topic Re: Do Cheesecake Factory Gift Cards Qualify for Amex Gold Dining Credit in Credit Cards

Do Cheesecake Factory Gift Cards Qualify for Amex Gold Dining Credit

Jordan23ww — Mon, 02 Nov 2020 13:59:38 GMT

I have been considering getting the Amex Gold card. Looking at the restaurant credit the only restaurant I frequent is the Cheesecake Factory. I'm wondering if buying Cheesecake Factory gift cards qualify for the $10 dining credit? Out of the places listed I know I will probably only go to Cheesecake Factory and don't know if I will realistically go there 12 times a year. Wondering if anyone has found success getting a gift card to meet eligibility for the $10 dining credit?

Re: Do Cheesecake Factory Gift Cards Qualify for Amex Gold Dining Credit

simplynoir — Mon, 02 Nov 2020 14:28:44 GMT

They do but not to your benefit if you want to avoid going the Cheesecake Factory every month. Believe it only works for gift cards purchased physically at the restaurant itself, online gift card purchases do not qualify

Re: Do Cheesecake Factory Gift Cards Qualify for Amex Gold Dining Credit

Anonymous — Mon, 02 Nov 2020 18:32:18 GMT

You know I once though as you, out of all the places on their list only Cheescake Factory is close enough to even go there. Yet every time I go to the City I've usually already gotten my monthly alotment from GubHub(KFC) close to home, or I never end up going for some reason.

And a whole Cheesecake is definitely not going to make it home before spoiling.

That said GC's do not trigger the credit, only purchases inside the restaraunt so you would have to buy it there.

Re: Do Cheesecake Factory Gift Cards Qualify for Amex Gold Dining Credit

wasCB14 — Mon, 02 Nov 2020 19:04:08 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
You know I once though as you, out of all the places on their list only Cheescake Factory is close enough to even go there. Yet every time I go to the City I've usually already gotten my monthly alotment from GubHub(KFC) close to home, or I never end up going for some reason.
And a whole Cheesecake is definitely not going to make it home before spoiling.

That said GC's do not trigger the credit, only purchases inside the restaraunt so you would have to buy it there.

I last bought a whole cheesecake there "to go" around 2012, but I do recall it was sold frozen or "deeply chilled" as they said.

If you want to buy a lot of frozen CF cheesecake, you might as well get it at a grocery store.

My local Cheesecake Factory sells a 10-inch original cheesecake for $47.95, pickup only.

Via Instacart, my local Costco sells the same 10-inch original CF cheesecake for $15.89. Not sure what the in-store price is, but it would be even lower without the Instacart markup. They used to do some sort of mix of 4 quarters, each different popular flavors.

So you'd have to really want a particular in-store-only flavor to pay that kind of markup on a whole cheesecake. Otherwise the $10 monthly credit isn't that great.

Re: Do Cheesecake Factory Gift Cards Qualify for Amex Gold Dining Credit

Aim_High — Mon, 02 Nov 2020 21:05:26 GMT

@Jordan23ww wrote:
I have been considering getting the Amex Gold card. Looking at the restaurant credit the only restaurant I frequent is the Cheesecake Factory. I'm wondering if buying Cheesecake Factory gift cards qualify for the $10 dining credit? Out of the places listed I know I will probably only go to Cheesecake Factory and don't know if I will realistically go there 12 times a year. Wondering if anyone has found success getting a gift card to meet eligibility for the $10 dining credit?

I had the same idea @Jordan23ww. Earlier this year, I got a great 75K UR point SUB to open the Gold card but am disappointed in how easily I'll be able to get redeem any credits. AMEX does tell you in the fine print that Cheesecake Factory gift cards can't be used for the credit but I had expected that might be bypassed if you purchased in-store as others mentioned. I was traveling recently and looked at the Ruth Chris menu online but their prices appear to be so inflated that the $10 credit would be meaningless compared to dining at a comparable local steakhouse. Long term, I'd like to keep the Gold card open but not sure if it makes sense for me. Still, the 75K MR points pays the AF for at least the short term.

