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THE government's popular Eat Out to Help Out scheme is coming to an end today, but that doesn't mean you can't still get a bargain meal in September.
Several restaurants, food chains and pub groups have decided to extend the 50% off discount after it formally closes on August 31 to keep encouraging customers through the doors.
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Eat Out to Help Out was introduced by chancellor Rishi Sunak to help boost the flagging hospitality sector and revive Britain's pubs and restaurants, which had been ravaged by lockdown.
Under the scheme, restaurants offered customers half price food and soft drinks on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays in August and recouped the cash from the government.
Now, the scheme is due to wind up with the last day on bank holiday Monday, but several chains have decided to run similar versions of the scheme for some or all of September too.
Here's the full list of chains that have confirmed they will still be offering half price meals in September including Harvester, Toby Carvery, Bill's, Tesco Cafe and Pizza Hut restaurants.
It's early days, and we are expecting more restaurants, pubs and fast food chains to announce that they too will continue to the deal.
We will update this list with more details as and when chains announce their plans.
Arabica
The Middle Eastern restaurant chain, which has branches in London's Borough Market and King's Cross, is carrying on Eat Out to Help Out in September.
But instead of running the discount Monday to Wednesday, it'll also offer half-price food on Thursdays too.
THE government will pay for half of your bill, up to £10 a head, when you eat out on certain days of the week in August.
To work out how much your bill will be after the discount is applied, you should start by adding together everything that you ordered.
You'll then need to take off any items that it doesn't cover, such as alcoholic drinks and the service charge.
Then, divide this by two to find out half of the bill.
What if it comes to more than £10 per head?
To check that it comes under the £10 per head cap, divide it again by the number of people who are dining.
If it works out as more than this per person, then you'll need to multiply the number of people eating by £10.
You should then minus the answer from the total cost of the items that the discount can be applied to.
For example, four people eat out and the total bill that the discount can be applied to comes to £90.
Half of the bill would be £45, but that's more than the limit.
So you need to minus £40 (£10 per diner) from £90 to get the amount you will need to pay, which in this case is £50.
Benares
The Mayfair chain in London is extending its Eat Out to Help Out offer throughout September, due to a significant increase in reservations in August.
It was one of the first restaurants in the UK to commit to the month-long extension without any reimbursement or support from the government.
The offer provides diners with £10 per person off food and non-alcoholic drinks for lunch or dinner when ordering from the à la carte or tasting menu every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday until September 30.
Bill's
Popular chain Bill's has confirmed it will extend its Eat Out to Help Out scheme, with 50 per cent off meals on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays in September.
The restaurant chain is developing a bespoke menu for the deal which offers one course for £10 and two courses for £14.50 when dining from the set menu from midday.
Bill's has around 78 branches across the UK.
Brains Brewery
The Cardiff-based Brewery behind several popular pubs told the Sun that it is planning to extend the Eat Out to Help Out scheme for at least two weeks.
That means customers can continue to enjoy discounts until September 9.
Brains Brewery has around 200 pubs in the UK, but it hasn't said if all of them are taking part.
Cityglen Pubs
The Cityglen Pub Co, which runs several pubs in London, has announced that it will extend its Eat Out to Help Out offering - but only by a few short days.
It is offering 50% off food and soft drinks on September 1 and 2, and the maximum discount is £10 per person.
Cityglen hasn't said if all its pubs are extending its Eat Out to Help Out offer.
The Coconut Tree
If you like Sri Lankan food, get yourself over to the Coconut Tree for absolute bargain prices in September.
The chain is offering 50% off everything except booze Monday to Wednesday, all through September.
The Coconut Tree has branches in Bristol, Cardiff, Cheltenham, Oxford, and Bournemouth.
Craft Dining Rooms
Craft Dining Rooms has confirmed that it will be offering its own version of Eat Out to Help Out from September 1.
Customers can get a 50% discount every Wednesday and Thursday, on food and non-alcoholic drinks at the fine-dining restaurant.
Craft Dining Rooms is based in Birmingham.
Deliveroo
Deliveroo is doing a twist on the scheme and is knocking £5 off the bill when you order a takeaway on a Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday in September.
