A relatively recent phenomenon to hit the UK’s high street is the proliferation of vouchers, daily deals and discount sites that effectively offer money off and savings across a whole range of products and services. One particular niche related to these sites is the ‘discount dining card’. There are a handful of major players in the market and having tried them all, I reckon I’m in a good position to advise on which one(s) I think are the best.

So, the 3 main players are:

Gourmet Society – www.gourmetsociety.co.uk 

Gourmet SocietyThe Gourmet Society is probably one of the better known dining discount cards, in that it is frequently promoted in the quality newspapers. Accepted at over 6,000 restaurants, it offers a good coverage of venues across the UK.  There’s an iOS and Android app available, although I’ve had a few niggles with the Android app crashing from time to time, and the location search is sometimes a little flaky. Having said that, they do also offer a digital version of the Gourmet Society card, so you can just show your phone to the restaurateur as opposed to remembering to take your card with you every time you go out. Subscriptions are advertised on the site from £69.95 for 12 months access, although there are frequent trials available online for anywhere from 1 to 3 months, and quite often they’ll be discounted membership too. As with the other major dining cards, I would expect to pay anywhere from £29.95 to around £40 for a discounted version of this card.

Deal: Get a 2 month free trial HERE

Hi-Life Dining – www.hi-life.co.uk

I’ve had two subscriptions to the hi-life dining card, the last one being the result of a hugely discounted Tesco Rewards promotion (basically, for £10 of Clubcard vouchers you can get yourself an annual Hi-Life dining club subscription). The club offers discounts at around 4,000 venues, so it’s not the largest club available, but with its roots in the North West of England, there does seem to be a particular focus hi-lifein restaurants in that region. Annual membership is advertised on the site for £69.99 but as I said earlier – if you have a Tesco clubcard, collect the points and you can easily pick one of these up for just £10 worth of vouchers. Alternatively, as with the other major players – look for the discount deals on membership and you should aim to pay no more than £29.99 for a year’s membership.

Tastecard – www.tastecard.co.uk

tastecardThe Tastecard is the last of the big players on the discount dining card scene, but by no means has the smallest offering. With frequent offers available online of anywhere up to 3 months free for new members, the site itself also offers a free month’s trial. Once the trial is over, annual membership can generally be found online for £29.95 (if you shop around), although on the Tastecard web site, they list membership as being £79.95 per year! So it’s definitely worth shopping around… places like Hot UK Deals or Money Saving Expert are normally the best place to look for the latest offers on Tastecard.


Other discount dining cards that I’ve seen online, but not tried include:

Cuisine Card – www.cuisinecard.co.uk

Not really worth it, from what I’ve read – as of Feb 2013, there are just 149 outlets involved with this discount dining card and it still costs £29.99 for a year’s subscription. You’d be best off sticking with one of the major suppliers.

The Phantom Card – www.thephantomcard.com

The Phantom Card is a recent addition to the discount dining card scene. It appears to have originated with a London focus with later expansion throughout the UK. There’s an iPhone app available including the places covered by the card scheme, but at £40.00 it’s more expensive than other similar cards and a more expensive than the more expansive, major discount dining cards listed above (when they’re on their special offer promotions).

View London Card – www.viewlondon.co.uk/view-card

It’s a discount card, but it’s just for London. Not only does it offer up to 50% discount at 800+ restaurants and bars, but you can also get some discounts on theatre tickets too. Membership costs £29.95 for the full year. There’s an iPhone app available for the View London card too.

Smarter Card – www.smartercard.co.uk

This dining card is limited to offering discounts in Basildon and Billericay & Colchester. It offers a 2 month free trial and then it costs £3.99 per month. There’s no upfront information about whether that involves a longer contract or if you can just pay month by month.


 

If there are any others missed off this list, then please submit them in the comments below. Thanks!