Re: Do Cheesecake Factory Gift Cards Qualify for Amex Gold Dining Credit

Jordan23ww — Mon, 02 Nov 2020 21:51:08 GMT

@simplynoir wrote:
They do but not to your benefit if you want to avoid going the Cheesecake Factory every month. Believe it only works for gift cards purchased physically at the restaurant itself, online gift card purchases do not qualify

Oh ok, thank you! I guess this would be better than flat out just losing the credit! There are 2 Cheesecake Factories within driving distance to me but one is on the other side of town about 30 minutes away, the other is in a neighboring city about 50 minutes away (I have family that stays 5 minutes away from this one).

While not being able to get them online will be an inconvenience at least I have another alternative to still maximize getting this credit every month. With some careful planing I could once a month head over to get a gift card and save it for a future meal there. Thanks again!

Re: Do Cheesecake Factory Gift Cards Qualify for Amex Gold Dining Credit

Jordan23ww — Mon, 02 Nov 2020 22:01:03 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
You know I once though as you, out of all the places on their list only Cheescake Factory is close enough to even go there. Yet every time I go to the City I've usually already gotten my monthly alotment from GubHub(KFC) close to home, or I never end up going for some reason.
And a whole Cheesecake is definitely not going to make it home before spoiling.

That said GC's do not trigger the credit, only purchases inside the restaraunt so you would have to buy it there.

Thank you so much for letting me know! When you use the Grubhub credit do you go pick up your food or have them deliver? I still haven't used any delivery services yet. I always found it quicker (and cheaper🙈🙈🙈) for me to just go. With the new Uber Cash and Uber Eats offers on the Gold Card I may cave and try them.

Re: Do Cheesecake Factory Gift Cards Qualify for Amex Gold Dining Credit

Jordan23ww — Mon, 02 Nov 2020 22:04:42 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
You know I once though as you, out of all the places on their list only Cheescake Factory is close enough to even go there. Yet every time I go to the City I've usually already gotten my monthly alotment from GubHub(KFC) close to home, or I never end up going for some reason.
And a whole Cheesecake is definitely not going to make it home before spoiling.

That said GC's do not trigger the credit, only purchases inside the restaraunt so you would have to buy it there.

If you don't mind me asking I'm curious do you use both your BCP and Gold card for groceries? I'm looking for ways to continue to get value from my BCP when I get the Gold card.

Re: Do Cheesecake Factory Gift Cards Qualify for Amex Gold Dining Credit

Jordan23ww — Mon, 02 Nov 2020 22:17:41 GMT

@Aim_High wrote:
@Jordan23ww wrote:
I have been considering getting the Amex Gold card. Looking at the restaurant credit the only restaurant I frequent is the Cheesecake Factory. I'm wondering if buying Cheesecake Factory gift cards qualify for the $10 dining credit? Out of the places listed I know I will probably only go to Cheesecake Factory and don't know if I will realistically go there 12 times a year. Wondering if anyone has found success getting a gift card to meet eligibility for the $10 dining credit?
I had the same idea @Jordan23ww. Earlier this year, I got a great 75K UR point SUB to open the Gold card but am disappointed in how easily I'll be able to get redeem any credits. AMEX does tell you in the fine print that Cheesecake Factory gift cards can't be used for the credit but I had expected that might be bypassed if you purchased in-store as others mentioned. I was traveling recently and looked at the Ruth Chris menu online but their prices appear to be so inflated that the $10 credit would be meaningless compared to dining at a comparable local steakhouse. Long term, I'd like to keep the Gold card open but not sure if it makes sense for me. Still, the 75K MR points pays the AF for at least the short term.

Thank you so much for your feedback! That has been a concern for me. Of all the places we can use the credit for I really only eat at the Cheesecake Factory. We don't even have a Shake Shack! We have a Ruth's Chris but since I don't eat steak I haven't ever tried them. Looked at them online Saturday and had a feeling I'd have to overspend the $10 credit a lot just to eat there. I wouldn't mind it if I already liked them but we've had our Ruth's Chris restaurant for over 10 years and not once have I wanted to go there.