To claim the discount, customers will need to spend a minimum of £20 and use a code to knock money off the bill. The codes are:
Drake & Morgan
Drake & Morgan’s lively bars and restaurants in London, Manchester and Edinburgh have extended Rishi’s Eat Out to Help Out initiative until September 30.
Customers can enjoy 50% off up to £10 per person, when you book a table, Monday to Wednesday, throughout September.
Flesh & Bun
Flesh & Bun is extending its Eat Out to Help Out discount throughout September.
It has restaurants in London's Soho, Covent Garden and Fitzrovia.
Franco Manca
Franco Manca has confirmed that it'll carry on with the discount scheme throughout September.
It means foodies can get a margherita pizza for just £2.60, down from £5.20.
The sourdough pizza chain operates just over 50 pizzerias in the UK.
Hall & Woodhouse
Hall & Woodhouse has confirmed it's carrying on the scheme in the majority of its managed pubs until the end of September.
Not all of its pubs will continue to offer the discount though - check the box below to see which locations are taking part.
THE majority of Hall & Woodhouse pubs are carrying on the Eat Out to Help Out discount in September.
Not all of them will offer the scheme Monday to Tuesday, so make sure you check this list so you know what to expect.
Monday to Wednesdays, from September 1 to September 30:
Monday to Wednesdays, from September 2 to September 30:
Tuesdays and Wednesdays, from September 1 to September 30:
Tuesdays and Wednesdays, from September 2 to September 30:
Harvester
That means customers can get half price main meals only on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays until September 9.
The discount meals that Harvester diners can enjoy include a half rotisserie chicken meal for £5.25 instead of £10.50, or steak and chips for £6.40, down from £12.80.
Harvester has 220 restaurants in the UK.
Heliot Steak House
The award-winning Heliot Steak House will be extending the Eat Out to Help Out initiative beyond August, offering guests 50% off food and soft drinks (up to £10 per person) every Sunday to Wednesday until September 30.
Voted the Best Steak Restaurant by Londoners, diners who Eat Out to Help Out will be able to enjoy 200g of fillet or sirloin steak for just £15 (usually £25).
Heliot Steak House is based in London's Leicester Square.
Hot Stone
Islington-favourite Hot Stone will extend the Eat Out to Help Out initiative by offering 50% off (up to £10 per person) every Tuesday and Wednesday throughout September.
The London restaurant is renowned for it signature Ishiyaki menu – the ancient Japanese art of cooking on a searing-hot stones.
THE government will cover half of the cost of a meal out, up to £10 per person, including children's meals.
The discount means that a meal out for one that costs £20 will be reduced to £10, but a £25 meal for one will be slashed to £15 because of the £10 cap per person.
There is no limit to the number of times you can use the discount, so in theory you can get half price meals on every Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday in August.
Businesses will need to register with the scheme on Gov.uk before being able to offer the discount, as well as be Food Standards Agency approved.
Instead of issuing discount vouchers - which the government felt increased the risk of fraud - restaurants, cafes and pubs will be able to claim back the cash.
The refund will then been transferred into restaurants, cafes and pubs' bank accounts within five working days.
Humble Grape
Wine bar group Humble Grape has five London branches, and they'll all offer 50% off food in September.
Qoot co
Qoot Co. restaurant group which operates London brands including plant based by CHLOE., The Lebanese Bakery, and Dominique Ansel Bakery has announced it will be extending the chancellor’s Eat Out to Help Out scheme till the end of September.
This means you will be able to claim a 50% discount up to £10 on a Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday through to September 30.
Peru Perdu
The Manchester-based restaurant announced on Twitter that it was extending the Eat Out to Help Out scheme.
Customers can enjoy 50% off on a Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday up to a maximum of £10 per person on food only.
Pizza Hut
Pizza Hut Restaurants will be doing two for one on main meals Monday to Wednesday from September 7.
The deal lasts until the end of September, but it is only available for diners who are signed up to its database.
You can sign up to .
Pizza Hut has 260 restaurants in the UK.
Q Hotels Group
operates restaurants all over the UK, including Crewe Hall in Cheshire and Norton Park in Winchester.
It has said that it will be extending the scheme but hasn't put a deadline on when it will end.
We will update this story when we know more.
THERE are a number of ways that you can save money when eating out. Here's how:
Discount codes - Check sites like Sun Vouchers or for any discount codes you can use to get money off your order.
