Just because you enjoy dining out doesn’t mean you can’t be frugal.
We all have funds budgeted for our entertainment, and we can make those dollars work harder.
There are also people for whom restaurants are a necessity because they travel a lot for work or other purposes. Even if you’re reimbursed for those meals, you can take advantage of the spending by earning cash back, points or miles on a credit card associated with a personal financial account.
For the average person, a meal out is a relatively inexpensive purchase.
It’s the kind of expense that you can pay off in full at the end of the month, and that makes it even more of an opportunity for doing more with your money, discretionary or otherwise.
For the full picture, keep on reading. Otherwise, you can view the stats, or jump straight to each of the cards:
Selection Criteria: What’s Important in a Credit Card for Restaurants?
Focus on Rewards
With a credit card chosen first and foremost for dining, seek a high cash-back percentage.
Most of these cards offer cash back that you either use against the statement balance or for future dining and other travel-related purchases. If you’re considering points or miles, then you’ll need to do some converting in order to compare these opportunities in terms of dollar value.
Some cards are very dining-specific, but others offer it as a category. In those cases, pay attention to the bonus multiplier and how that affects the default cash back offered by the card.
High Quarterly Cap
Certain credit cards have an earnings cap for particular categories.
These caps are often structured on a quarterly basis, so your options refresh after three months.
There are, for instance, a number of dining-favorable cards that offer 5% cash back with restaurants as a category choice. If you select dining, you’ll be capped at $2,000 a quarter or $8,000 a year, which may be fine for the average couple but fall short for the businessperson who entertains.
It can help to estimate your spending in this segment, figure what you could earn in cash back, at least in theory, and then, seek a card that lets you get as close to that mark as possible.
No or Low Annual Fee
You’ll also want to aim for no annual fee—or at least the lowest fee possible.
Any fee amount directly cuts in to the total rewards you’ll earn in a year.
Some cards have annual fees as high as $450 or higher. If you’re a couple seeking to minimize the expense of your weekly date night, then that may not make sense. On the other hand, if you dine for business and a high annual fee gives you access to a high annual cap, then it may make a lot of sense.
5 Best Credit Cards for Restaurants
Required Credit Rating: Good
Headline: Unlimited 4% cash back on dining and entertainment
Benefits:
- Uncapped cash back on dining and entertainment
- 2% cash back on groceries and 1% on all other purchases
- Earn a one-time $500 cash bonus
- No foreign transaction fees
- Rewards never expire and you can always cash out
- Complimentary concierge service
Intro APR:
N/A
Variable APR:
16.24% to 25.24%
Annual Fee:
$0 for the first year, $95 after
Other Benefit:
$0 Fraud Liability
What’s Good About It?
In my opinion, the best aspect of the Savor card is that you get 4-percent cash back on dining without absolutely no limit on how much you can earn in that manner.
The 2-percent cash back on groceries is a nice touch and something that we can all use.
Capital One doesn’t pressure you to use or otherwise make decisions about your points either. Once earned, they never expire has long as the account is open and good standing.
There are also no limits on cashing out. You don’t have to wait until you reach $10 or $25 or whatever. If you have a $1.53 on your card and want to put it toward that lunch you just had, you can.
If you spend $3,000 on the card within the first three months of using it, you’ll receive a $500 cash bonus as well. So, even though you’re choosing this with dining out in mind, it can help to coordinate a big purchase or two with your acquisition of this credit card.
What’s Not So Great About It?
The upper end of the APR scale is a little on the high side.
If you have a credit score in the good range, then you may be able to do better than that.
There’s also the matter of the $95 annual fee beginning in year two.
However, that’s a cost I can live with due to the uncapped cash back. You’ll likely want to be spending at least $3,000 annually on dining out for an annual fee at this level to make sense for you.
Required Credit Rating: Good
Headline: No annual fee and 5% cash back at restaurants
Benefits:
- No annual fee
- 5% cash back dining out
- Cashback Match after one year
- Redeem any amount any time
- Use rewards at Amazon.com
- Freeze your account online
Intro APR:
0% for 14 months
Variable APR:
13.74% to 24.74%
Annual Fee:
$0
Other Benefit:
What’s Good About It?
There’s a lot to like about the Discover it Cash Back card.
It never has an annual fee, and it brings you into the fold with a 0% APR for 14 months. This applies to balance transfers as well, but note that there’s a 3% fee for each transfer.
At the end of your first 12 months with the card, Discover will match all of the points that you’ve earned, and the cap only applies to your initial pool, so you don’t worry about going over with the bonus.
Discover provides a lot of consumer-friendly options as well, such as being able to freeze your card as soon as you realizing it’s missing or getting to use your points on Amazon as well.
