Yes, Virginia, there is such a thing as a free lunch. Philip Leung, an owner at Hong Kong Cafe,2 South Mills Street, sent us an e-mail to tell us that, “Every year on Labor Day we do a free lunch customer appreciation special. This year is our 19th anniversary special “Lunch On the House” It will be served on Monday, September 6th from noon until 2 p.m.”
What’s for lunch? Leung says, “This is a pretty fast in and out type of FULL Chinese lunch service including egg roll. It’s delicious and we open an outdoor area to serve as many as possible during this promotion. It’s a great thing for us, we only hope to get our menu in the hands of as many Madisonians as will show up!”
Here’s a basic summary of the “rules” for this special Labor Day Event:
Doors open at 12 noon.
Free Lunch served until 2 p. m.
Lunches will be carry-out only.
No Purchase necessary.
One entrée per person.
No need to place order in advance.
On your behalf, we asked a couple of follow-up questions and learned that there will be several entrée choices, including a vegetarian option.
Please remember, this free carry-out lunch event is only at the Downtown Hong King Cafe location, 2 South Mills Street. And please remember to say “Thank you” to Leung and his staff when you pick up your lunch on Monday.
We’ve been posting links to Groupon on the left hand sidebar of Madison on the Cheap for a couple of weeks now, but once in a while one of their deals merits special attention — especially, according to Izzy the Intern, if it involves food.
Red Lobster would like to to participate in their Crabfest Celebration, so they’re offering two online printable coupons: one for $3 off any two adult lunch entrées and one for $4 off any two adult dinner entrées. The coupons expire September 23, 2010.
Restaurant.comis running a special end of the month clearance. Through August 31st, buy a $25 gift certificate that normally costs $10 for 80% off. Just use the code CLEARANCE and you’ll pay only $2.
Among the Madison-area participating restaurants are Tutto Pasta Cucina Italiana, Cafe Costa Rica, Claddagh Irish Pub, Ginos, Las Cazuelas, Bandung, Cafe La Bellitalia, Taste of Indian, El Pastor Restaurant, Jamerica, Kennedy Manor, The Melting Pot, JB’s Italian Grille (Sun Prairie), and Lazy Oaf Lounge (Stoughton).When searching the Restaurant.com site, we recommend you search by ZIP code; using their map search sometimes produces incomplete results.
Remember, not all restaurants may have gift certificates available this late in the month. Some may be sold out — and you’ll have to wait until the supply is restocked in September (when the prices will be higher).
We’ve purchased some Restaurant.comgift certificates and there are several things we like about them (in addition to the low price): (1) there are no shipping and handling charges applied to your order because once you’ve paid for them you print the gift certificates yourself (so you don’t have to wait for mail delivery) and (2) the certificates are valid for one year from date of purchase.
Each restaurant does have special rules (such as minimum purchase) about how the certificates may be used, but these rules are available for you to read before you purchase any certificates.
If you want to save even more money, purchase your Restaurant.com certificates through Ebates and you’ll receive 15% cash back.
Quoda is offering you a chance to “Beat the Boredom” by building your own entrée online. Your reward will be a coupon: It could be a freebie; but is more likely to be a BOGO. We’ve heard a variety of different reports about what people received after playing this game.
Point and click and add ingredients to your virtual taco or burrito and see how high you can push the “Boredom Beater Meter” as you pile on the extras. When you’ve reached a certain critical mass, you’ll be able to print your coupon. It’s not clear if the coupon generation is random or related to your choice of ingredients. We built a bodacious burrito and received a coupon for a free entrée with the purchase of a drink.
We’ll have to use it very soon, however: Our coupon expires on August 27th. We’d advise you to time your “Beat the Boredom” session to match your dining out plans, since you have to “cash in” your winnings fairly promptly.
Forget about joining the Ladies Who Lunch.Cheeseburger in Paradise is looking for moms whose kids are [finally] back in school. They’re offering a BOGO coupon for lunch: Buy one entrée and receive a second entrée (of equal or lesser value) FREE. And, no, you don’t have to be a mom to use this coupon.
The coupon may only be used until 4 p.m. Monday-Friday and expires on September 17th, 2010.
The Madison-area Cheeseburger in Paradise restaurant is at 1601 Aspen Cmns in Middleton.
Sign up for the Quaker Steak & Lube® Email Club and shortly thereafter you should find a welcome message in your Inbox that includes a BOGO coupon: “Buy one Entrée, get one Entrée of equal or lesser value free.”
Quaker Steak & Lube specializes in wings, burgers, steak (of course!), and ribs. Among its specialties is the “Ontenna® of onion rings and baked soft pretzels stacked high on a baby moon hubcap.”