I know it's a moot point but I wish you could use all $120 of the dining credit at once or save them up and use them as needed until all $120 has been used. Before now I've probably only eaten at the Cheesecake Factory 4 to 5 times a year but with the pandemic going on I haven't eaten there once this year so far.

Re: Do Cheesecake Factory Gift Cards Qualify for Amex Gold Dining Credit

Aim_High — Mon, 02 Nov 2020 22:56:22 GMT

@Jordan23ww wrote:
@Aim_High wrote: I had the same idea @Jordan23ww. Earlier this year, I got a great 75K UR point SUB to open the Gold card but am disappointed in how easily I'll be able to get redeem any credits. AMEX does tell you in the fine print that Cheesecake Factory gift cards can't be used for the credit but I had expected that might be bypassed if you purchased in-store as others mentioned. I was traveling recently and looked at the Ruth Chris menu online but their prices appear to be so inflated that the $10 credit would be meaningless compared to dining at a comparable local steakhouse. Long term, I'd like to keep the Gold card open but not sure if it makes sense for me. Still, the 75K MR points pays the AF for at least the short term.
Thank you so much for your feedback! That has been a concern for me. Of all the places we can use the credit for I really only eat at the Cheesecake Factory. We don't even have a Shake Shack! We have a Ruth's Chris but since I don't eat steak I haven't ever tried them. Looked at them online Saturday and had a feeling I'd have to overspend the $10 credit a lot just to eat there. I wouldn't mind it if I already liked them but we've had our Ruth's Chris restaurant for over 10 years and not once have I wanted to go there.

I know it's a moot point but I wish you could use all $120 of the dining credit at once or save them up and use them as needed until all $120 has been used. Before now I've probably only eaten at the Cheesecake Factory 4 to 5 times a year but with the pandemic going on I haven't eaten there once this year so far.

Yes, that's a frustrating thing about AMEX and how they make their credits more difficult to reach. I guess the industry term is "breakage" or "spoilage" which is intentional to try to make full use of credits difficult. But they can still advertise them.

Here is a Ruth Chris dinner menu. Looks like everything is ala carte, so you'd pay around $30 to $60 per entree (and up) and then another $11 to $13 each for salads, soups, or sides. Add an appetizer or dessert, drinks, tax, and tip and you're looking at probably an easy $75 or even much more per person. Not that I'd never do that but I don't do that kind of dining every month and many people never do. DW and I could afford to do this but even though we dine out often, we have better places to put our money than on regular expensive meals.

Re: Do Cheesecake Factory Gift Cards Qualify for Amex Gold Dining Credit

Anonymous — Mon, 02 Nov 2020 23:25:52 GMT

@Jordan23ww wrote:
Thank you so much for letting me know! When you use the Grubhub credit do you go pick up your food or have them deliver? I still haven't used any delivery services yet. I always found it quicker (and cheaper🙈🙈🙈) for me to just go. With the new Uber Cash and Uber Eats offers on the Gold Card I may cave and try them.

GrubHub doesn't offer delivery in my location yet. Even if they did I'd still go pick it up because of the whole "will it arrive cold" and "will I have to tip" for that service as well. lol

Besides the only place that partners with GH is KFC and it's only 5 minutes away so I can be there before it's even done so it doesn't "sit around" waiting for m to arrive either. And at least with KFC I'm not out $20+ per meal so the $10 credit is seen as a bigger savings versus going to the other places on the list that will cost me that $20+.

As for the other question I use Gold strictly for Dining and other misc purchases that fall under their offers to see maximum points when used. Because I have BCP for all grocery and streaming spend.

