Do coupons/discounts rule your dining out decisions?

LOL Watch out! Next rain/thunderstorm you might need gutters! (or guards) Then you will be sorry!!!

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So funnyā€¦

Not one iota. In fact I generally wonā€™t go to restaurants a like during ā€œrestaurant weeksā€ and the like in fear of having a sub par experience. If my wife canā€™t resist buying a Groupon, she does so knowing it is for a night out with her girlfriends.

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Why, if I may ask? I buy two or three Groupons a year and always tip on the full amount. The restaurant chooses to increase their business by using such incentives.

I can think of two or three places that I probably wouldnā€™t have tried as soon as I did had I not seen the Groupon. Super places that I would have missed out on.

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I live in the land of coupons and discount voucher booklets that arrive in my mail box daily (South Fl). My local pizza place expects everybody to use coupons and a waiter there once replied, when I told him we had a coupon, everybody has a coupon.

I might Google a coupon if Iā€™m going somewhere anyway, as summer approaches many restaurants run offers to get us locals in. Iā€™m not governed by them though.

Well where my father lives in NJ is pretty much the Active Adult Community headquarters. There is a restaurant by him frequented 99% by Srā€™s each with their coupons from Val-pack or wherever. One night when I took my father there for dinner I received the check and jokingly said, ā€œoh looks like I forgot my couponā€ to which he replied, ā€œno problem Iā€™ll take care of itā€ and discounted the check anyway. Lol

No . Going out to dinner for me is so ho hum . I am much more comfortable at home and my food is way better . So when I rarely go out I might get sushi or Mexican food . So coupons or discounts do not matter . I do go out for breakfast every Saturday for Huevos Rancheros and Budweiser .

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Another time I was on the drive thru line at Dunkin Donuts behind a marked police car. As the officer pulled up to the window with payment in hand, I saw the worker rebuff his payment and hand him his coffee and off he went. Up I pulled in my obviously non police vehicle in my suit and tie with my payment in hand as the worker comes to the window and announces $3.20, I smile and say, ā€œoh Iā€™m with himā€ pointing forward, worker waves me through, sans payment. Lol

Too many other better options in nyc. The restaurants that do groupons here are usually either tourist traps or have one foot in the grave.
However, in the small town my parents live in the wonderful family run donut shop that has been around sinceā€¦umā€¦ever? They have a coupon in the local paper a few times a year for buy one and get one and that always gets used :slight_smile:
Oh! And when thereā€™s the starbucks groupon ($5 for $10 of coffee) i buy that to take the sting out of the single origin beans i like

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Canā€™t speak for others, but both times Iā€™ve witnessed a diner presenting a Groupon, it seemed very awkward. One I remember vividly. The waiter informed the coupon holder that, had they read the terms, they wouldā€™ve known to ā€œannounceā€ they were using a Groupon when they were seated. I found that very uncomfortable, so I never looked into Groupons for restaurants.

Iā€™m glad Iā€™ve not had that experience. As I said I found some super new places this way.

You are certainly a serverā€™s dream! Lots of people tip on the discounted total.

NYC is a big place. I live in Queens for 3-4 months a year. Several restaurants that I frequent at full price have decided to offer deals on Groupon and restaurant.com. Why shouldnā€™t I accept their offer? Then there are restaurants I wouldnā€™t go back to for $60-80 but at half price, I would. And do.

Sure, some deals on groupon arenā€™t really a deal but when a restaurant offers $50 worth of food for $20 and allows you to order anything on the menu, why would you pass that up if you like the restaurant anyway? And I always tip on the pre-discount price.

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In the UK, an added discretionary service charge is increasingly added to the bill, replacing old-fashioned tipping. Invariably, in my experience, it is set up to calculate the charge based on the pre-discounted amount.

Of course, as itā€™s discretionary, customers can alter the amount or, indeed, delete it completely if they donā€™t wish to pay an added amount.

From my understanding, itā€™s not legal to do that in Canada. The server just has to suck up the lousy tip.

Although I would always tip on the pre-discounted figure, I have some understanding of the contrary view which runs along the lines of ā€œI am used to paying the 10% service charge and thatā€™s what Iā€™m paying tonight. The restaurant is only offering this as itā€™s a quiet night and I wouldnt be here otherwise - so the server is getting this reduced service charge, whereas s/he would otherwise have had nothing from me.ā€

Oh if i saw a groupon for a restaurant i already know and like i would do the same.

I canā€™t even explain it. LOL. And has nothing to do with tipping.

Just not my thing. We do less couponing here than in the US in general, perhaps if I were there Iā€™d be more inclined.

Interesting question.

We might try someplace new that we would not otherwise if a Groupon opporunity pops up. We certainly take advantage of Yelp offers - I try to remember to check-in from the parking lot in case there is an offer.

Away from home I do look at Yelp and Google reviews. A coupon or discount may lead me to try someplace, but not if all the reviews are bad. If I canā€™t find a good place I find a grocery.

Ultimately coupons and discounts are considered but donā€™t rule our decisions.

Iā€™ve seen so many people act like assholes with Groupons that I would be embarrased to use them.

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