Questions about restaurant.com certificates & listing (locals, please help!)

[Ariel224]

Does anyone know if the restaurant.com gift certificates that you print have expiration dates? I would like to use the 50% off coupon code (MENU) that expires on 9/8/09, but our trip is still 60 days out (Nov 1-7).

Also, not knowing the So. Cal. area at all is making selection from the website's listings kind of a game of chance. I would really appreciate input from any local residents. Looking for family-friendly dinner places within a 5 or so mile drive of Dland. Kids will eat Mexican, Chinese, Thai, and Italian, but have not been exposed to any other ethnic cuisines, so we probably need to rule those out, as DS is in a very picky eater phase right now.

Thanks!
Cherie

 

[GrandBob]

You have until 9/8 to buy the restaurant.com certificate(s) with the rebate code. Once you buy one or more certificates, you have one full year to use them.

-Bob

 

[jory29]

Sorry to HJ your thread but it is related: Can anyone tell us if the Sandbox Bar and Grille located at the Desert Palm hotel and suites is a nice place to dine? It is within walking distance from DL from what I understand and you can receive good discounts if you pre-purchase certifs. from restuarant.com Thanks, if anyone can relay their experience. Also, could you take kids there or is it strictly a lounge... I tried to view more info. on their website but very little comes up. Thanks!!

Edited to add: You can see the menu for that restaurant on the restaurant.com page when you look it up... however, you pay $10 for a $25 certif. (or less, by using a coupon code!!) - But here's some fine print...

Valid with a minimum food purchase of $35. Dine-in only. Present prior to order. 18% gratuity added to pre-discounted check amount.'

So for a $10 meal, they will add on almost $2. I normally tip around 15% anyway but if service etc. not so good have been known to tip 10%. 18% is a little steep for tipping I think for a family of 4. I don't like that it's mandatory to tip 18% in case it's not warranted. KWIM?

 

[GrandBob]

But here's some fine print...

Valid with a minimum food purchase of $35. Dine-in only. Present prior to order. 18% gratuity added to pre-discounted check amount.'

So for a $10 meal, they will add on almost $2. I normally tip around 15% anyway but if service etc. not so good have been known to tip 10%. 18% is a little steep for tipping I think for a family of 4. I don't like that it's mandatory to tip 18% in case it's not warranted. KWIM?

That's standard fine print for most restaurants through restaurant.com. Actually better than most -- most require you to spend 2x the certificate amount. So for a $25 discount, the original bill has to be at least $50. Also, some exclude alcohol from counting toward the minimum.

As far as tipping, yes, I also have always believed 15% is standard. But I don't have a problem with the policy. It's put in place because so many people will tip on the amount after the discount instead of the original price. E.g., for a $50 meal, discounted to $25, they'll tip on the $25. That's not fair to the servers. So I agree with the policy, even if I'd rather see it be 15%.

That said, IME, many restaurants that have that as a stated policy actually don't add the tip. I think they leave that verbiage in there in case they start to run into a problem, so they can do it in the future.

-Bob

 

[3Minnies1Mickey]

Sorry to HJ your thread but it is related: Can anyone tell us if the Sandbox Bar and Grille located at the Desert Palm hotel and suites is a nice place to dine? It is within walking distance from DL from what I understand and you can receive good discounts if you pre-purchase certifs. from restuarant.com Thanks, if anyone can relay their experience. Also, could you take kids there or is it strictly a lounge... I tried to view more info. on their website but very little comes up. Thanks!!

I had asked the same thing a few weeks back and never got a response. We are staying at Portofino Inn & Suites and Sandbox isn't far from the hotel. Anyone eaten there?

 

[M4travels]

Can't answer on the restaurants being asked about but just a clarification on the time to use the certificates. Yes, it does state that you have one year in which to use them BUT in CA the certificates do not expire. Now, if the restaurant goes out of business you're stuck but otherwise you're fine on timing for using them.

 

[perlster]

Actually, the answer is no.

The wording on the bottom of the certificates is:
"Expires one (1) year from date of issue, except in California ..."

 

[GrandBob]

You're both right. I never noticed that before. Thanks.

-Bob

 

[Ariel224]

Thanks everyone for clarifying the expiration date issue.

Actually, the Sandbox is one of the restaurants I was really curious about, since it's so close. I'm also specifically looking for feedback on 300 Anaheim (the bowling sounds fun) and Azteca's (on Lincoln in Anaheim). Anyone????

Cherie

 

[disneygirlinphoenix]

Cherie,

Also with restaurant.com, they seem to have a cycle, if you wait, within 2-3 weeks the certificates will drop to 80% off, making them $2 each, it is a great value. That is what our family did for our upcoming trip!

Rachel

 

[jordan13402]

thanks for the code, just got $100 of gift certs for $20. we are staying a the Desert Palms Dec 19th to the 23rd

 

[stacielee]

Cherie,

Also with restaurant.com, they seem to have a cycle, if you wait, within 2-3 weeks the certificates will drop to 80% off, making them $2 each, it is a great value. That is what our family did for our upcoming trip!

Rachel

Exactly! I usually get mine near the end of a month, when they're 80% off, and sometimes they also add a free $10 certificate that you get to choose.

 

[2wildchildzmom]

We bought ours also for the Sandbox when they were only $2 and before we knew if we would have a rental car.

We also bought $2 cert. (for the $25 amount) for Delia's Cafe in Oceanside for after Legoland and

The Himalayan Grill in Huntington Beach for our day out there. Should save us quite a bit of money. We use these cert. in our hometown all of the time when we can get them for $2.

So anyway hope the places are nice, I will report back after we have eaten there at the end of Sept.

 

[stacielee]

Just a note to anyone who used Restaurant.com; in honor of 9/9/09, certificates are 90% off for 99 hours!! This is the lowest I have ever seen them sold for!!! I just got 5, may go back and get more before it's all done!!!

Forgot, the code is NINETY.

 

[M4travels]

Just a note to anyone who used Restaurant.com; in honor of 9/9/09, certificates are 90% off for 99 hours!! This is the lowest I have ever seen them sold for!!! I just got 5, may go back and get more before it's all done!!!

Thanks for this tip! Just grabbed 13 $25 certs for only $13!!! Went through Sunshine Rewards and got money back for that as well!

 

[pixiewings71]

I got 6, for my hometown! Very exciting. I'm going to look for Anaheim places when I get home tonight.

 

[cmwade77]

In the state of California they are considered gift certificates; therefore, by law they have no expiration date and the gift certificates say so on them, it says something like Expires 1 year from date of purchase, except in California. These work great, just be aware of any restrictions on them before buying.

 

[Kayla's Mom]

I got 6, for my hometown! Very exciting. I'm going to look for Anaheim places when I get home tonight.

Did you get the email yet with your certificates? I usually get them right away and I haven't yet. I figured everyone was probably buying them up though with the 90% off and maybe that was why it was taking longer?

 

[M4travels]

Did you get the email yet with your certificates? I usually get them right away and I haven't yet. I figured everyone was probably buying them up though with the 90% off and maybe that was why it was taking longer?

I didn't receive my certificate however I did go to web site and the certificates are all there! Easy to print from the site!

 

[kungaloosh22]

Did you get the email yet with your certificates? I usually get them right away and I haven't yet. I figured everyone was probably buying them up though with the 90% off and maybe that was why it was taking longer?

Sometimes I never get any email confirmation from them at all. When that happens, I just go to restaurant.com, log in to my account, and then click the view/print certificates link. The purchased certs are all there (email confirmation or not).

ETA: Or, what M4travels posted at about the same time as me.