written by delllisa on 16/08/2016
Stay clear, I had a £1 trial membership. I fully understood I had to cancel this membership by a certain date to avoid an auto review and £39.95 being taken out of my account. I cancelled this a week before the deadline by phone and was advised that no monies will be debited. I was very upset when the money was debited, I immediately contacted them, they apologised and said I had cancelled in time and a full refund will be provided within 2 - 5 days, this lapsed and I called them back, they apologised again and said a refund will be issued in my account that day, again it never was !! I have contacted the CAB and they have advised to go to trading standards, apparently they get a lot of calls about them. Stay clear if I were you - Tastecard seems much better in my opinion.
written by BradyPiper on 25/02/2015
Tried them for a year and they were ok, but have nothing on Tastecard, so was planning to not renew this year. They went ahead and charged me anyway a week before expiry and now refuse to cancel and refund. At no point my permission was asked
written by zxKenney364 on 03/07/2014
The introductory offers are a way to get your credit card details. They bill you for another year and refuse any refund when you complain. Don't confuse with Tastecard who are legit.
written by joanawilson on 18/06/2014
Don't get hooked with a free trial! You can't use the card in most places Fri - Sun and the free trial locks you in for another year unless you: Telephone for a cancellation code Return the card Chase them up to see they have cancelled before a years membership is debited All on an 0845 number in a lengthy call wait! All in all, a crooked company - try the TASTECARD which is opposite to them as you sign up for a free trial, and are not locked in, and don't get all this hassle!
written by on 29/10/2013
Signed up for free trial via telegraph and got sucked in to 3 months for £1. Never actually used the card so didn't benefit from it as didn't realise can't use fri - sun. The GS sent me a new card telling me they would discount almost £70 from my card - I never agreed to this. Called to cancel card - expensive call, on hold for ages. Eventually spoke to someone with a nasal drawl who mumbled so badly found it hard to understand him, kept trying various things to get me to continue membership ... Said I just wanted to leave - he then got shirty with me(!) I'm the one who has to send back stuff they sent which I never asked for!!!!!! Stuff now sent off - after reading other reviews elsewhere need to keep checking they not charging me. Avoid, avoid, avoid and stick to free voucher codes.
written by on 13/12/2011
I got a free trial of the Gourmet Society card and I was planning to cancel the membership after the 2 month free trial like I did with tastecard. However, I was surprised to find that unlike tastecard they actually have some restaurants that take your card at the weekend! During the trial period, I ate at Cafe Rouge and saved £20, then at a local Indian and saved about the same. The price for the membership after the trial was £40, and as I had already saved about that I thought it was well worth it! There's no difference between the food you get at a restaurant if you go there with the card, and most of the time you don't have to book in advance (well, everywhere I've been anyway). I like the 25% off the total bill offer the best, makes the wine very cheap! Not so keen on 2 for 1 as usually it's only for 2 people, but 50% off food is a pretty good deal too. As long as you look on the internet at the restaurant details before you go I don't see why anyone would have a problem using this (sad member?) All in all, I would recommend it, even if you only eat out a few times a year.
written by on 03/05/2011
I have visited the Red Hot Buffet and Bar in Milton Keynes and Nottingham, and have been extremely pleased with the service and quality of food at both of the locations. The restaurant would be suitable for anyones tastes as there is a massive choice of food, I particularly enjoyed the desert bar, offering bite size tasters of a variety of cakes.
I would recommend Red Hot to anyone who wants to enjoy excellent food in a relaxed and lively environment!
written by on 01/02/2010
This is well worth having if you ike eating out. get discounts at all sorts of different restaurants - not just chains like you'd find on the internet discount sites. another plus is the card works all over the country which is really useful. if you eat out more than once or twice a year in one of the restaurants offering the discount, it'll pay for itself. I eat out about once a month and it's well worth having. The best offer is actually the 25% off as this covers a few people and includes drinks.
written by elliotreed on 02/04/2008
Found it works really well though, because its got some really posh restaurants as well as some unpretentious small places, and chain restaurants too if thats your bag.
Theres loads of restaurants where I live in the Midlands, but think its a nationwide jobbie. My mate joined a few weeks ago on a promotional code, it stuck in my mind cos it was PRETTY
she paid 25 quid and got 14months, she reckons she's already saved that!!!! God, I sound like I work for them but I promise I dont, just think its a pretty good deal!
Anyway it's well worth it!
written by nottsfoodie on 11/06/2007
I think the http://www.thegourmetsociety.co.uk is great if you eat out even just a few times in a year. If you are expecting to get totally free food and drink every time you go out and never have to spend a single penny again it is not for you. However, if you like the idea of finding out about new restaurants and exploring the town and countryside whilst saving cash it a definite must. Finally if you do join I would try and find a promo code as it saves you a bit of cash on the membership fee compared to the normal web offer.
Written on: 01/09/2007
Glad to hear your experience. I've just phoned 5 restaurants at random, and only two offered 'two meals for the price of one', and that was Monday to Thursday only. Others offered 25 percent off, but only 2 of the restaurants offered discounts of any kind over the weekends. Trying to fit in with the Gourmet Society card could be quite complicated.
written by sad member on 24/04/2007
They also infer that you visit a restaurant as normal and then present the card when requesting the bill. In fact, you have to mention your membership at the time of booking. And there is also confusion as to how many people can be in your party. Although we were a party of four and ordered four main courses, we only got a discount of one main course in total.
Written on: 11/06/2007
I have had a Gourmet Society membership for a good few years, and I have honestly found it to be great. All of the restaurants allow members to use their cards once, twice, three times or unlimited times. When I first joined, Wagamama in Nottingham allowed you to use it unlimited times, but at some point in my second year this stopped. I too was a bit saddened, but then I thought, does it really matter that much, as there are 500 odd other restaurants to use? Also, on the couple of times I have spoken to the Gourmet Society people, they have been very friendly and helpful.
Written on: 16/04/2008
I see what you re saying, but from the website, it looks like there's about a 1000 restaurants on the Gourmet Societys books. Im not really too upset if I can only go to one restaurant 3 times when theres that many! I've just bought the Gourmet Society card and I've already saved the cost of the card by using it just a couple of times.
I usually ring up and ask the restaurant manager to clarify which Gourmet Society offer it uses when making a reservation. That way theres no embarrassment when I get the bill.
If want a card that saves you money when you go out for a meal, then the Gourmet Society is for you. If you want to have a free 3 course meal and drinks every time you go out, then I think you're missing the point of the card.
Written on: 01/09/2007
I found this review about the Gourmet Society helpful.
Once we've checked over your question we will put it live on the site and our strong community of experts will hopefully give you some great answers that you find useful.
We will email you when the question is on the site
Once we've checked over your answer we will put it live on the site so others can gain from your experience. We rely on members like you to sustain our vibrant community so thanks again, we couldn't do it without you.
We will email your when your answer is on the site
As rated by our community of reviewers
Binsisared's Response to delllisa's Review
Written on: 18/07/2018
They don't want to know. Fell ill during trial period and never used card. Tried to cancel and got fobbed off. I will do my utmost via social media to warn my friends
It is a rip off