At the time of research, this product is $30 lower (30.01% savings) than the next best available price from a reputable merchant with prices ranging from $100.
About the Deal
inKind eGift Cards are redeemable for food & beverage at thousands of top-rated restaurants nationwide, all on the inKind app
Gift card value does not expire
Gift cards are non-refundable/returnable
Offer valid while promotional offer/claimed gift cards last
Additional Details
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At the time of research, this product is $30 lower (30.01% savings) than the next best available price from a reputable merchant with prices ranging from $100.
About the Deal
inKind eGift Cards are redeemable for food & beverage at thousands of top-rated restaurants nationwide, all on the inKind app
Gift card value does not expire
Gift cards are non-refundable/returnable
Offer valid while promotional offer/claimed gift cards last
Additional Details
Don't have Amazon Prime? Students can get a free 6-Month Amazon Prime trial with free 2-day shipping, unlimited video streaming & more
Hi, I own multiple restaurants and have been pitched to by InKind salesmen. To provide a little behind the scenes info; the bottom line terms are they need a 2:1 in credit ("gift cards") exchange for upfront money. So if they give me $10k in funds, and I give them a $20k in credits; and these are typically the kind of numbers we would discuss.
That being said, an average independent restaurant, averaged out over time, are looking at margins is 5-9% fully loaded (emphasis on fully loaded). If you're a chain, and can really optimize every step, and consolidate; sure, you can do better.
Obviously, these are absolute trash terms. Everyone's wondering how this works and how its so cheap. This happens by fooling the businesses into absolutely getting decimated holding the bag in "gift card" liabilities. As a matter of fact, they got past my GM by sending an email as a regular customer asking if they could "purchase" some $10,000 in gift cards. InKind's sales pitch then revolved around only looking at COGs and hypotheticals where there was staff standing around not doing work where they could be moving product at any margin above zero. Sure, if the business was a huge 200+ seat establishment and we had a few dozen staff standing around looking for work; maybe. But not a lot of independent businesses operate that inefficiently.
Businesses dip into InKind and leave after a few months because they do an introductory initial run for a few months before they start really getting into big numbers. And usually, if the business realizes what's happening, they stop it there and heal. Any business doing this in actual need of a real loan has already entered a financial death spiral and it will only be a matter of time as this is not sustainable. Every meal through inkind will be either at cost or even a net loss. These InKind customers will not be back to pay full price, and there's no exit strategy for them to eventually do so. Its great for the diners, but terrible for the business to varying degrees. Again, yes, some of the bigger restaurant groups may be able to absorb these costs, but at that point they already have their own problems.
They don't sell credits to inKind - inKind provides these restaurants cash loans with 0% interest. In exchange the restaurants must users to pay for their tabs via inKind which will go towards the loan balance that the restaurant owns. For most restaurants the real benefit here is for large capital expenditures, which the only sensible use is to open more store fronts to help expand their brand. For single restaurants it doesn't really help them besides giving them a boost in marketing and people in the door. In such a tight business like running restaurants, inKind can be a lifeline for restaurants needing to establish themselves.
I was skeptical with them for awhile but after using it for 3+ years, I'm now a believer that it's somewhat sustainable for them. I get to try new restaurants at a discount and help local businesses survive (or thrive).
This InKind gift card can stretch dining dollars at participating restaurants, especially if you already have spots in mind or want to try new places at a discount. The app payment process is described as seamless, and some locations accept it even when they do not show on the map or Explore tab. The main catch is regional coverage and restaurant restrictions, including dine in only rules, excluded specials, and occasional signs saying InKind is not accepted. The price is also not a standout versus past Costco or Amazon promos, so it works best if nearby options fit your plans.
Shoppers in areas with a strong local restaurant list, because the acceptance network is regional and some locations only show up in search or pay screens.
People who need broad, predictable acceptance, because some restaurants exclude InKind from certain menus, specials, or even display signs saying they do not accept it.
No. Costco has repeatedly sold the same $100 InKind card for about $65, with some earlier Amazon promos dropping it to around $56 and one recent Costco in-store price at $64.99. If you are not in a rush, waiting for a Costco or deeper Amazon discount can save more.
InKind is regional, so you need to enter your location on inkind.com/explore to see nearby participating restaurants. The app also has a Search/Pay flow that can reveal places not shown on the Explore tab, and some users keep a Yelp collection to track local options.
Yes. Some restaurants may not appear on the map or Explore tab but still show up in the Pay menu or accept payment in the app, and some are searchable by name even when they are not advertised locally. Restaurants can also exclude InKind for certain menus or specials.
