Is That the Best Deal?

Each morning I eagerly check my e-mail for the day's restaurant deals from Groupon, Yelp, Livingsocial, Townhog and others. Most of the time, the promotion is the best I've seen, but a few times, I know other deals can be had at Restaurant.com.

Take, for example, today's sold-out Yelp Deal for Rudy's Can't Fail Cafe in Emeryville. $20 will get you $35 worth of food and drinks at the late-night spot for a 43% discount. But, doing some research on Restaurant.com, you could save 72% and get a $25 credit for $7 using this week's code MENU, good til the end of today.

From a percentage savings, Restaurant.com wins. The trade-off is that there are more restrictions. While the Yelp deal only has to be used within one visit by 2/18/2012, Restaurant.com can be used only for a dine-in dinner with a minimum purchase of $45 and an automatic 18% gratuity will be added to the bill.

So, depending on your dining preferences, one discount may be better than the other. Just be sure to check the fine print.

To find the latest Restaurant.com code (and they come out almost every week), go to the deal site Fatwallet.com and search for Restaurant.com. On top of the code discount, if you become a free Fatwallet.com member, you earn cash back. Current cash back for Restaurant.com is 24%, which brings the certificate cost down to $5.32.

A few sites also offer cash back on Groupon purchases. If you are a Discover credit card holder, you can earn cash back by shopping on discovercard.com. Last time I checked, cash back was a decent 15%. Or, make your Groupon purchases through Fatwallet for 6% cash back, or Ebates for 3% cashback.

Photo: wellheeledblog.com

Yelp Drinks Week East Bay

The East Bay is closing out Yelp Drinks Week. Starting Monday, over 20 bars and restaurants across the East Bay will offer three handmade cocktails 50% off all day every day until Sunday, March 21.

I will be heading to Penelope and B, since they are within walking distance of work. Penelope has great cocktails, including its signature Penelope with beets and the Oaktown Heat with habanero-infused vodka.

Other highlights include the newly opened Bocanova in Jack London Square and the well-reviewed Grand Tavern by Lake Merritt.

Yelp Drinks! Month

Love it or hate it, Yelp throws some great parties and is starting to organize foodie weeks. To complement October's inaugural Yelp Eats! Week when participating restaurants offered $35 prix fixe meals, this week is the beginning of a monthlong happy hour across the Bay.

Select bars will offer three handmade cocktails 50% off all day. The first week hits San Francisco today to Sunday. Silicon Valley is next from March 8 to 14, and the East Bay last from March 15 to 21.

My tentative plan is Butter in SOMA for their cleverly named drinks, 5-Star Yelp-Tini ($5) and Bitchin' Camaro ($4) and Hayes Valley's Pisco Lounge for their Spanish specialties (all under $5). Any recommendations?