If you are reading this, chances are that you enjoy dining out in our lovely town of San Diego–not only at food trucks, but at casual eateries, fine restaurants, and everything in between! Eating out can be expensive, so we’ve compiled our favorite ways to save money at restaurants and food trucks by using coupons, discounts, apps, and more! Happy dining!!

  • MOGL. Our favorite savings app! Download the app or sign up for an account and register ysave_moglour credit cards. When you dine out at a participating location, you get 10% back. At the end of the month, all your savings are totaled and that dollar amount is put back onto your credit card. The best part about this app is that there are a LOT of participating eateries and bars, and you don’t have to check in or even know when you are at a participating location to get the discounts. Sign up here!
  • ReaderCity and U-T San Diego Deals. ReaderCity has our favoritedeals_utsd local dining coupons.  The big group buying sites – LivingSocial and Groupon — have some good deals, too.
  • Follow your favorite eateries on Twitter and Facebook. They may post coupons, discounts, or contests.
  • Sign up for e-mail newsletters for your favorite restaurants. National and local chains, in particular, will often send you coupons for signing up or for your birthday.save_restaurantcom
  • Restaurant.com certificates. Unfortunately, there are only about 35 restaurants available in San Diego, but it’s worth a look. Always find a coupon code before buying a certificate on restaurant.com. Certificates come in denominations of $5-$100.
  • Check in on Yelp and Foursquare. It may be annoying to pull out your phone and checking in, but it can pay off. Many times we’ve checked in and been pleasantly surprised to see a promo for a free drink, free appetizer, or a percentage off a meal..all just from checking in!1426295_599569910100208_522034762_n
  • Get1Free coupon magazine features many BOGO coupons. You can access discounts online, too.
  • Buy the Entertainment Book. You’ve probably seen it before—it’s big, heavy, and hundreds-of-pages-long. It’s full of deals for fast food, casual dining, and fine dining, and often the deals are BOGO (buy one save_entertainmentbookentree, get one free). New, the book sells for $35, but the longer you wait to buy it after a new year, the cheaper it is. And always buy it online—it’s cheaper than in a store. Along with food, there are discounts on movie tickets, car washes, groceries, and entry to museums and other attractions. Buy it through a cash-back site like ShopAtHome or Ebates and sometimes you can save even more on the book’s purchase price. 

Know any other great ways to save? We’d love to hear it! Let us know in the comments!