Hi, friends!  So, over the holidays I ran a 5K in Scottsdale with my run group.  In the craziness of the holiday,  I never got to share a race recap.

To be honest, it wasn’t that exciting, I just kind of did it because my friends were doing it.  My time was worse than my last 10K, and my head just wasn’t in the running game.  Actually, at that point, I had only recovered from my five years with amenorrhea for two months, my goal in life was to keep my hormones pumping.  The best part about the race was the Baileys and coffee I shared with a friend after, so there is that.

Elite Restuarant Club

The second best part about the race is that is where I first met the founders of the Elite Restaurant Club.  They had a booth there, and I stopped to talk to them, then I purchased a year long membership for Mr. Hungry for Christmas.  (Full disclosure, the membership I bought was discounted because it was purchased at a charity event.)

How It Works

Now that I’ve had the chance to try out the membership I wanted to tell you guys a little bit about it.  With the Elite Membership Club, you get a “buy one entrée get the second FREE” at each of their participating restaurants twice per membership up to 50 free entrees.

The fun thing is they are constantly adding new restaurants every month!  (You can check out the list here, but make sure to check out the special offer at the end of this post!)

Where I’ve Been So Far

I originally bought this membership for Mr. Hungry for Christmas because he LOVES to eat out, but I’ve ended up using it more than him.  We do use it for date night, but I also use it to meet up with friends or my mom.

High Tide Seafood

We went here for Mr. Hungry’s birthday and date night.  Hello pale legs, how are you?

Mr. Hungry and I have been dying to try High Tide Seafood Bar because seafood is our FAVORITE food ever!  This was the first place we went using the membership, so we weren’t sure what to expect.  This was also the only place that the waiter had no idea what I was talking about when I showed them the membership on my phone; every other place has been excellent.  Other than that the food was delicious so we had a fun and relaxing night.  Mr. Hungry got the lobster mac and cheese as an appetizer plus crab crusted barramundi sea bass.  I stuck with the basics and got crab legs because I never get to have those! They brought him a birthday dessert for free, although I’m sorry to say I don’t remember what it was.  I believe some creme brulee which is Mr. Hungry’s favorite, but not mine.  That’s okay though because it was his birthday after all!

savings on the meal – $27

Joe’s Midnight Run

Anyone remember this epic burger from IG?

Joes’ Midnight Run was the next place I used the membership at.  Downtown is halfway between me and my friend Megan.  So we decided to try out Joe’s Midnight Run since it was about halfway between us.  I got the Notorious B.I.G burger which was, of course, amazing.  I love getting burgers when I go out; it’s totally my thing.  Megan got a delicious, healthy egg dish, and there was a girl with an epic looking salmon salad next to us that I want to try as well!

I think we paid like $20 bucks for our whole meal, which we split!

Bar Vinedo

I feel that this is super cool experience because Bar Vinedo is one of those places I would have NEVER gone to if it wasn’t for the membership, but once we got there I was super impressed!  It was so nice out that we decided to sit on the patio and we enjoyed an excellent late lunch.  We had intended on early dinner but realized dinner wasn’t served till 3, and it was 2:30, I don’t know what meal we were trying to eat, being honest, we were just hungry.  I was so surprised to find this little gem which has fabulous drinks, cheese boards, and a fantastic tapas, burgers, and dinner menu I can’t wait to go back! I especially want to take my MIL here because she shares my love for cheese!

At this place they let anything qualify as an entree which was pretty cool, we saved around $12-15 bucks.

Cucina Cucina

Last weekend I tried out Cucina Cucina Modern Italian Restaurant with my mom, and it was a home run! I liked it so much I have plans to meet Megan there this weekend!  My mom got a delicious Sangria drink and chicken parmesan (not pictured.)  I was going to get pizza until they brought us the French bread with olive oil and balsamic vinegar which totally reminded me of my internship in Spain! I changed my mind, and I opted for the sea bass which was by far one of my favorite dishes I’ve had at any of the restaurants.  Another lovely lunch outside on the patio.

Savings $27!  Woot woot!

How to Join Elite Restaurant Club

Overall I love the membership, we’ve already saved double what I spent for the year, so it is worth it.  You have two options: you can sign up for a yearly or monthly subscription.  As I mentioned before I joined the annual membership at a discounted nonprofit price, if it hadn’t been for that I would go with the monthly membership.  Even if you pay full price (which you won’t, see below) you only need to use it once per month to make your investment back and essentially profit, depending on where you go and what you get.  For example, you can see that some restaurants I saved around $12-15 and others $27-30. So, how much you save depends on what kind of price range restaurant you go to.  There is no limit to how many times you can use your membership per month; there is only the limit of twice per restaurant and 50 per membership period (there are 6 month and year long options).

So, needless to say, I’m a HUGE fan of this program, so I worked with the owners to bring my Arizona friends a 30% discount by using the code HUNGRYHOBBY.  You will save 30% each month or off a year long membership!  

Click here to sign up and use the discount code HUNGRYHOBBY

Tips For Using Your Elite Restaurant Membership

1.  Call ahead and make a reservation.  Call ahead and let them know you will be using your Elite Restaurant Club Membership.  Since the program is relatively new and employee turnover is high, there is a chance the hostess or wait will have no idea what you’re talking about.  This has only happened to me once, but it could happen.  Once they ask their manager the manager, will know what’s going on.  I called ahead to every restaurant except Cucina Cucina, which I had no problem at.
2. Ask what counts as an entree.  Once we are seated, I let the server know that we will be using the elite restaurant club membership and ask them what counts as an entree.  Typically anything but appetizers counts.  At Bar Vinedo, they even counted the appetizers.  (Keep in mind the cheapest thing that counts as an “entree” will be discounted.  So if an appetizer counts and you order it, they will discount that instead of your 27 dollar Sea Bass.)
3. Log into the app before you are served your meal.  At some point during your meal, your waiter will ask for the app, at which point to avoid awkward waiting I advise having it ready to go.  To do that, go to the Elite Restaurants Club App –> Membership –> login. After you login there will be three bars on the top right-hand side click those –> loyalty –> hand the phone to your server. The server will pick from the list the correct restaurant and enter a code.  My phone does not stay logged in regardless of how many times I click remember me, so I keep my email and password ready for when I need to use it.  (I use the tiny password app.)

Click here to sign up and use the discount code HUNGRYHOBBY!

Full Disclosure:  I am an affiliate of the Elite Restaurant Club, by using the code HUNGRYHOBBY you will receive a 30% discount on your membership and I will be given a small commission of the sale.  Thank you for supporting Hungry Hobby and have so much fun exploring AZ restaurants!  

What’s your latest restaurant find?????