Not always. A later policy change reportedly stopped stacking promo codes with gift card balance, so promo codes now require paying with a credit card; earlier coupon-and-balance stacking had worked for some users. This change also caused checkout confusion for people who expected the old behavior.
Takeout can work at some restaurants, but others require dine-in and may make a one-time exception. InKind cannot be used for tips or cash back, and some restaurants exclude it from lunch menus, specials, or restaurant-week offers.
He's saying that inKind's proposition was premised on the unlikely scenario where there's a good amount of underutilized labor that could be working on serving more customers and creating more product, even at a lower margin than usual.
Thank you, any gift card that requires an app I'll stay away from from now on. Good luck.
Aye, thanks! But don't get me wrong. A good deal is a good deal. Heck, look at the forum we're in. But in all honesty, if you got a favorite spot and they already signed up for this; it is what it is. They're gonna have to take the hit and hopefully move on. Personally, I'm gonna start using inkind at competing businesses . I'm in downtown Chicago and the market is a bloodbath around here.
No problem; you basically have it. They made the read with me that this needed to make financial sense so we went over that. Their pitch was basically that we have all these fixed overheads not making money; servers standing around, cooks not cooking, rented space with seats but no customers; they would "help" us by filling unused seats using their platform marketplace and discounts to lure customers; for a cost. Under their terms, we'd essentially be giving up a set number of sales (starting at 10k, going all the way up to 6 digits if we wanted to), spread out over time (typically 6-12months starting), at 50% off. Sure, that sucks, but so long as COGs are where they should be (30% or lower), we "should" be healthy enough to absorb those costs.
Unfortunately the food service industry, especially full service ones as an independent, is merciless and brutal (to say the least) and not that simple. The whole premise is shaky at best, and it didn't need to get complicated to see. I could run a 50% off promo and pack my restaurant without them, skip the middle men. With 50% gone from an "ideal" margin, same COGs, I don't need to just double sales to make my money back, I'll need way more. The volume I'd need to move (ideally) now makes my COGs go up to handle it; and that's just the tip of the iceberg.
My real hang-up was no "offramp" from InKind. Sure, I can give them the deal and pretend its a promo, and now I get a bunch of InKind customers with a hidden 50% off coupon that I serve with unsustainable margins. Then what? Will these customers come back to pay full price? Are customer's okay with paying full price sometimes, and half price other times? Will my loyal full price customers all flip to get 50% off? Or even get upset that my loyal patrons have been paying double over disloyal deal hunters?
A business would have to be in bad shape to justify this, and to take this deal would enter what I would deem a death spiral. If they were struggling to maintain altitude as it is, this will only ensure their eventual crash. Only outlier scenarios could justify this; something along the lines of this immediate cash injection being the final puzzle piece for a surefire way to skyrocket sales, but i don't even know how a business could be in such a specific predicament.
Sorry, I accidently went on too long. This is me trying to keep it short too (lol)
Love the insight you're providing. As a deal hunter, I did mention in my original post that inKind can help a restaurant survive or thrive. Though I do agree with you that restaurants entering the program is already in the path of a death spiral since a cash injection may or may not provide a sustainable long term path for survival.
For me, I do share my experience with restaurants with friends and other eaters in my area. Of course I don't mention inKind because I know the restaurants will need to recoup the business via more sales. I find that the least I could do is to do some goodwill 'free' marketing for them.
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Yes, I talked to InKind about this. They stated some restaurants have a different contract to where they don't appear on the map but still allow you to pay using the app.
Also, I've noticed some restaurants excluding InKind for lunch menus and specials. I also talked to InKind about this and they said restaurants are allowed to exclude InKind as a payment.
They don't sell credits to inKind - inKind provides these restaurants cash loans with 0% interest. In exchange the restaurants must users to pay for their tabs via inKind which will go towards the loan balance that the restaurant owns. For most restaurants the real benefit here is for large capital expenditures, which the only sensible use is to open more store fronts to help expand their brand. For single restaurants it doesn't really help them besides giving them a boost in marketing and people in the door. In such a tight business like running restaurants, inKind can be a lifeline for restaurants needing to establish themselves.
I was skeptical with them for awhile but after using it for 3+ years, I'm now a believer that it's somewhat sustainable for them. I get to try new restaurants at a discount and help local businesses survive (or thrive).
Ok so it's 0% interest with how much coupon on the loans? In other words, if I pay the $100 tab via InKind, how much does it go to the loan principal?
