Deal or No Deal?

Groupon, Travelzoo Local, Living Social, Blackboard Eats, Open Table Spotlight, Bloomspot… All deals of the day. But are they really deals?

I guess it depends on what you are looking for. Sometimes, I am wowed by a complimentary bottle of wine and dessert platter with purchase of entrée, such as past offers I have taken advantage of at Wolfgang Puck’s Chinois on Main in Santa Monica or STK in West Hollywood. Other deals have been even better, such as a five-course meal paired with champagne at Whist in the Viceroy Hotel. Others, such as a Groupon for custom framing are less than desirable.

When Blackboard Eats decided to tack on a $1 charge for every deal in 2011, I was immediately turned off. But then as the deals flowed into my in-box for restaurants I have been dying to try, some seemed very worthy of the spend.

Though the number of online sites these days are excessive and varied, one really must pick through the trash to find the gem. Regardless, these sites are valid and there are deals are out there to be had. It just depends on your opinion of trash versus gems.

-Jean