A Thousand Peso Challenge: Lunch, Dinner & Dessert with Eatigo

As a foodie, eating out is almost second nature to me. Trying out new restaurants, ticking off items from my must-eat bucket list, giving in to cravings, avoiding to cook when I'm feeling lazy, hanging out with a friend over a meal -- these are just some among the many reasons I eat out. And if you're a foodie (which I believe you are), you'd know the struggle well. While it's nice to indulge our taste buds and fill our bellies (minus the prepping, cooking and dish-washing) when we eat out often, it does put a strain in the budget.

If you've been a reader way back when I first started this blog, you'd know how I love discounts on my food. I've tried using coupons (or groupons to be exact), buying gift certificates when they're on a discount, and sniffing for deals and promos at restaurants I love or want to try out. These days though, I've started using something even better!

Eatigo is a table reservation mobile app for Apple and Android. But unlike other similar apps, Eatigo offers discounts from 10% up to 50% on its restaurant listings. The amount of discount you get depends on the time you're booking for, so you can either plan your restaurant visit based on time, or arrange it based on when you can get the biggest discount. (Of course, I always do the latter whenever possible! (*^-°)v )

Last week, I tried to do A Thousand Peso Challenge just to see how long my P1,000 can go when I eat out using Eatigo. For comparison, when I normally eat out on my own, I'd spend P300 up to P600 for a decent meal for myself. Then if I'm feeling sweets and coffee (or tea), it's another P300 to P600 on top. It's a different story though when I eat with another person. We'd usually be billed a minimum of P800 up to P1,500 or even more depending on where we're dining -- sweets and coffee not yet included.

Anyway, let the challenge begin!

Late Lunch at Amici

First up, Amici in SM North EDSA The Block. I was out on field work in the morning till afternoon, and wasn't able to eat lunch on time. It was good timing that Amici had 50% discount for 3:30PM. What a steal!

Squash Bisque by Cup (P115)
Priced at P57.50 with Eatigo 50% Discount

I normally skip the soup whenever I dine at Amici. But since I got a huge discount, I figured, why not? It's warm, hearty, creamy, squashy-licious and 50% off!

Linguine al Prosciutto e Tartufo Regular (P355)
Priced at P177.50 with Eatigo 50% Discount

This pasta is one of my staples at Amici (along with the Spaghetti Ai Tesori del Mare). It's an olive-oil based linguine pasta dish with prosciutto, truffle oil, porcini, shiitake mushrooms and parmesan. It's very savory and a must-order if you love the aroma and flavor of truffles. The regular portion is more than enough for a single person. They don't skimp on the ingredients either. And with how much I got this for, I can't ask for more!

The total damage for this very filling late lunch? P255.98 from the regular price of P470! This was such a steal for a good meal. I'm a regular at this Amici branch, and we'd usually spend about a thousand when I come here with the little sis. I know I could still go for their gelato or a slice of cake since I still have a lot to burn from my P1,000 budget. But alas, I only have one stomach.

Dessert and Dinner at Cafe Shibuya

After an hour of shopping for home stuff, I met up with the little sis at Trinoma where I booked a reservation at Cafe Shibuya for 30% discount at 5:30PM.

Chicken Parmigiana with Pesto Pasta (P285)
Priced at P200 with Eatigo 30% Discount

Lil sis wanted to have early dinner. And since I have a discount, her meal was on me. Not sure how her order tasted, but she didn't complain so it's probably okay, at the very least. The presentation looked really nice and Instagrammable too.

Nutella Toast Regular (P270)
Priced at P189 with Eatigo 30% Discount

As for me, I had this big dessert toast all to myself. It might be a bad decision for my waistline, but it's been a while since I last had this. And I also haven't had sweets for weeks now! #lameexcuses

Chocolate Green Tea Latte (P165) and Matcha Green Tea Latte (P155)
No discount for beverages

We also chatted over our green tea lattes, which by the way, are not discounted. Every merchant listed on Eatigo has a special condition when booking -- like discount would only apply to food and not on beverages, no discount on set menus, would only hold the reservation for 15 minutes, and so on. So it really pays to read everything before booking to prevent any avoidable misunderstandings.

Total damage at Cafe Shibuya was P740.13. A bit more on the expensive side compared to my previous bill, but it would've been pricier if not for the 30% discount. Without the discount, the bill would've been P918.75!

Saan umabot ang P1,000 ko?

I'd say I did pretty well. I was able to maximize my P1,000 with Eatigo. Two restaurants, two main dishes, one soup, one dessert, two special drinks, and for two pax. Not bad!

Next time I use Eatigo though, I'll try to book with 50% discount especially if the reservation time fits my schedule. But even if you don't score the bigger discount, reserving a table via Eatigo will still give you 10% off. And if you're going to eat out anyway and the merchant is on Eatigo's listing, why not avail of your food at a discounted rate?

It feels nice to still enjoy the same things we can get out of eating out, but for less.