Looking for a deal at a restaurant in Detroit? You've come to the right place. Listed below are several resources for finding restaurant coupons, deals and vouchers in Metro Detroit. Of course, some resources are better than others, so information is included about how each works, as well as tips about how to best utilize them.

Deal of the Day / Vouchers

There are several companies that send deal-of-the-day emails for local businesses in the Metro-Detroit area, including restaurants.

Once you give up your email address, you can also browse the provider website for the deal of your choice. If you are looking for a restaurant voucher, you can purchase one online with a credit card or PayPal account for later use at a specific restaurant. 

• Groupon offers many types of local deals. As of this writing, Groupon offered 88 restaurant vouchers in the Metro-Detroit area, most of which offered discounts in the range of 40 to 60%. In general, the voucher discounts are slightly greater than those offered from the other providers listed below. The Groupon website provides several ways to filter the vouchers, including by cuisine type and neighborhood. You have to act fairly fast, however, because the deals are only available for a few days. Restrictions are listed under “The Fine Print” and can require the voucher be used on certain days of the week or during designated hours. The promotional part of the voucher is generally good for one to six months after purchase. (More information about Groupon)
  

• Travel Zoo works much the same way as Groupon, although its focus is on travel, attractions and entertainment. As of this writing, Travel Zoo offered 10 vouchers in Detroit, only four of which for restaurants. The restaurant vouchers tend to offer a “Dinner for 2” from a special menu at a fine-dining restaurant. For this reason, voucher restrictions often require the voucher be referenced when making a reservation and availability is limited. That being said, Travel Zoo does offer a seven-day refund policy if you can't find availability. The vouchers are typically good for two-to-three months.
  
• Amazon Local offers vouchers for a wide range of products and services, although most fall into the categories of shopping/services and health/beauty. That being said, there are always several restaurant vouchers available in the Metro-Detroit area, 11 as of this writing. When browsing the website, restaurant vouchers are divided into two categories by location: Detroit/Wayne and Oakland Counties. A typical Amazon Local deal offers a $20 vouchers at a local restaurant for $10. Restrictions are set out in the “What You Need to Know” section and can require the voucher be referenced when making a reservation. Vouchers are generally good for six months. Note: An Amazon Local App for a smart phone is available.
  
• Living Social attempts to take a more personalized approach to finding deals in the Metro-Detroit area. In addition to providing an email, the service asks questions about gender and family so that it can better filter the deals showcased. The provider also breaks down the vouchers into individual neighborhoods. As of this writing, Living Social had eight restaurant vouchers available in the Metro-Detroit area. Living Social typically offers vouchers for half off their face value, and the face-value increments vary greatly by restaurant. The restrictions can be found in “The Fine Print” section on the page for the particular restaurant deal. The promotional part of the vouchers are generally good for three-to-six months. Note: Some of the restaurant vouchers come in small increments that cannot be doubled up for redemption at a particular meal.
  

Purchased Certificates

Restaurants.com offers discounted certificates available for use at local restaurants. As of this writing, there were 276 certificates offered in the Metro-Detroit area. Most of the restaurants are located within the City of Detroit. The website offers several ways to filter through the certificates, including by cuisine type, neighborhood, and/or entree price.

While at first glance, Restaurants.com seems similar to the providers listed above, it is actually quite different. While the provider obviously concentrates on restaurants and restaurants alone, the “certificates” work quite differently and with more restrictions. For example, a typical Restaurant.com deal allows you to purchase a $10 restaurant certificate for $2. A condition for redemption, however, is that your check at the restaurant equal one-and-one-half times the certificate amount. This means that a $10 certificate requires a $15 check (before tax and tip) before it can be redeemed.

Take special note of the “Restrictions” and “Terms and Conditions” sections of the website. While these are admittedly offered deep within the purchasing process, they are important to peruse. For instance, the “Terms and Conditions” section restricts redemption to one certificate per party, per month, per issuer. This prevents you from doubling up certificates when they are offered for small denominations. The good news is that the certificates do not expire.

Coupons With Purchased Membership

Chances are you already know about Entertainment Books, which are thick books of local coupons sold by the book and often as part of a fundraiser. While the traditional Entertainment Book is still available for $35, a “membership” can be purchased for $19.99 that allows you to browse online and print out a coupon or present it via a smart-phone app. The Entertainment Book provides a broad spectrum of coupons for local services and products, but a book/membership purchase also gives you access to web and travel deals.

When it comes to restaurants, the Entertainment Book offers a huge number of coupons. At the time of this writing, the website offered 1404 restaurant coupons in the Metro-Detroit area. Entertainment Book coupons typically offer a 10 to 20% discount off the check, $5-10 off the check, or a half-off meal when another meal of greater or equal price is purchased at full price. Restrictions/conditions are listed prominently and often require a minimum purchase or maximum discount. All of the coupons are good for the calendar year in which they are offered.

Free Coupons

Still another category of providers offers free coupons. While vouchers typically provide a deeper discount than coupons, the range of restaurants available with coupons is much larger.

• Valpak is mostly known for its direct-mail envelope that arrives chock full of local coupons. What you may not know is that Valpak also has a searchable website from which coupons can be printed out. At the time of this writing, Valpak offered 114 restaurant coupons in the Metro-Detroit area. The best part of the coupons is that they are available for free. In other words, no membership fee or voucher purchase is required. That being said, restaurant discounts vary greatly. While there are some coupons that give up to 15% off a lunch or dinner, there are others that only give a limited discount off a specific small item or half off a second meal. Restaurant coupons are typically good for a couple of weeks. Note: Valpak is starting to get into the “Purchase a Deal” business, but so far, on a very limited basis.
  
• LocalDetroitCoupons.com is another coupon provider. While the coupons are free, the website does require that you sign up before you can print them out. As of this writing, the website offered nine restaurant coupons. Typical coupons include a free appetizer, $3 off a large pizza, $8 off two dinner entrees, or 10% off the check. .