Tastecard - This is a members club where you pay to have access to discounts worth up to 50 per cent off at thousands of restaurants. It costs £4.99 a month or £34.99 for the year.
Loyalty schemes - Some restaurants will reward you with discounts or a free meal if you register with their loyalty scheme, such as Nando's where you can collect a stamp with every visit. Some chains like Pizza Express will send you discounts for special occasions, such as your birthday, if you sign up to their newsletter.
Voucher schemes - Look out for voucher schemes offered by third party firms, such as Meerkat Meals. If you compare and buy a product through CompareTheMarket.com then you'll be rewarded with access to the discount scheme. You'll get 2 for 1 meals at certain restaurants through Sunday to Thursday.
Student discounts - If you're in full-time education or a member of the National Students Union then you may be able to get a discount of up to 15 per cent off the bill. It's always worth asking before you place your order.
Signature Pub Group
All of the bars and restaurants run by the will offer the discount throughout September.
Signature Group has 21 pubs in the UK.
Shack-Fuyu
Shack-Fuyu restaurants in London's Soho, Covent Garden and Fitzrovia will carry on the Eat Out to Help Out discount in September.
Sophie's Steakhouse
Sophie's Steakhouse restaurants in London's Soho and Chelsea told The Sun it will carry on with the discount scheme in September.
The 50% discount is valid on food as well as house martinis.
Stonehouse Pizza
Stonehouse Pizza - another Mitchells & Butlers brand - is also planning to extend the half price deal for two weeks.
The deal is available to customers who eat out on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays, and the discount will only be applied to mains and won't be applied to alcohol or takeaway orders.
The chains have lifted the £10 per person cap, but you won't be able to stack the deal on top of other offers.
There are over 90 Stonehouse Pizza restaurants in the UK.
Smiths Restaurant
This Lanarkshire restaurant has pledged to extend its Eat Out to Help Out offer until September 30.
Customers can enjoy £10 off per person, applied only to food.
Tesco Cafe
Tesco Café has extended its Eat Out to Help Out offer across its food and drinks menu, until the end of September.
This means it is offering 50% off its full menu with no limits on the discount, for dine in and takeaway, Monday to Wednesday.
The current deal offers unbeatable value, including a full English breakfast for just £2.07.
TGI Fridays
TGI Fridays (now known as Fridays) will offer free appetisers when you order a main meal for the first two weeks of September.
Like Eat Out to Help Out, the deal is valid Monday to Wednesday, meaning you can claim it on September 1, 2, 7, 8, 9.
You also need to have the free TGI Fridays app on your smartphone to claim your free appetiser - just show the app to your server before ordering.
It's valid on all single appetisers, not sharers.
The Standard
The gastro bar in Essex will extend the Eat Out to Help Out scheme in September giving diners 50% off food on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
Toby Carvey
Toby Carvery is extending its 50% off deal until September 9.
The chain is still offering an unlimited 50% off but it no longer applies to booze, starters or desserts.
The deal means an unlimited carvery meal will cost £3.65, instead of £7.30.
Toby Carvery has 158 restaurants in the UK.
True North Brew Company
True North Brew Company is extending the Eat Out to Help Out offer until September 30 in its venues.
You can find a on its website.
Wetherspoons
Wetherspoons is cutting prices on food and soft drinks by up to 48% after the Eat Out to Help Out scheme ends.
The discounts will be available Monday to Wednesday from September 1, until November 11, in all pubs.
The meals on offer will include an 11-inch Margherita pizza with a soft drink for £3.99, compared to £5.49 pre the Eat Out to Help Out scheme.
Punters will also be able to nab a classic six ounce beef burger meal for £3.99, down from £4.99.
While a traditional breakfast will cost £2.99, down from £3.49.
During the Eat Out to Help Out scheme, Wetherspoons customers have been able to nab the pizza meal for £2.75, the burger meal for £2.50 and a traditional breakfast for £1.75.
56 North
This Edinburgh gin distillery, restaurant and bar is extending Eat Out to Help Out throughout September.
A statement on the brand's Facebook page read: "Due to the huge demand we’ve decided to extend our #eatouttohelpout for September and October ourselves
"50% off food up to £10 per person and all we ask is you pre book a table online selecting the offer when booking."
