Perhaps you know about of Restaurant.com. Perhaps not. Maybe you have only heard of it, and you wanted to get a first-hand, independent account of it before you tried it. Regardless, these are my thoughts on it in my limited experience with it.
In short, if you're an extreme-couponer, my advice is: "there's nothing to see here." At most, you reap a 50% discount, and that is only if you manage to get free eGift Cards one way or another (either from their companion site or as an incentive for listening to a sales pitch). It isn't a bad deal, but it is not as good as it seems at first glance.
If you're an ordinary bargain hunter, then it's the most confusing way to save 30% at select restaurants. Again, it isn't a bad deal, but the limitations and requirements will quickly mask the benefits to the point you could feel as though you are just breaking even. Additionally, the price ranges can be difficult to obtain eating solo, but if you are dining in groups of two (or more), then it would become increasingly easier (albeit, it may quickly reduce the savings from 30% to under 10%, but as long as $20 is $20, it's not a bad deal).
If you're a bon vivant, then this may be a great site for you to research different restaurants and then explore new places to indulge your appetite for variety.
As long as you are within a major metropolitan area within the United States, there are several restaurants at which your certificates can be redeemed. While it is only a small fraction of the amount of restaurants overall, I think it would be a decent way for restaurateurs to differentiate themselves from others and easily gain exposure that they would not have otherwise had.
I don't know the benefit to the restaurants themselves, but I imagine it cannot be any worse than advertising anywhere else. I am tempted to research it further and ask around. I have not done so yet, but I will add additional information if the opportunity presents itself.
Overall, a lot of the website itself was smoke and mirrors. The "Specials" tab will propose unbelievable deals, but then if you crunch the numbers and alternatives online, you may quickly realize that the core definition of "unbelievable" simply identifies something as not believable. These deals are rarely at face-value. But if you are good are reading fine print, then you may find very impressive deals that may satisfy even an extreme-couponer.
On one strong note, I found the use of the certificates to be very easy and a lot more flexible than coupons or other gift cards. Initially, I bought a $5 certificate to a sports bar near me for $2. Upon further research of the menu itself (i.e. realizing that I would have got a mushroom swiss burger, and Jack In the Box currently has its amazing Portobello Mushroom Buttery Jack, so there was no way I'd be spending more on a burger elsewhere, even if it were as good or better). Realizing my faux pas, I saw that the option of swapping out my certificate for a credit on the website could be done. It was as easy as it should be; you just had to verify that the voucher had not been spent and then your account was given the balance of the certificate, which could immediately be used to purchase another voucher at a different location, which I did.
In terms of gifting, I would be very cautious. Initially, I wanted to give my mother a handful of certificates for Christmas, but then I immediately feared that the gift would have amounted to a little more than a half-dozen coupons to restaurants. There is a good chance that the recipient of such gifts may feel that way exactly. It may be safer to gift a e-Gift Card than the certificates themselves.
