Last weekend I enjoyed a lovely lunch with my parents and boyfriend at Clyde's restaurant. The Clyde's Restaurant Group owns 13 restaurants throughout the Washington DC metropolitan area, and if you're in the neighborhood I highly recommend the Tower Oaks Lodge location in Rockville, MD. The building's design resembles the log and stone "Great Camps" of the Adirondacks, and multiple fireplaces and cozy booths make for a special meal.

I don't work for Clyde's.
Promise.

The main reason we chose Clyde's for lunch was to spend a gift card that had been burning a hole in my dad's pocket. When our server dropped the check, I was surprised to see my dad place a heavy, gold coin on the table. We all took turns excitedly examining the coin's details, and since we had only spent half of the gift's value we mused about how our change would be returned. My boyfriend joked, "Watch them bring back a silver coin or something."

To our surprise, they did! They have three coin options: $100, $50 and $25.



I think these coins are an excellent promotional item. The novelty of the coin generates positive buzz- here I am three days later, still talking/writing about it- and the overall concept provides a smart solution to anti-gift card purchasing behavior.
Personally, I think gift cards make a wonderful present, but I know many people who avoid giving them. Many argue that gift cards:
A. are impersonal.
B. look "easy".
C. are uncreative.
D. look unimpressive.
E. are un-wrap-able.

Clyde's gift coins present an excellent solution to a few of these purchasing deterrents. Their hefty coins come packaged in a small, wrap-able gift box and the overall presentation offers a greater perceived value than your standard plastic card.



All in all, gift coins are a great idea for restaurants or retail stores looking for a more upscale alternative to the plastic gift card.