You realize that InKind has a customer support ticket. system, right? They're fast and responsive.
As others stated, there is proof that a number of restaurants only appear on the "Pay" menu and not the map. And again, I specifically spoke with their customer support years ago about this as I thought it was a glitch to which they clarified that it was not, some restaurants are not shown on the map per their contract.
Quote
from mpkb
:
Yep, I was in a restaurant during a local restaurant week. The restaurant week special menu stated not combinable with inkind.
That's actually hilarious because InKind was advertising a restaurant week offer in the app.
Last edited by autosaver March 2, 2026 at 07:24 PM.
No problem; you basically have it. They made the read with me that this needed to make financial sense so we went over that. Their pitch was basically that we have all these fixed overheads not making money; servers standing around, cooks not cooking, rented space with seats but no customers; they would "help" us by filling unused seats using their platform marketplace and discounts to lure customers; for a cost. Under their terms, we'd essentially be giving up a set number of sales (starting at 10k, going all the way up to 6 digits if we wanted to), spread out over time (typically 6-12months starting), at 50% off. Sure, that sucks, but so long as COGs are where they should be (30% or lower), we "should" be healthy enough to absorb those costs.
Unfortunately the food service industry, especially full service ones as an independent, is merciless and brutal (to say the least) and not that simple. The whole premise is shaky at best, and it didn't need to get complicated to see. I could run a 50% off promo and pack my restaurant without them, skip the middle men. With 50% gone from an "ideal" margin, same COGs, I don't need to just double sales to make my money back, I'll need way more. The volume I'd need to move (ideally) now makes my COGs go up to handle it; and that's just the tip of the iceberg.
My real hang-up was no "offramp" from InKind. Sure, I can give them the deal and pretend its a promo, and now I get a bunch of InKind customers with a hidden 50% off coupon that I serve with unsustainable margins. Then what? Will these customers come back to pay full price? Are customer's okay with paying full price sometimes, and half price other times? Will my loyal full price customers all flip to get 50% off? Or even get upset that my loyal patrons have been paying double over disloyal deal hunters?
A business would have to be in bad shape to justify this, and to take this deal would enter what I would deem a death spiral. If they were struggling to maintain altitude as it is, this will only ensure their eventual crash. Only outlier scenarios could justify this; something along the lines of this immediate cash injection being the final puzzle piece for a surefire way to skyrocket sales, but i don't even know how a business could be in such a specific predicament.
Sorry, I accidently went on too long. This is me trying to keep it short too (lol)
I think if restaurants needed the loan, it will still make sense if they're providing cash loan with zero interest, also, I'm a InKind user that I often tried new restaurants through InKind and ordered much more than I would normally do to meet the spending limit required for inKind coupons/ rewards … I also experienced restaurant posted "We do not accept inKind payment " on their door even though the restaurant is listed on inKind, if they are working on the future credits base, I feel really bad for inKind as they have given free interest loan in exchange to future credits, and restaurant secretly blocked customers to use inKind ?! So they don't never need to pay back their loan?
I think if restaurants needed the loan, it will still make sense if they're providing cash loan with zero interest, also, I'm a InKind user that I often tried new restaurants through InKind and ordered much more than I would normally do to meet the spending limit required for inKind coupons/ rewards … I also experienced restaurant posted "We do not accept inKind payment " on their door even though the restaurant is listed on inKind, if they are working on the future credits base, I feel really bad for inKind as they have given free interest loan in exchange to future credits, and restaurant secretly blocked customers to use inKind ?! So they don't never need to pay back their loan?
It's not an interest free loan; far from it. Interest doesn't have to be an APR. Interest is essentially the cost of borrowing; and with InKind that costs is double the loan amount in gift card liabilities. As mentioned in previous posts, this is a terrible deal for a vast majority of restaurants. Any customer that dines using InKind basically murders the business's margin's. You say you spend more at the business with InKind? You're likely only further damaging their bottom line. Most independent businesses can't operate with enough margin at their operating capacity and the volume bump needed to make it worth their while will call for a bigger operation. So even if it works out, its 1 step forward 0.9 step back.
Seeing a sign like ""We do not accept inKind payment" should be all the evidence you need. InKind are predatory lenders, plain and simple. They make false claims, lie, and mislead businesses into making the commitment. Businesses will be on the hook for the credits until they are turned the are all used or file for bankruptcy (I specifically asked). Some businesses tough it out and deal with the loss, others do what you see and just try to stop it. Don't feel bad; the company feeds off ruining businesses. I always wondered how people get tricked into bad loans like during the housing market crash or these days with terrible auto loans. This is how; they dangle the carrot and mislead you on how easy it will be. They're a drain on society.