There are two Quaker Steak & Lube restaurants in the Madison area: 222 West Gorham Street in Madison (the location formerly occupied by Uno Chicago Grill) and 2259 Deming Way in Middleton. The BOGO coupon is site specific, so be sure to sign up for emails from the location you prefer to visit.
Fine print. The coupon we received expires in a month. it is good for dine-in only and is only valid Sunday through Thursday.
We’ve been posting links to Groupon on the left hand sidebar of Madison on the Cheap for a couple of weeks now, but once in a while one of their deals merits special attention — especially, according to Izzy the Intern, if it involves food.
Dine at all three of the restaurants associated with Shinji Muramoto during their “Anniversary Week,” which runs from August 23rd to 29th, 2010 and treat yourself to a substantial discount — as well as great food.
Here’s how it works: Dine at each of the three restaurants — Restaurant Muramoto, Sushi Muramoto, and The Haze — in any order for lunch or dinner during “Anniversary Week.” Pay regular prices at the first, receive 20% off your food bill at the next, and 50% off your food bill at the remaining restaurant.
Restaurant Muramoto at 225 King Street is the latest version of the flagship restaurant, now in a more upscale environment just a block from from its original home. It serves Asian Fusion cuisine.
The Haze is an American and Asian BBQ Joint at 106 King Street. Owners Justin and Cory Carlisle, Daniel Almquist and Shinji Muramoto team up to bring you barbeque from around the globe.
Sushi Muramoto in the Hillale Shopping center offers a complete sushi bar and contemporary dishes that reflect traditional Japanese values.
Our favorite is FREE Frites with any lunch order from Monday, August 2nd through Friday, August 6th. We think these “Crispy Belgian Fries with Aioli” are among the best in Madison. They’re normally $4.
One limitation to note: “One free order per table/group.” We say, make it an intimate lunch for two and you won’t have to share with all your friends.
This freebie offer from HuHot Mongolian Grill & Barbeque is several weeks away, but we wanted to give you a head start on designing your costume.
On Friday, August 20th, HuHot will give anyone who dresses like Genghis a FREE Grill Meal. In their own words, “On Dress Like Genghis day we invite all our customers to get in the Mongolian spirit by dressing like our mascot, Genghis Khan. There are many variations of traditional Mongolian garb that can be used for a Genghis Khan costume.” Visit the HuHot website for links to some sources of information about Mongolian dress.
The Madison-area HuHot Mongolian Grill & Barbeque is located at 610 Junction Road. There are also locations in Appleton, Green Bay, and Kenosha.
Thanks to Deb Nies for this tip. We’re waiting to see what she looks like in her costume.
The Old Fashioned Restaurant, located at 23 North Pinckney Street on the the Capitol Square, is hosting a “Hot Dog Week” from July 19th to July 23rd. A hot dog with fries or salad is $7.99 — and before you say, “That’s not cheap!” allow us to continue.
These are not ordinary hot dogs with ordinary condiments — and there’s bound to be a crowd (last year we got ours to go because the wait was so long).
Each day, the humble hot dog will be served on a Clasen’s hard roll and come accompanied by special ingredients. Check out the list of daily specials:
Monty’s Blue Plate Diner has been celebrating it’s 20th birthday all week, but the really big event is on Saturday, July 17th, when Monty’s will roll back the prices on 10 popular menu items and offer them at their original opening prices ($4.95 for a Blue Plate Burger!).
In addition, doughnut holes will be served as a complimentary dessert for all diners.
Founder Monty Schiro will be working the lunch shift, and will be on hand to unveil two new flavors of ice cream: the Kids Sassy Cow Tastemaker and the Sassy Cow/Monty’s Blue Plate Diner Signature Flavor.
Monty’s Blue Plate Diner is located at 2089 Atwood Avenue on Madison’s East Side.
Update (7/17/2010): Monty’s has announce the names of the new ice cream flavors: Monty’s Fat Elvis and Cinnamon French Toast. If you try one, let us know how it tastes, especially Fat Elvis.
Anticipation is one of our favorite emotions, and like many of you, we’re looking forward to Madison’s Summer Restaurant Week(Sunday, July 25 — Friday, July 30, 2010). Three course dinners for $25 at some of Madison’s best restaurants sounds like a good deal.
While you’re waiting, we’d like to tell you about a special dinner that we think is an even better deal: The $25 five-course local farm Friday prix fixe dinner at the Dayton Street Grille in the Concourse Hotel and Governor’s Club, 1 West Dayton Street in Downtown Madison.
