Top 15 Free Birthday Meals in Phoenix

Art Stevens Feb 2, 2017

Birthday freebies are prolific in the Phoenix AZ metro area. This one from Valle Luna is good for a free entree with a 14 day window to enjoy it.

What’s better than going out to dinner for your birthday? Going out to dinner and having your meal for free. Yes, that’s right, eating at a restaurant on your birthday without having to pay the bill. Over a hundred restaurants in the Phoenix AZ area will gift you a free birthday meal, dessert, snack or drink. Most deals are valid anytime during your birthday week or even your entire birth month. So, with a little bit of planning, you can eat out for a month for free.

Each restaurant’s rules are somewhat different. You’ll find most require advance registration to an email list to receive a coupon in time for your birthday.

In addition to the area restaurants listed below, all of the national chain restaurants featured in our list of top 10 free birthday meals have a strong presence in the Valley. There you’ll find birthday freebie favorites that include Applebees, Golden Corral and Starbucks. We also have a comprehensive list of over 100 Phoenix free birthday meal deals.

The fifteen best free birthday deals in Phoenix

The following birthday deals have been hand-picked by our editorial staff. All are local Phoenix restaurants or restaurant companies with regional presence. These birthday jewels are either totally free-no strings-attached, bogo or offer a generous gift certificate toward total tab.