Today was the first time I couldn't combine my InKind gift card balance with an Inkind coupon. Did this happen to anyone? If this is the new rule, then this is going downhill.
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Today was the first time I couldn't combine my InKind gift card balance with an Inkind coupon. Did this happen to anyone? If this is the new rule, then this is going downhill.
Another thread some users mentioned they received an email stating you can no longer combine promo codes w giftcard balance starting last mon, I think the 16th. To use a promo code, you must pay w credit card, no more stacking w gc balance. They also made a change to new user accounts but I haven't read into it.
Some user's received the email, some didn't. Which is bad business on their part, as I can only imagine the mass nightmare of user's being baffled trying to pay not knowing why their stacking isn't working. Puts access stress on the diner n staff trying to figure it out. It is in effect, so that is one door closed, making the app less appealing. Also a very bad move not emailing all user's. Their response to this change was "we can change the term's at anytime".
Last edited by nutz March 23, 2026 at 08:26 AM.
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That being said, an average independent restaurant, averaged out over time, are looking at margins is 5-9% fully loaded (emphasis on fully loaded). If you're a chain, and can really optimize every step, and consolidate; sure, you can do better.
Obviously, these are absolute trash terms. Everyone's wondering how this works and how its so cheap. This happens by fooling the businesses into absolutely getting decimated holding the bag in "gift card" liabilities. As a matter of fact, they got past my GM by sending an email as a regular customer asking if they could "purchase" some $10,000 in gift cards. InKind's sales pitch then revolved around only looking at COGs and hypotheticals where there was staff standing around not doing work where they could be moving product at any margin above zero. Sure, if the business was a huge 200+ seat establishment and we had a few dozen staff standing around looking for work; maybe. But not a lot of independent businesses operate that inefficiently.
Businesses dip into InKind and leave after a few months because they do an introductory initial run for a few months before they start really getting into big numbers. And usually, if the business realizes what's happening, they stop it there and heal. Any business doing this in actual need of a real loan has already entered a financial death spiral and it will only be a matter of time as this is not sustainable. Every meal through inkind will be either at cost or even a net loss. These InKind customers will not be back to pay full price, and there's no exit strategy for them to eventually do so. Its great for the diners, but terrible for the business to varying degrees. Again, yes, some of the bigger restaurant groups may be able to absorb these costs, but at that point they already have their own problems.
I was skeptical with them for awhile but after using it for 3+ years, I'm now a believer that it's somewhat sustainable for them. I get to try new restaurants at a discount and help local businesses survive (or thrive).
Community Reviews
This InKind gift card can stretch dining dollars at participating restaurants, especially if you already have spots in mind or want to try new places at a discount. The app payment process is described as seamless, and some locations accept it even when they do not show on the map or Explore tab. The main catch is regional coverage and restaurant restrictions, including dine in only rules, excluded specials, and occasional signs saying InKind is not accepted. The price is also not a standout versus past Costco or Amazon promos, so it works best if nearby options fit your plans.
InKind can provide restaurants with 0% interest cash loans that get repaid when diners pay tabs using InKind.
InKind can help diners try new restaurants at a discount while supporting local businesses.
InKind acceptance can be found by using the app search bar even when a restaurant is not advertised on the local area explore list.
InKind support reportedly can clarify mapping differences where some restaurants appear on the Pay menu but not on the map.
InKind gift card deals can stack with signup and referral credits and a $25 off $50 coupon.
InKind promo stacking rules can change, and diners may be unable to combine gift card balances with coupons after policy updates.
InKind can be harder to use when nearby restaurants accept it infrequently or the available options are not appealing.
Some restaurants reportedly exclude InKind for lunch menus, specials, or certain promotions like restaurant week offers.
InKind acceptance can be confusing because some restaurants may show on the Pay menu but not on the map due to contract terms.
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Unfortunately the food service industry, especially full service ones as an independent, is merciless and brutal (to say the least) and not that simple. The whole premise is shaky at best, and it didn't need to get complicated to see. I could run a 50% off promo and pack my restaurant without them, skip the middle men. With 50% gone from an "ideal" margin, same COGs, I don't need to just double sales to make my money back, I'll need way more. The volume I'd need to move (ideally) now makes my COGs go up to handle it; and that's just the tip of the iceberg.
