Orange County Register

Deal spotting: I’m in the midst of trying Restaurant.com for the first time because of this incredible deal posted on FatWallet offering an 80 percent discount on the company’s gift certificates. Use FatWallet’s link to get to the site and then type the code “SURPRISE” to get 80 percent off your purchase. The special deal ends today.

I just tried it and the code works. As for Restaurant.com, we’ll have to see. The  Arlington, Ill., company has a strange business model. It sells discount coupons to local eateries. Restrictions vary based on the restaurant.

Example, at Cask ‘n’ Cleaver in Orange, you would pay $10 for a $20 coupon off $35 purchase. Restrictions are the coupon can only be used Sunday to Thursday and dine-in only. Alcohol and beverage are extra. Also, for all restaurants, you’re supposed to use a coupon only once a month per restaurant. I bought one for Cask ‘n’ Cleaver, and paid $2. (My co-worker, Fast Food Maven, wrote about the site last year.)

While I’d often perused Restaurant.com for information — they offer menus to many restaurants — I never bothered to buy a coupon. It just felt odd to pay for a coupon. But the FatWallet deal did me in. I got a $100 coupon for a local steakhouse for $8 (instead of $40). Now, hopefully I’ll bother to go to see if it really works out.

For those wondering, the issues with the company vary. In FatWallet’s forums, comments mention the unreliability of the site when trying to order and that restaurant owners don’t get a cut of the money (!!).  Over at XPBargains, commenters remind users to read the fine print. But for the most part, people do say Restaurant.com works. I’ll post an udpate after I’ve actually experienced the whole process.

I know this isn’t a typical Gadgetress post, but in keeping with the Alt+Save theme, plus it’s an online site, I figured, why not share the bargain with readers?

More on deals:

• Whoa! Another reason buy electronics at Costco
• My own list of free tech stuff online
• T-Mobile offering free airline tickets
• When AT&T, Guitar Hero and O.C. mix
• AT&T adds McDonald’s to its Wi-Fi hotspot arsenal
• Contest alert: Canon looking for pop stars. Know any?
• RadioShack offers gift cards for your old electronics
• Free Wi-Fi for iPhone users is back, really!

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