The Basics of Restaurant Week

Restaurant Week. For foodies and restaurant lovers, these two words evoke lust, yearning, and floods of saliva. Yet for those who have not yet been exposed to the Restaurant Week celebration, the occasion, with all its choices and locations, can be intimidating. Here's a simple guide for those who are new to a Restaurant Week friendly city on how they can participate in all the fun.

Here's the basics: Restaurant week is a 6 (or 7, depending on the location) day event during which anyone can dine at the city's finest restaurants for under $40. That's right, $30-$40 - and that includes appetizer, entrée and dessert, as well as other extras certain restaurants are kind enough to throw in. Drinks and other courses are usually your responsibility, but locations sometimes offer flights of wine or additional courses at reduced prices.

Now you're asking, "How do I get in on this deal?" Well unfortunately, you'll have to wait until it rolls around in the city closest to you. However, since this happens a few times a year, you're never too far off from one of these food festivals. The best way to check for the next Restaurant Week near you is to check Open Table, which features a page dedicated just to Restaurant Week locales.

However, before you think that this is all too simple to be true, there is one catch: the reservation. The popularity of Restaurant Week keeps growing, and with it grows the number of diners per occasion. Therefore, you'll need to make your reservations early - think a month or more in advance. Check out opentable.com's list of available restaurants and make your selections far in before the start of Restaurant Week to ensure the best picks of the city. Forgot to make reservations? There is a second chance for you. Many restaurants experience cancellations or no-shows the nights of the event. Calling that night or even just walking around the city to your top picks may garner you a table.

The sponsors of Restaurant Week offer other perks to come out and enjoy city dining. This year for Philadelphia's fall Restaurant Week, Mercedes Benz offered discount parking and a special contest entry for all those who participated - quite a nice perk for going out to dinner! So check out what your city has to offer, and select your top pick for the next Restaurant Week. My pick this year? The Melting Pot...mmm, fondue!