A few weeks ago, we entered a giveaway contest and one of us (NOT Izzy the Intern), won dinner for two at the first local farm Friday prix fixe dinner, prepared by Chef Charles Lazzareschi and featuring meat from Jordandal Farms. The food was excellent and beautifully presented; the service was excellent, too: well-paced, giving us time to relax and enjoy both the food and some conversation. We loved that it was free, but agreed that the dinner was well worth $25 — and plan to enjoy one again in the not-too-distant future even though we’ll have to pay for it ourselves.
This week, the local farm Friday menu features items from Lange Farms in Platteville and includes such intriguing dishes as Thai steak tartare and grass fed broiled rib eye with lobster. For a complete peek at this Friday’s menu, visit the Concourse Hotel’s web page for Dayton Street Grille and click on the “July 16 local farm Friday prix fixe” link.
The Dayton Street Grille serves dinner daily from 5:30 p.m. until 10:00 pm. For reservations call 608-294-3031.
Caribbean Rockin’ Reggae Ribs (Photograph courtey of TGI Fridays)
T.G.I. Friday’s restaurants will treat guests to a free $10 Gift Card when they purchase two entrées from Friday’s® new Caribbean-inspired summer menu featuring “fourteen new appetizer, salad, sandwich, entrée and combo dishes starting at $8.99 including selections that are glazed with Friday’s new Captain Morgan™ Original Spiced Rum sauce.”
This offer is valid from 7/12/2010 through 9/5/2010 at participating TGI Friday’s restaurants in the United States. The $10 promotional gift card is good on your next visit.
Arby’s will give you a FREE Jr. Deluxe sandwich on July 5th, 2010 with the purchase of any drink (excludes coffee and value-sized drinks).
This offer is valid at participating locations while supplies last. It cannot be combined with any other offer or discount. Limit one sandwich per person, per order, per visit.
Be among the first 100,000 people to “Like” Famous Dave’s Facebook Page and you’ll receive a “Gift of BBQ” certificate worth up to $15 when you dine and purchase an entrée of equal or greater value at any participating Famous Dave’s restaurant.
Participating restaurants in Wisconsin are located in the following cities: Appleton, Eau Claire, Greenfield, Janesville, LaCrosse, Lake Delton, Madison, Pleasant Prairie, Waukesha, and Wisconsin Dells.
After you “like” Famous Dave’s you’ll be asked to select your nearest location (or the one where, presumably you want to use the certificate) and submit it along with the e-mail address where you want to receive your certificate. It will be sent on July 6th and is valid from July 6th through July 13, 2010
While we have your attention, we thought we’d mention a couple of things about Famous Dave’s that you may not know: (1) Dave Anderson, the founder of Famous Dave’s is one of the nation’s most successful Native American entrepreneurs; and (2) in 1994, “Pursuing his life-long passion, Anderson opened his first Famous Dave’s BBQ Shack in Hayward, Wisconsin, on Round Lake.”
Leaving behind all the Madison has on tap for the next week and heading down the highway to Taste of Chicago? If you don’t want to spend all your time on outdoor dining, consider buying some Restaurant.com gift certificates for Chicago-area restaurants.
We found almost 150 participating restaurants within 5 miles of Grant Park (using ZIP code 60603), including House of Blues, Goose Island Wrigleyville, Hot Chocolate, and Geja’s Cafe.
Restaurant.comis running a special summertime promotion. Through June 30th, buy a $25 gift certificate that normally costs $10 for 80% off. Just use the code SUMMER and you’ll pay only $2.
However, not all restaurants may have gift certificates available this late in the month. Some may be sold out — and you’ll have to wait until the supply is restocked in July.
Of course, you may also want to check out what’s available at this price in the Madison area. Although gift certificates for some participating restaurants are sold out, you can still score deals for such places as Gino’s Kennedy Manor, Cafe Costa Rica, and Taste of India. Continue reading Taste Chicago or savor Madison with Restaurant.com
P.F. Chang’s is sponsoring a “Chipping for Charity” promotion: Because Briny Baird, Annika Sorenstam and Don Vickery all hit the bulls-eye in a gold challenge held this morning, there will be “FREE LETTUCE WRAPS FOR AMERICA!” Plus, to celebrate their achievements, P.F. Chang’s will donate $100,000 to charity.
In order to qualify for your free Lettuce Wraps, visit P.F. Chang’s special “Chipping for Charity” webpage and submit your email address (scroll down the page to locate the submission box). After you complete this easy step, P. F. Chang’s will email you a coupon for a complimentary order of Lettuce Wraps with purchase of an entree. Offer expires July 31, 2010.
Remember the candy you used to buy growing up? Buy them now from Candy.com
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DISCLAIMER
We post deals as we find them, but schedules sometimes change and everything has an expiration date. Prices and promotions are always subject to change without notice. It's always wise to call ahead and make certain a bargain is still available or an event has not been canceled.