Re: Do Cheesecake Factory Gift Cards Qualify for Amex Gold Dining Credit

Jordan23ww — Tue, 03 Nov 2020 20:58:28 GMT

@Aim_High wrote:
@Jordan23ww wrote:
@Aim_High wrote: I had the same idea @Jordan23ww. Earlier this year, I got a great 75K UR point SUB to open the Gold card but am disappointed in how easily I'll be able to get redeem any credits. AMEX does tell you in the fine print that Cheesecake Factory gift cards can't be used for the credit but I had expected that might be bypassed if you purchased in-store as others mentioned. I was traveling recently and looked at the Ruth Chris menu online but their prices appear to be so inflated that the $10 credit would be meaningless compared to dining at a comparable local steakhouse. Long term, I'd like to keep the Gold card open but not sure if it makes sense for me. Still, the 75K MR points pays the AF for at least the short term.
Thank you so much for your feedback! That has been a concern for me. Of all the places we can use the credit for I really only eat at the Cheesecake Factory. We don't even have a Shake Shack! We have a Ruth's Chris but since I don't eat steak I haven't ever tried them. Looked at them online Saturday and had a feeling I'd have to overspend the $10 credit a lot just to eat there. I wouldn't mind it if I already liked them but we've had our Ruth's Chris restaurant for over 10 years and not once have I wanted to go there.

I know it's a moot point but I wish you could use all $120 of the dining credit at once or save them up and use them as needed until all $120 has been used. Before now I've probably only eaten at the Cheesecake Factory 4 to 5 times a year but with the pandemic going on I haven't eaten there once this year so far.
Yes, that's a frustrating thing about AMEX and how they make their credits more difficult to reach. I guess the industry term is "breakage" or "spoilage" which is intentional to try to make full use of credits difficult. But they can still advertise them.

Here is a Ruth Chris dinner menu. Looks like everything is ala carte, so you'd pay around $30 to $60 per entree (and up) and then another $11 to $13 each for salads, soups, or sides. Add an appetizer or dessert, drinks, tax, and tip and you're looking at probably an easy $75 or even much more per person. Not that I'd never do that but I don't do that kind of dining every month and many people never do. DW and I could afford to do this but even though we dine out often, we have better places to put our money than on regular expensive meals.

Thank you so much for sending me the menu! I agree with everything you said! My wife loves steak but I don't. I couldn't see us going here every month. Maybe we'd maybe try it sometime just to experience it, but there's a lot of other restaurants we'd rather go to. Looks like I'll be using my Gold Card dining credit on Cheesecake Factory! :0)

Re: Do Cheesecake Factory Gift Cards Qualify for Amex Gold Dining Credit

Jordan23ww — Tue, 03 Nov 2020 21:07:49 GMT

@Anonymous wrote:
@Jordan23ww wrote:
Thank you so much for letting me know! When you use the Grubhub credit do you go pick up your food or have them deliver? I still haven't used any delivery services yet. I always found it quicker (and cheaper🙈🙈🙈) for me to just go. With the new Uber Cash and Uber Eats offers on the Gold Card I may cave and try them.
GrubHub doesn't offer delivery in my location yet. Even if they did I'd still go pick it up because of the whole "will it arrive cold" and "will I have to tip" for that service as well. lol
Besides the only place that partners with GH is KFC and it's only 5 minutes away so I can be there before it's even done so it doesn't "sit around" waiting for m to arrive either. And at least with KFC I'm not out $20+ per meal so the $10 credit is seen as a bigger savings versus going to the other places on the list that will cost me that $20+.

As for the other question I use Gold strictly for Dining and other misc purchases that fall under their offers to see maximum points when used. Because I have BCP for all grocery and streaming spend.

The way you use Grub Hub makes so much sense to me. I have a friend that has used Door Dash and has vented to me a few times about his order taking 2 to 3 hours to arrive because no driver was available to pick up his food. The food was beyond cold both of those times. That alone made me reluctant to give any food delivery service a try. If given the option I think I would always prefer to use the dining credit to order it and just pick it up myself. Also like you said not having to spend $20 plus on top of the $10 dining credit would be nice. I don't want the credit to wind up making me spend money I would not be spending otherwise.

