Flowers, Champagne and Discounts: 55% of Brits Plan to Enjoy Special Dining Offers This Valentines Day

LONDON, February 8, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

- TOPTABLE REVEALS MEN LEAVE IT TO THEIR PARTNERS AS ONLY 18% MAKE RESERVATIONS FOR 14TH FEBRUARY -

A survey released today by toptable, reveals that savvy Brits plan to spend more this Valentine's Day but also want to get more value for their money with over 55% planning to take advantage of special offers ahead of their romantic dates.

The poll conducted by the UK's leading online restaurant booking site found that in spite of the current economic climate, one third of Brits planned to spend more eating out this Valentine's Day than they did last year, with most planning to spend more than GBP75 to impress their date.

However, British diners are also becoming savvier wanting more value for money. The survey revealed that over half (55%) of Britons were planning to take advantage of special offers to treat their date to more.

Women in charge of booking this year

When it comes to making Valentine's Day dinner reservations this year, it is British women who are wearing the trousers. No longer prepared to wait for their partner to book, nearly two thirds of the women (60%) stated they would be making the booking. This compares to just 18% of women who said their man was in charge, with the remainder stating it was a joint decision.

The rise of the 'mate date'

Although Britons seem to be getting less romantic, singles are keen to get in on the action with over one in three of those surveyed planning to go on 'mate dates' and make dinner reservations to dine with more than one other. Of those surveyed, only 25% said that if they can't dine out with a partner they would rather stay at home.

Lucy Taylor, head of restaurant dining at toptable said: "It is great to see that Britons are using both their hearts and their heads this year and aren't being a fool for love, taking advantage of special offers such as free glasses of champagne to accompany meals or money off set courses. By doing so, it means that couples can really enjoy more from their dining experience, maybe even visit places they wouldn't be able to normally. On toptable, you are able to see special offers available at restaurants of your choice and can even search by restaurant offers only which will pull out all the offers available in your chosen location, arguably a great way to enjoy more this Valentine's Day."

For more information on toptable, please visit http://www.toptable.com

*Findings based on a sample size of 1,074 British diners, research conducted by toptable running a poll on their website.  Online fieldwork took place between 23rd January and the 26st January 2012.

About toptable
More than 12 million diners have been seated via toptable, making it the leading consumer destination for restaurant reservations in the UK. toptable.com provides a free and easy-to-use service, allowing diners to browse and book at more than 3,000 restaurants across the UK.  More than 200,000 diners are seated at restaurants each month through reservations booked via toptable.com.  toptable is owned and operated by OpenTable, Inc. 

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