My real hang-up was no "offramp" from InKind. Sure, I can give them the deal and pretend its a promo, and now I get a bunch of InKind customers with a hidden 50% off coupon that I serve with unsustainable margins. Then what? Will these customers come back to pay full price? Are customer's okay with paying full price sometimes, and half price other times? Will my loyal full price customers all flip to get 50% off? Or even get upset that my loyal patrons have been paying double over disloyal deal hunters?
A business would have to be in bad shape to justify this, and to take this deal would enter what I would deem a death spiral. If they were struggling to maintain altitude as it is, this will only ensure their eventual crash. Only outlier scenarios could justify this; something along the lines of this immediate cash injection being the final puzzle piece for a surefire way to skyrocket sales, but i don't even know how a business could be in such a specific predicament.
Sorry, I accidently went on too long. This is me trying to keep it short too (lol)
For me, I do share my experience with restaurants with friends and other eaters in my area. Of course I don't mention inKind because I know the restaurants will need to recoup the business via more sales. I find that the least I could do is to do some goodwill 'free' marketing for them.
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Also, I've noticed some restaurants excluding InKind for lunch menus and specials. I also talked to InKind about this and they said restaurants are allowed to exclude InKind as a payment.
I was skeptical with them for awhile but after using it for 3+ years, I'm now a believer that it's somewhat sustainable for them. I get to try new restaurants at a discount and help local businesses survive (or thrive).
As others stated, there is proof that a number of restaurants only appear on the "Pay" menu and not the map. And again, I specifically spoke with their customer support years ago about this as I thought it was a glitch to which they clarified that it was not, some restaurants are not shown on the map per their contract.
No problem; you basically have it. They made the read with me that this needed to make financial sense so we went over that. Their pitch was basically that we have all these fixed overheads not making money; servers standing around, cooks not cooking, rented space with seats but no customers; they would "help" us by filling unused seats using their platform marketplace and discounts to lure customers; for a cost. Under their terms, we'd essentially be giving up a set number of sales (starting at 10k, going all the way up to 6 digits if we wanted to), spread out over time (typically 6-12months starting), at 50% off. Sure, that sucks, but so long as COGs are where they should be (30% or lower), we "should" be healthy enough to absorb those costs.
Unfortunately the food service industry, especially full service ones as an independent, is merciless and brutal (to say the least) and not that simple. The whole premise is shaky at best, and it didn't need to get complicated to see. I could run a 50% off promo and pack my restaurant without them, skip the middle men. With 50% gone from an "ideal" margin, same COGs, I don't need to just double sales to make my money back, I'll need way more. The volume I'd need to move (ideally) now makes my COGs go up to handle it; and that's just the tip of the iceberg.
My real hang-up was no "offramp" from InKind. Sure, I can give them the deal and pretend its a promo, and now I get a bunch of InKind customers with a hidden 50% off coupon that I serve with unsustainable margins. Then what? Will these customers come back to pay full price? Are customer's okay with paying full price sometimes, and half price other times? Will my loyal full price customers all flip to get 50% off? Or even get upset that my loyal patrons have been paying double over disloyal deal hunters?
A business would have to be in bad shape to justify this, and to take this deal would enter what I would deem a death spiral. If they were struggling to maintain altitude as it is, this will only ensure their eventual crash. Only outlier scenarios could justify this; something along the lines of this immediate cash injection being the final puzzle piece for a surefire way to skyrocket sales, but i don't even know how a business could be in such a specific predicament.
Sorry, I accidently went on too long. This is me trying to keep it short too (lol)
Seeing a sign like ""We do not accept inKind payment" should be all the evidence you need. InKind are predatory lenders, plain and simple. They make false claims, lie, and mislead businesses into making the commitment. Businesses will be on the hook for the credits until they are turned the are all used or file for bankruptcy (I specifically asked). Some businesses tough it out and deal with the loss, others do what you see and just try to stop it. Don't feel bad; the company feeds off ruining businesses. I always wondered how people get tricked into bad loans like during the housing market crash or these days with terrible auto loans. This is how; they dangle the carrot and mislead you on how easy it will be. They're a drain on society.
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Some user's received the email, some didn't. Which is bad business on their part, as I can only imagine the mass nightmare of user's being baffled trying to pay not knowing why their stacking isn't working. Puts access stress on the diner n staff trying to figure it out. It is in effect, so that is one door closed, making the app less appealing. Also a very bad move not emailing all user's. Their response to this change was "we can change the term's at anytime".
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