This year is the first that we participated. Dh always seems to be out of town during restaurant week. We tried two restaurants we'd never been to. Well, one (Galatoire's) we had visited for cocktails and appetizers, but never ate a meal there.

To be honest, we were both disappointed with some of our choices at each restaurant. Galatorie's Bistro was the least disappointing of the two. Sullivan's Steakhouse (a chain) was a major disappointment. I would never go there again. My steak (requested rare) was overdone and the knives they provided were a joke. Dh grills the best steak I've ever had. I'll never be tempted to eat one in a restaurant again.

That said, it's something I'd do again. You never know when you might find a new gem. We just didn't get lucky first go round.

We have it for the month of February. We don't go out for dinner so have never been. But it does sell out really quickly. I think most restaurants offer 3 different set menus.

Yes, RW twice a year where I live. Actually, a few areas have them.

I think some restaurants do it well, but generally, it's about the worst time to treat yourself to an enjoyable dinner out.

Menus are limited and restaurants can be slammed.

On average, you are saving the cost of dessert. That's if you don't pick something with an upcharge and stay away from alcohol.

So, I'd rather spend the full amount, have the full menu available (some places actually do offer full menu), and not deal with harried servers.

Restaurant week in my town is kind of lame-- only a few restaurants really join in the spirit and step up and offer good and interesting meals. Philadelphia does a great restaurant week though-- and we actually planned a week long getaway around it last year.

What fun we had-- almost all participating restaurants had both lunch and dinner options and they published their prix fixe menus in advance (so we could decide where we wanted to go in advance!) Most were 3-4 courses (some lunches were 2 courses). We found the menu options interesting--many offered a number of selections so we could each get something different. There were lots of what I'd call "chef favorites".. seasonal appetizers or special desserts that aren't on the regular menu. It was just a really great way to try new restaurants.

Things to be aware of..

• ok, first off, we booked at least one restaurant each day-- some casual, some much nicer. It was TOO MUCH FOOD. Even though the portions are often smaller-- it was just too much for me after a few days. I ended up canceling some of our reservations. That shouldn't be a problem for you since you aren't planning to book a full week LOL.

• The nicer restaurants were PACKED. It was louder and busier than I'd like. If you choose a more popular restaurant, I'd try to book an early table.. or a later table. Or go for lunch!

• Some entrees are a better deal for the prix fixe menu than others. That wasn't a big concern for me but in Philadelphia, they published the "best bets" for restaurant week in the paper (of course, those were often the busiest-- we actually steered clear of all but one of the "best bets).

• Tip: One of my favorite spots was a Amada--a tapas restaurant.. I love small plates to begin with but across the courses, we were able to order everything we wanted to try between the two of us. It was fun and interesting-- even though this was one of the busiest destinations of week.

• Tip: Generally the steak houses are considered the best bets (at least in Phila). We had only one reservation at a steakhouse and I ended up canceling it.

• Tip: Avoid the chains-- even the nicer ones.

I think you are going to enjoy it-- choosing where you will go is half the fun!

The other thing i wanted to say is that with one exception-- the servers at each of the restaurants we tried were very friendly and very "into" the week. They spoke highly about what the chef chose for the menus.. and just seemed to carry the excitement instead of battling it and becoming harried. I found MOST of the diners to be the same.. not all, but most. We didnt have long waits or poor service anywhere. My biggest complaint was the noise level and having my hair knocked a few times at the busiest spot.

You gotta go knowing it will be an adventure-- it's not a time for a quiet and romantic meal out.

It's worthwhile to check out the website and see if they're offering a nice selection or even full menu without upcharges.

I have been to San Francisco's restaurant week. I found that you needed to read the offerings carefully. Often there wasn't much variety (for example there might not be any vegetarian offerings) and sometimes the special offerings were not any less expensive than going to the restaurant any time would be (and in that case, I'd rather go when it's not restaurant week).

Oakland has a restaurant week in January. This year was the first year I participated and I had a very nice meal at Flora. I think I also visited Forge during the week, but not specifically because of restaurant week. But they really weren't running any special menus, which I thought defeated the purpose, although I guess they got publicity out of it.

Yes we have a few towns around that do it. We do try to get to at least one new restaurant. We've had some great meals that were a bargain, and we've been to those that we've learned we won't go back to. The worst was one we went to and it was closed...on restaurant week when you've advertised!?!

Santa Fe's Restaurant Week is at the end of February. As noted above, the first 2.5 months of the year are slow here -- no tourists. This is a way to let us poor, downtrodden, workaday locals sample the fancier fares, and also gives the restaurants a boost during the slow season. I want to try two, maybe three places.

When we moved here I told DH I wanted to go to a nice/ interesting restaurant once a month, and to some sort of performance/event every other month. We have failed in our mission! I'm using Restaurant Week to catch up.

We have several "Jersey Shore Restaurant" weeks during the year. I tried one of the new restaurants in town, I wasn't impressed. I may try one of the places in the beach towns to see if they are better. There are also "Food and Wine Walks" in town, proceeds to non-profit groups. I have never participated, but you get a wrist band which allows you to sample food and wine from several restaurants in town.

We have one in our town and have participated but not been insane about it. A couple of our favorite restaurants participated and it was hard to get dinner reservations, so we went to some lesser known, but still good places.

Going for lunch is a great idea. Some girlfriends and I happened to be in Birmingham a couple of years ago to visit the museum of art for a special exhibit and it was restaurant week there. We went to lunch at a local favorite place, a little late in the lunch hour without reservations, and had a great experience.

Our city does it both mid-January and mid-July. We've had mostly positive experiences when we've been. A lot of places sell out so reservations need to be made early.

We went out for lunch today during restaurant week. We had a terrific lunch...which was really our dinner. The weather was perfect for sitting outside in the sun. Delish butternut squash soup for appetizer. I had a Vermont Cheddar Cheese soufflé with a side of fresh local greens that was sooo good. DH had the pappardelle with veal ragout and broccoli rabe that was out of this world. He had the most interesting dessert...a fresh goat cheesecake topped with tomato marmalade from a local farm and a rosemary cookie on the side. I had chocolate crumb cake with a side of creme fraiche ice cream. All of that for $20/pp. Can't beat it.

We have it in Buffalo and I think it is next week. The idea they promote is that you can inexpensively try different restaurants. Reality is you might be better off not getting the "restaurant week" special as it is high priced and it's cheaper just to order a regular meal. We avoid restaurant week or go to restaurants who don't participate because they are so busy.