Thank you for the info regarding your BCP and grocery shopping. I think I will do the same too! Between dining out, the Uber Eats deal and Amex Offers I believe I should be able to come out ahead. If I don't use the BCP for groceries then I won't be getting much use from that card. Thanks again for your help!

Re: Do Cheesecake Factory Gift Cards Qualify for Amex Gold Dining Credit

wasCB14 — Tue, 03 Nov 2020 21:18:51 GMT

@Jordan23ww wrote:
@Aim_High wrote:
Yes, that's a frustrating thing about AMEX and how they make their credits more difficult to reach. I guess the industry term is "breakage" or "spoilage" which is intentional to try to make full use of credits difficult. But they can still advertise them.

Here is a Ruth Chris dinner menu. Looks like everything is ala carte, so you'd pay around $30 to $60 per entree (and up) and then another $11 to $13 each for salads, soups, or sides. Add an appetizer or dessert, drinks, tax, and tip and you're looking at probably an easy $75 or even much more per person. Not that I'd never do that but I don't do that kind of dining every month and many people never do. DW and I could afford to do this but even though we dine out often, we have better places to put our money than on regular expensive meals.
Thank you so much for sending me the menu! I agree with everything you said! My wife loves steak but I don't. I couldn't see us going here every month. Maybe we'd maybe try it sometime just to experience it, but there's a lot of other restaurants we'd rather go to. Looks like I'll be using my Gold Card dining credit on Cheesecake Factory! :0)

RC prices will vary by location. In Pasadena, CA the seafood is about the same price or a little cheaper, while the steaks are about 10%-20% more expensive.

I'm quite happy to get Prime ribeyes at Costco and grill them in the back yard. I save on wine and don't need to worry about driving.

Re: Do Cheesecake Factory Gift Cards Qualify for Amex Gold Dining Credit

wasCB14 — Tue, 03 Nov 2020 23:47:40 GMT

The dining credits go by calendar month, right? How easy is it to check if you've already used it in a given month? Do you just glance through YTD spend and credits? Can I set something so Amex emails me when the credit is used for a month (faster to search)?

With multiple ways to redeem, it's not like the Uber credits on Platinum where the funds are loaded to the Uber account, and when it's gone it's gone.

Re: Do Cheesecake Factory Gift Cards Qualify for Amex Gold Dining Credit

simplynoir — Wed, 04 Nov 2020 01:49:26 GMT

@wasCB14 wrote:
The dining credits go by calendar month, right? How easy is it to check if you've already used it in a given month? Do you just glance through YTD spend and credits? Can I set something so Amex emails me when the credit is used for a month (faster to search)?

With multiple ways to redeem, it's not like the Uber credits on Platinum where the funds are loaded to the Uber account, and when it's gone it's gone.

Should be there on the website like the airline credit

Re: Do Cheesecake Factory Gift Cards Qualify for Amex Gold Dining Credit

Aim_High — Wed, 04 Nov 2020 16:15:05 GMT

@Jordan23ww wrote:
@Aim_High wrote:
Yes, that's a frustrating thing about AMEX and how they make their credits more difficult to reach. I guess the industry term is "breakage" or "spoilage" which is intentional to try to make full use of credits difficult. But they can still advertise them.

Here is a Ruth Chris dinner menu. Looks like everything is ala carte, so you'd pay around $30 to $60 per entree (and up) and then another $11 to $13 each for salads, soups, or sides. Add an appetizer or dessert, drinks, tax, and tip and you're looking at probably an easy $75 or even much more per person. Not that I'd never do that but I don't do that kind of dining every month and many people never do. DW and I could afford to do this but even though we dine out often, we have better places to put our money than on regular expensive meals.
Thank you so much for sending me the menu! I agree with everything you said! My wife loves steak but I don't. I couldn't see us going here every month. Maybe we'd maybe try it sometime just to experience it, but there's a lot of other restaurants we'd rather go to. Looks like I'll be using my Gold Card dining credit on Cheesecake Factory! :0)

