Hello everyone. This is my first post... Tyler Dikman recommended this site to me (youngest Centurian cardholder).

I have a couple things to say. First, I love iDine and visit several Bay Area iDine restaurants religiously. However, I think if you eat out quite a bit, you should upgrade to iDine prime. It only costs $50/yr, and instead of getting an average of 10 miles/dollar, you get a 20% discount. I value my miles at a penny a mile, so I would rather get 20 cents back for every dollar I spend than 10 miles. As previously mentioned, there are also restaurants that give you a 40% discount (or 20 miles for every dollar). I save about $100 a month thanks to iDine.

Second, in response to:
"Be sure to make sure the restaurant exists. We tried going to the 20 mile / $ place in Palo Alto, CA and not only was it not there, it appeared that it hadn't been for some time"

When I saw a 40% iDine discount at a sushi restaurant in Palo Alto, I ran their immediantely (I'm a big sushi fan). I was very disappointed to find out that the restaurant was replaced by the Edge nightclub and restuarant. I said "what the hell, gotta eat somewhere" and decided to try out the Edge restaurant. I spent about $40 including tax and tip on a killer filet mignon topped with portabella mushrooms, a fried banana desert, and a couple of excellent sake-based martinis. In all, it was a very pleasant experience and well worth the $40. I was shocked to find out that a few days later, iDine awarded me a $16 credit to my credit card. It turns out that the Edge is under the same ownership (and merchant account) as the old sushi place that was there, and you can still nab a sweet 40% discount (or 20 miles to the dollar) at the Edge nightclub.

Sorry for the long post. If I find any other good 40% discount restaurants in the Bay, I'll let everyone know. There are at least 10, but I've only tried the Edge restaurant in Palo Alto.

-Josh