons

These are not really “cons,” but more things I wish they’d add. I also want to tell you about the stipulations.

Right now, Restaurant.com only works with local restaurants, not regional or national chains. I think they are working to try and develop relationships with the chains so maybe those will be added in the near future.

You’ll want to read the conditions carefully before using your certificates. There is nothing unusual, but each restaurant can set its own stipulations. Such as only accepting certificates for dine-in, not take out or only for dinner, not lunch. Most have a minimum order that is reasonable. You might be expected to order a minimum of $20 if using a $10 certificate, etc.

Most of these conditions are shown to you underneath the “add to cart” box. The ones you don’t see include things like using just one certificate per table, no cash value, etc.

The next time you’re wondering what’s for dinner, click to Restaurant.com.

Recommended? Yes

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