Food & Drink

Dine Out, Earn a $15 Gift Card from Amazon, Starbucks, Uber


Tim Winship
Tim Winship

    Download the app to your smartphone. Use the app to book at a participating restaurant. Dine. Earn a $15 gift card from Amazon, Starbucks, or Uber.

    That's the elevator pitch for the new

    Seated

    app, and it's a pretty compelling one. Naturally, when you dig into the details, things turn out to be a bit more complicated.



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    Among the Seated terms and conditions:


    • To qualify for the gift card, there must be two or more people dining. Both parties must order meals, not just drinks.
    • The same restaurant may only be booked once during any 30-day period.
    • Participating restaurants are currently located in only 15 cities: New York, Chicago, Boston, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, D.C, Atlanta, Miami, New Orleans, Houston, Austin, Denver, and Seattle.
    • Participating restaurants are high-end. Don't expect to get a $15 gift card for a $12 meal.
    • Booking times are limited. Rewards may only be offered for early or late seatings.
    • As loyalty currencies go, gift cards are among the least desirable. Too often they go unused.



      From a business standpoint, the requirements and limitations make perfect sense. The service is designed to help restaurants increase business during off-peak times, and to do so cost-effectively. That means that users must be prepared to make some compromises in exchange for the rewards.

      Whether a $15 gift card makes those compromises worthwhile is the question.
  • Reader Reality Check



  • Well, is a $15 gift card worth the required compromises?

  • More from SmarterTravel:

  • After 20 years working in the travel industry, and 15 years writing about it, Tim Winship knows a thing or two about travel. Follow him on Twitter@twinship.