First Watch. First Watch Daytime Cafe, with 15 Valley locations, is a local favorite for healthy breakfasts, lunches and dinners. Sign up for their Sun eClub and receive a free entree for your birthday, with no purchase necessary. The deal is valid from seven days before your birthday to seven days after the date. (Plus, you’ll get a BOGO entree coupon to use now, just for signing up.)
Black Bear Diner. The Black Bear Diner, with five locations in the greater Phoenix area (Goodyear, Glendale, Tempe, Gilbert and Chandler) is a great place to start your birthday. Sign-up for the Bear Lovers E-Club in advance and get a free birthday breakfast that includes sweet cream pancakes OR waffles, two Eggs, two strips of bacon OR two sausage links. (No purchase is required.) The birthday deal is valid ten days before your birthday, on your birthday and three days after. (Plus, you’ll get a coupon immediately for a free bear claw and cup of coffee just for signing up.)
Abuelos. This popular Mexican eatery (Chandler and Peoria) offers you a free birthday entree when you purchase another entree. Register online to get this deal, which is valid up to 40 days after your birth date. (Get an additional BOGO entree coupon to use right now just for registering.)
A free steak dinner for your birthday? Yours at Black Angus Steakhouse! (CC BY-ND 2.0 Ernesto Andrade on flickr.com)
El Pollo Loco. Another place to get Mexican food for free on your birthday is El Pollo Loco (“the crazy chicken”). With locations all over the greater Phoenix area, you’re never far away from one of these casual chicken restaurants. Sign up in advance and get a free, two-piece, fire-grilled chicken dinner OR chicken tostada salad for your birthday. The deal is valid up to seven days prior to and up to 21 days after your birthday. No purchase is necessary. (Get a free order of chips and guacamole just for signing up.)
Z’Tejas. Z’Tejas, with five locations around greater Phoenix, combines the best of Texan and Mexican cuisines. This regional favorite offers a generous $10 off your check as a birthday present when you register for their Z Club in advance. The offer is good up to seven days in advance and up to 14 days after your birthday. (You’ll also get a coupon for 15% off of your check to use right now, just for registering.)
Benihana. Sign up for Benihana’s Chef’s Table email newsletter and get a $30 gift certificate, valid for your entire birthday month. To use the certificate, your dinner party must purchase one entree. The certificate will be applied to additional items. Benihana, America’s favorite Japanese steakhouse, has locations in Chandler and Scottsdale.
Black Angus Steakhouse. This Phoenix area steakhouse (five locations) has a generous $29.99 value dinner waiting for you. Have a free entree or steak dinner when you purchase another entree. Sign up for their Prime Club in advance to qualify for this offer, which is valid from 14 days prior to your birthday to 14 days after your birthday. (Plus, you’ll get a coupon for a free dessert when you purchase an entree just for signing up.)
Gift certificates like this one from Buca di Beppo are sent for your birthday by restaurant email lists. Buca has one of the more generous free birthday meal deals.
Buca di Beppo. The popular Italian family restaurant has locations in Old Town Scottsdale, Chandler, Mesa and Peoria. They also have one of the most generous birthday offers around. All you have to do is sign up for their Buca e-Club and you’ll qualify for a $20 birthday offer. The offer is valid off of the cost of two entrees or two pasta dishes from six days before your birthday to 24 days after your birthday. (Plus, you’ll get a free small pasta entree offer, good for 14 days, just for signing up for the Buca e-Club.)
Gordon Biersch. The casual regional chain of brewery restaurants in Glendale, Scottsdale, Gilbert and Tempe, offers a free birthday entree when you sign up for their Gordon Biersch online club and newsletter. If you’ve ever wanted to sample this eatery’s southwest egg rolls, California beach tacos or delicious flatbread pizza, now is your chance. To qualify for the offer, you need to purchase a second entree and dine between seven days before your birthday and seven days after your birthday. (Plus, you’ll get a free appetizer with entree offer, good for 30 days, just for signing up.)
Hard Rock Cafe. Another chain restaurant with a “rockin'” birthday offer is the Hard Rock Cafe. Sign up for the Hard Rock Rewards program and you’ll get a free entree during your birthday month when you purchase another entree. That means you can try things like their famous fajitas, a cowboy ribeye steak or a fried shrimp platter for free. The Hard Rock Cafe is located in Collier Center in downtown Phoenix, just steps away from Chase Field.
Joe’s Real BBQ, Joe’s Farm Grill and Liberty Market.These three Gilbert eateries, owned by Joe & Cindy Johnston, give patrons a generous birthday offer AND, unlike the other restaurants on this list, you don’t even have to sign up in advance. At Joe’s Real BBQ and Joe’s Farm Grill,you’ll get a flat $10 off of your dine-in or carry-out meal on the day of your birthday. At Liberty Market, you’ll get a $10 credit on your dine-in meal or a free dessert if you choose carry-out. To qualify, all you have to do is present your ID. All three restaurants feature fresh, locally-sourced cuisine with specials that change weekly.
Rubios. Rubios Fresh Mexican Grill (10 locations) offers a free entree for your birthday with no purchase necessary. All you have to do is sign up in advance for the Beach Club. The offer is good from five days prior to your birthday until seven days after your birthday. (Plus, just for signing up, you’ll get a free taco offer, good for 14 days. Like the birthday deal, no purchase is necessary.)
Twin Peaks. Get a free birthday entree at Twin Peaks, in Phoenix and Scottsdale, with no additional purchase required, when you sign up for the restaurant’s Friends of the Peaks email list. The offer is good between seven days prior to your birthday and seven days after your birthday. (Plus, just for signing up, you’ll get a coupon for a free order of chips and queso, good for 14 days.) Twin Peaks is a mountain lodge getaway theme, known for its made-from-scratch comfort foods. Enjoy menu favorites that include Mom’s pot roast, spicy chipotle chicken and a variety of grilled burgers. Draft beer served at a teeth-chattering 29 degrees and sports shown on high-def flat screens round out your birthday party here.
Valle Luna. Valle Luna gives you an impossible choice for your birthday. Do you want a free entree or a free order of fried ice cream? All you have to do to take advantage of this birthday offer is to sign up in advance for their Valle Luna Club. The offer is good when you purchase a beverage and is valid between seven days prior to your birthday and seven days after your birthday. (Plus, you’ll get a coupon for a BOGO entree when you purchase two beverages within 14 days of signing up for the club.) Voted as having the best Mexican food in Phoenix by the “New Times,” Valle Luna features an array of traditional and non-traditional Mexican favorites. They are particularly known for their make-your-own Luna burrito bowl, where you can pick ingredients from shrimp to steak to cheese to guacamole. Northwest Valley, Southeast Valley, Paradise Valley. Find the Valle Luna nearest you.
Zoe’s Kitchen. Zoe’s Kitchen (5 locations) also offers a free entree for those celebrating a birthday. To qualify, you need to sign up for the restaurant’s email list. The offer is good between seven days prior and 14 days after your birthday when you purchase a second entree. (Plus, you get a coupon for a free 1/2 pint of chicken salad when you sign up for the email list to use within 14 days.) The food here is Mediterranean-inspired and includes items like chicken, steak and shrimp kabobs and Greek chicken marinara.