Love Culver’s? Don’t miss out on these 6 easy ways to save money at Culver’s!
{Also be sure to check out 16 Ways to Save More at Restaurants and our Master List of Restaurants Where Kids Eat Free!}
Guest post from Bridgitte of BrigitteBrulz.com
Ask anyone in my immediate family what their favorite restaurant is and Culver’s is the answer! It’s something we all agree on!
What’s not to love about ButterBurgers and fresh frozen custard? Well, if you are on a tight budget… possibly the price.
On the rare occasion my family does go out to eat, we often end up at Culver’s. As a result, I have learned a few tips to save money on those Culver’s visits.
1. Buy kid’s meals.
One of the easiest ways to save money at Culver’s is to eat kid’s meals.
Even adults can purchase a kid’s meal at all of the Culver’s I have visited. Less calories, less cost, and enough to fill my belly (but not my husband’s who does order from the “adult” menu).
Each kid’s meal automatically comes with a coupon for a free scoop of custard and a Scoopie token. Just don’t forget to take the coupon and token off the side of the kid’s meal bag before throwing it away!
You can save ten Scoopie tokens to get a free kid’s meal later. You can also save the free scoop of custard coupon for a future visit. It’s nice being able to go out as a treat for just custard and not having to pay anything! I keep the coupons and tokens in an envelope in my purse (along with gift cards) until I am ready to use them.
If you are automatically charged for a drink with the kid’s meal but prefer water, you can ask for a cup for water (free) and bring the carton of milk (included in the meal) home to use later.
2. Sign up for their e-mail list.
If you want to save money at Culver’s, be sure to sign up for their email list!
Those signed up for a free MyCulver’s account receive coupons, updates, a monthly flavor forecast, and coupons for free custard on each family member’s birthday by email.
The monthly flavor forecast gives you a calendar of the “flavor of the day” for each day of the month for your local Culver’s. Just keep in mind those flavors are only for your local Culver’s. If you are traveling, you can find the flavor of the day for any other Culver’s on the Culver’s website or the Culver’s App.
3. Purchase Culver’s gift cards during the holidays.
Culver’s typically runs a promotional deal on gift cards just before Christmas. For each gift card you purchase (at the amount required), you receive a free value basket coupon.
You can keep the free value basket coupon for yourself and give the gift card to someone else for Christmas. You can also purchase the gift cards for yourself to use throughout the year (and still keep the free value basket coupons)!
4. Use expired coupons.
One of my tricks to save money at Culver’s is to not throw away my expired Culver’s coupons!
You may want to ask your local Culver’s if they will accept expired coupons, but all of the ones I have asked have accepted them.
The birthday coupons for free custard typically state they expire in two weeks. The free value basket coupons received with the gift cards at the end of the year typically state they expire at the end of February. BUT, since my local Culver’s accepts expired coupons, I don’t have to use them (or throw them away) until we are ready to use them.
5. Fill out the survey on your receipt.
Sometimes the receipts will have information about taking an online survey. If your receipt does, you can go online, answer the questions about your recent visit, and receive a code for a free scoop of custard.
Write the code at the bottom of the receipt and bring it in the next time you want a a scoop of custard (possibly on a day that has your favorite flavor of the day).
6. Only go if you have coupons and/or gift cards.
I typically purchase a set number of gift cards at the end of the year (when Culver’s has their gift card promotion) using money set aside for that.
We also get Culver’s gift cards as gifts from others who know we enjoy Culver’s. Those gift cards and coupons last us for the entire next year of Culver’s visits.
If we don’t have a gift card or free custard/free value basket coupons, we don’t go!
What are your best tips to save money at Culver’s — or your favorite restaurant?
Brigitte Brulz is a homeschooling mom, creator of Reading Journals for kids, author of the book Pickles, Pickles, I Like Pickles, and freelance writer. She offers free coloring pages, activity ideas, and more on her website at www.brigittebrulz.com.
