3 Eat-Smart Hacks To Dining Out For Less

We all love dining out—less hassle than cooking at home—and we treasure the experience and memories gained (not to mention Instagram stories catalogued) with friends and loved ones. We don’t, however, always love the price tag that comes with dining at our favorite eateries. But what if there are ways to still dine out but keep your pocket money in your pocket? The Naked Foodie is here to spill the tea and share with you 3 nifty ways you can dine out and still save money.

 

The Bistro Card

If you’ve been to restaurants like TGI Friday’s, Buffalo Wild Wings, Bulgogi Brothers, Italianni’s, Texas Roadhouse, or Red Lobster, among the many establishments managed by the Bistro Group, you’ve probably been enthusiastically offered to buy The Bistro Card from your waiter. For P2,000+, you can enjoy a one-year membership that entitles you to 30% off your bill on Mondays and 20% off on Tuesdays to Sundays.

 

Red Lobster feast

 

It perplexes me how the company is still making a profit while giving these substantial discounts, but for foodies like me, this is the perfect discount card and one I will continue to buy year after year. Take your friends out to dinner for your birthday on a Monday and you could potentially get your ROI after one visit!

 

Zomato Gold

If you’re looking for a discount package that covers a whole bunch of restaurants, then Zomato has an enticing new feature. Download the Zomato app on your phone and tap the sub-heading “GOLD.” The app gives you three choices: Starter Pack, Medium Pack, and Unlimited Pack. The Starter Pack for P300 can be used 3 times, the Medium Pack for P700 can be used 10 times, and the Unlimited Pack for P1,500 can be used an unlimited number of times for the duration of one year. Depending on how many times you dine out, you can choose the package that suits your lifestyle best.

 

 

 

The Gold membership entitles you to 1+1 on food and 2+2 on drinks. Don’t get greedy, though—each partner restaurant offers only one of these benefits. All Gold Members dining at the table can avail of the Gold benefits, but if you’re eating solo and feeling extra “hangry” (not a misspelling, read it again), you’ll be disappointed to learn that there must be two guests at the table to avail of the Gold membership benefits.

 

Single Origin Osteria's Seafood Pasta 

 

READ: Single Origin Osteria Is Your Next Go-To Neighborhood Italian Restaurant In Salcedo Village 

 

If you’re wondering what kind of 1+1 restaurant partners are included, a glossary look through the app reveals favorites like Single Origin, Alba, Sentro 1771, Saboten, and so much more. For 2+2 drinks there’s The Apartment, Illy Caffé, Wildflour Cafe + Bakery, Tipsy Pig Gastropub, and if you still need more bevvies after that, you’ll have to check out the app for yourself.

 

The Moment Card

For just P1,000 pesos, you get a P500 coupon upon purchase of The Moment Card. You also get 10% to 20% off at participating restaurants when you spend a minimum of P500. You also get points the more you use the card and exclusive offers from restaurants in The Moment Group like 8Cuts, Manam, Ooma, Din Tai Fung, Phat Pho, and Shawa Wama shops, and at The Mess Hall, too.

 

 

READ: 5 Reasons Why Shawa Wama Is Our Next Big Addiction

 

While the discounts for The Moment Group are not as big as those for The Bistro Group, this card gives you access to a completely different set of restaurants and for only P1,000. Since you get the P500 coupon upon purchase, you earn half of that back fairly quickly. All in all, a great deal for foodies and I highly recommend getting this card if you enjoy eating at the aforementioned restaurants.

 

Ooma's Salmon Tartare Maki | Photo by Pia Puno for FOOD Magazine