What’s Not So Great?
The biggest downside to this card is that it uses a cashback calendar.
As of this writing, restaurants were the active category from July to September, but in October, it shifts to Amazon and wholesale clubs, at which point your dining discount falls to 1%.
You need to assess the calendar and determine if it suits your lifestyle.
Also, consider your spending and whether eating the annual fee of another card would be worth it.
Required Credit Rating: Excellent
Headline: Earn 2x points on all dining and travel-related expenses
Benefits:
- 1 point per dollar spent base
- 2x points on travel and dining
- 25% more in travel redemption
- No foreign transaction fees
- 50,000 bonus points available
Intro APR:
N/A
Variable APR:
17.74% to 24.74%
Annual Fee:
$0 for the first year, $95 after
Other Benefit:
What’s Good About It?
Sapphire Preferred is a card designed with travelers in mind.
You earn two points for every dollar spent on dining and travel-related expenses, including airfare and hotels.
Each point is worth $0.01 when redeemed for cash, so 100 points equals $1. However, if you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards, then the points are worth $1.25 instead. CUR provides you access to air flight, car rentals, hotel accommodations and so forth.
As soon as you make you first purchase within the first three months, you’ll get a 5,000 points bonus, which essentially means that a $50 purchase is free.
If you accumulate at least $4,000 total in those first three months, Chase will increase the bonus to 50,000 points, which is $500 as cash or $625 if used through CUR.
What’s Not So Great?
Drawbacks are a matter of perspective with this card.
If you tend to be a local diner, then this isn’t the card for you.
If, on the other hand, you travel a lot for business or pleasure, then this is really good card. Even with the $95 annual fee, the average annual reward amount is in excess of $400.
Required Credit Rating: Excellent
Headline: 5% cash back on two categories you choose
Benefits:
- No annual fee
- 5% cash back on two categories
- 2% on gas or groceries
- 1% cash back on all other purchases with no cap
Intro APR:
0% for 12 months for transfers
Variable APR:
15.74% to 25.74%
Annual Fee:
$0
Other Benefit:
$150 sign-up bonus
What’s Good About It?
While this isn’t a dining-specific card, it lets you choose dining as a core category.
There’s also no annual fee ever, and you can claim any bonus amount any time.
The sign-up bonus of $150 only requires you to spend $500 in 90 days.
There’s no cap on your choice of everyday category, such as groceries or fuel.
Even if you hit your cap in a core category, those purchase will still get 1% cash back.
You can also redeem any amount of points at any time to your statement balance or to a checking or savings account.
What’s Not So Great?
You will have a cap on dining of $2,000 quarterly or $8,000 year.
Cardholders get to choose a second category, but that cap is the same for both.
Each quarter, you need to reselect your three categories, and failure to do so means that you earn 1% cashback on all categories for that quarter.
Required Credit Rating: Good
Headline: No annual fee and 3% back on dining
Benefits:
- 4% cash back on gas station purchasing
- 3% cash back on dining out
- 2% cash back on groceries
- $8,000 annual cap on these rewards
- No cap on 1% cash back
Intro APR:
0% APR for 12 months
Variable APR:
14.74% to 24.74%
Annual Fee:
$0
Other Benefit:
$0 Fraud Liability
What’s Good About It?
There’s often a trade-off between no annual fee and what you can earn.
PNC strikes a nice balance here.
The cashback percentages are solid, and they’re for categories we can all take advantage of: fuel, groceries and dining out, including fast food.
While there is a cap on these reward categories, once your hit the cap, all purchases earn the standard 1%, and there’s absolutely no limit how much you can earn in that manner.
PNC also offers a $100 bonus to any cardholder who spends $1,000 in his/her first 90 days.
What’s Not So Great?
The $8,000 cap is a drawback.
So, you need to assess your spending in these areas the last several years.
If you’re in that ballpark, it’s a solid option.
If you’re 10 percent or more above, then uncapped with an annual fee may be better.
Looking At The Stats
Credit Card
Intro APR
Variable APR
Annual Fee
Which One Should You Pick?
I find some appeal in all five cards, but personally, I like the PNC Cash Rewards Visa Credit Card.
I don’t want an annual fee. The $8,000 cap is suitable to my lifestyle. I don’t lose out if I go over, and I like the ease at which you can transfer cash back to a checking out if you’ve accumulated more than your statement balance.
I find the Discover card really appealing as well until I get to that cashback calendar, which I find annoying enough to be a deal-breaker. If I could live with it, I might go that route.
My family eats out about once a week. If that ever increased, then I’d find the Capital One Savor card and its annual fee a lot harder to resist.