Sit down to savory savings: for soup-to-souffle bargains, try a discount dining plan - evaluation of discount dining programs - Brief Article

Discounts for restaurant regulars aren't a new phenomenon, but they're beefier than ever before. If you eat out often, you can slice 20% to 50% off the cost of your meals by joining one of the major discount dining programs.

You won't find chain restaurants such as Ruby Tuesday, Red Lobster and Cheesecake Factory in any of these programs--they prefer to spend their marketing dollars on television advertising. What you will find are plenty of independently owned restaurants which, in large metropolitan areas, can include the very best. The Transmedia card, for example, is accepted at such hot spots as Galileo, Goldoni and Red Sage in Washington, D.C., and Enrico's and Dalla Torre in San Francisco.

In fact, the list of restaurants is the key to choosing the best program. It doesn't matter how much money you save if you don't like the food, so request a listing of participating restaurants before you enroll. These are our top picks:

[Right Arrow] Best overall. With the Transmedia card (800-422-5090), you pay a onetime membership fee of $4.95 to get a 20% discount on food and beverages (but not tax and tip) at more than 7,000 restaurants nationwide. If you don't use the card at least once every six months, you'll be charged a $9.95 biannual maintenance fee. If you eat out more often than you eat at home, you may want to choose a "silver" membership instead, which costs $29.95 a year and would boost your discount to 25%.

What makes the Transmedia card popular with businesspeople is that it's discreet. You register a credit card with Transmedia and pay using your Transmedia card, which looks like a credit card. Your charges will be billed to the account you've designated and you'll receive the discount on your statement.

[Right Arrow] Runner-up. The Dinner on Us Club (800-346-3241; $59.99 per year) offers discounts at 17,000 restaurants nationwide. An offshoot of the Entertainment coupon books sold by fundraising groups, the club issues a card to use at restaurants for a free meal with the purchase of another. Members also get a coupon book, called the Value Guide, that includes discounts for local fast-food restaurants and for movies, shopping and entertainment venues, from basketball to ballet. (The card can be used repeatedly at restaurants, while the coupons are good one time only.)

Restaurants in 58 metropolitan areas participate, with the largest selection in Chicago and in California and Florida. When traveling, you can call a toll-free number to find restaurants in the program.

[Right Arrow] Other choices. Dining a la Card (800253-5379; $49.95 a year) gives you a 20% rebate on the total bill, including tax and tip, at about 7,000 participating restaurants. Instead of a credit on your credit card statement, you get a rebate check by mail. If your favorite restaurants participate in Dining a la Card and not Transmedia, this isn't a bad deal, provided you spend more than enough to earn back the $49.95 annual fee.

[Right Arrow] In Good Taste (800-444-8872; $48 for the first year, $25 a year thereafter) provides a 25% discount on food and beverages, but the selection of restaurants--in only six major metropolitan areas--is sparse. However, some businesses and retailers give out memberships as a perk; you get a year free, for example, when you purchase a subscription to the New York Times. Then, the discounts are gravy.

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