If someone told me I can save 15% at my favorite restaurant, I would ask him where I can get the coupon. But what I’m about to share with you doesn’t require any coupons or VIP membership signup, or anything like that. All you have to do is go to your favorite restaurant and get the discount. Too simple and too easy to be true? What’s the catch? Well, there is no catch! No catch at all!

Ok, ok, I lied…there is a small catch. Let me explain how this works. It will blow your mind so make sure you’re sitting down when you read what I’m about to say next.

No Coupons Necessary

When you dine at a restaurant, whether it be at McDonald’s or at a fine restaurant, you probably place your drink orders first. Sometimes you order wine to start things off. Other times, you might want beer. But most of the times, you’ll order some sort of soda, like Coke or Sprite. Perhaps, you always order a non-carbonated drink such as iced-tea or lemonade. Besides alcoholic drinks, most beverages cost about the same, somewhere between $2-$3, with unlimited refills, of course. Do you now see where I’m going with this? For me, whenever I go out, my typical bill for myself is usually around $15, sometimes it goes up to $20 or even more. If I order a glass of water instead of soda, that’s $2-3 I save, which equates to anywhere from 10-20% savings from the total bill.

Say No To Soda

The small catch I was referring to earlier is basically the fact that you must resort do drinking water as your beverage. Not really a huge sacrifice, and water is healthier for you anyway. After I realized how much I was paying for a little thirst quencher (not really), I stopped ordering drinks altogether. I always get water instead. It probably saved me hundreds of dollars over the course of several years of realizing this phenomenon. So, next time when you’re dining out, choose water instead and you could save 15% on your dinner bill.