All that said, I think there are ways to take advantage of the monthly credit. It's just annoying how it has to be monthly. I imagine the lunch prices at Ruth Chris are more reasonable than the dinner menu I posted, or one could just stop for dessert-to-go or something like that. Just last night, I went onto Grub Hub and found a local pizza place that we go to anyway that I could order from on Grub Hub and then pick it up. It cost me a little more to do it that way but I'll get most of my $10 credit back. That might be the easiest way to take advantage of the credits. On another thread, @K-in-Boston was just talking about using the Gold card for monthly chicken run from KFC. We have Ruth Chris and Cheesecake Factory nearby but we don't normally go to either one. I looked into the "Boxed" food and household items delivery that also qualifies for the credit, but between the delivery charges for smaller orders, selection, and prices, I wasn't overly impressed.

Re: Do Cheesecake Factory Gift Cards Qualify for Amex Gold Dining Credit

Anonymous — Wed, 04 Nov 2020 17:53:44 GMT

@simplynoir wrote:
@wasCB14 wrote:
The dining credits go by calendar month, right? How easy is it to check if you've already used it in a given month? Do you just glance through YTD spend and credits? Can I set something so Amex emails me when the credit is used for a month (faster to search)?

With multiple ways to redeem, it's not like the Uber credits on Platinum where the funds are loaded to the Uber account, and when it's gone it's gone.
Should be there on the website like the airline credit

I usually just set a reminder in my Calendar every month on a certain day that way I don't forget that I've already used it, though in the back of my mind I know I can use the credit generally between 10th-15th.

It is nice having the status in your account though if you're unsure if it's been used or not.

Re: Do Cheesecake Factory Gift Cards Qualify for Amex Gold Dining Credit

Jordan23ww — Thu, 05 Nov 2020 05:13:46 GMT

@wasCB14 wrote:
@Jordan23ww wrote:
@Aim_High wrote:
Yes, that's a frustrating thing about AMEX and how they make their credits more difficult to reach. I guess the industry term is "breakage" or "spoilage" which is intentional to try to make full use of credits difficult. But they can still advertise them.

Here is a Ruth Chris dinner menu. Looks like everything is ala carte, so you'd pay around $30 to $60 per entree (and up) and then another $11 to $13 each for salads, soups, or sides. Add an appetizer or dessert, drinks, tax, and tip and you're looking at probably an easy $75 or even much more per person. Not that I'd never do that but I don't do that kind of dining every month and many people never do. DW and I could afford to do this but even though we dine out often, we have better places to put our money than on regular expensive meals.
Thank you so much for sending me the menu! I agree with everything you said! My wife loves steak but I don't. I couldn't see us going here every month. Maybe we'd maybe try it sometime just to experience it, but there's a lot of other restaurants we'd rather go to. Looks like I'll be using my Gold Card dining credit on Cheesecake Factory! :0)
RC prices will vary by location. In Pasadena, CA the seafood is about the same price or a little cheaper, while the steaks are about 10%-20% more expensive.

I'm quite happy to get Prime ribeyes at Costco and grill them in the back yard. I save on wine and don't need to worry about driving.

That's a much better buy! Thank you for sharing this feedback!

Re: Do Cheesecake Factory Gift Cards Qualify for Amex Gold Dining Credit

Jordan23ww — Thu, 05 Nov 2020 05:16:36 GMT

@wasCB14 wrote:
The dining credits go by calendar month, right? How easy is it to check if you've already used it in a given month? Do you just glance through YTD spend and credits? Can I set something so Amex emails me when the credit is used for a month (faster to search)?

With multiple ways to redeem, it's not like the Uber credits on Platinum where the funds are loaded to the Uber account, and when it's gone it's gone.

Great questions! Hopefully someone can chime in and answer these questions. I know with my other Amex cards when I have an Amex offer usually the credit posts when the qualifying transaction posts or a day or 2 later. Hopefully that's the case with these dining credits.