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By Robin Lee Allen  and Ron Ruggless

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(April  12, 2009) Call it tax relief you can taste.

With April 15 barreling down on taxpayers, restaurant operators are looking to alleviate some of the pain with a plethora of Tax Day specials.

Among the promotions, P.F. Chang’s China Bistro Inc. is offering a Tax Day Discount that will give guests a 15-percent discount on Wednesday.

“In the current economic climate, everyone deserves a break, and that’s exactly what P.F. Chang’s is providing with our tax relief discount,” said Rick Tasman, chief operating officer of the Scottsdale, Ariz.-based chain.

The discount is for one day only at the 189 P.F. Chang’s China Bistro casual-dining restaurants and does not apply to orders at the company’s fast-casual Pei Wei Asian Diners, officials said.

T.G.I. Friday’s also said it plans to give customers a “tax day break” on April 15.

On the federal tax-filing deadline day, guests will get $5 Bonus Bites cards for purchases, excluding alcohol and tax, beginning at $15 through $25, and $10 Bonus Bites cards for purchases of more than $25, while supplies last.

The cards will be available only at participating restaurants in the United States.

“Our guests say ‘Give Me More Friday’s’ all year long and on tax day, they say 'Give Me a Break,’” said Andrew Jordan, senior vice president of marketing for T.G.I. Friday's USA. “With Friday's Tax Break, we're going to make April 15 feel like a Friday by giving our guests a break with our Bonus Bites cards.”

T.G.I. Fridays is owned by Carrollton, Texas-based Carlson Restaurants Worldwide Inc., which operates, licenses or franchises more than 1,000 restaurants under the T.G.I Friday’s and Pick Up Stix brands.

By Robin Lee Allen  and Ron Ruggless

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Atlanta-based Cinnabon will share taxpayers’ pain with its Tax Day Bites! deal. Through the promotion, U.S. mall-based Cinnabon bakeries will offer free Classic Bites from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. on April 15. The offer is not valid at airport or travel plaza locations.

"At Cinnabon, we believe that ‘Life Needs Frosting,’" said Geoff Hill, Cinnabon president. "Everyone deserves to splurge and treat themselves every once in a while, so we'd love to be the frosting on our guests' day, particularly on days as painful as Tax Day."

Cinnabon, which has more than 700 locations worldwide, will also sponsor an online essay contest through April 15, offering participants the chance to win a $100 gift card if they can explain how the brand helped them through a bad day in 500 words or less.

As part of its Tax Relief Day promotion, McCormick & Schmick’s Seafood Restaurants will offer on Wednesday a $10.40 entree menu as well as a Bottom Line Drink Selection. Based in Portland, Ore., McCormick & Schmick’s also will offer a $10.40 certificate good toward future purchases at its nearly 90 upscale eateries.

Atlanta-based MaggieMoo’s Ice Cream & Treatery says it is offering an “e-cone-omic” ice cream stimulus package on Tax Day. Throughout the day, visitors to its stores will receive a free single scoop of ice cream.

"Tax Day is often a stressful time, and MaggieMoo's stimulus package is meant to reward customers and to encourage those who have never tried our ice cream to have a taste," said Jenn Johnston, senior vice president of brand marketing for parent company NexCen Franchise Management. "Ice cream has a unique way of making people happy, and we wanted to give our customers something to smile about on Tax Day."

MaggieMoo’s is one of several quick-service brands owned by New York-based NexCen, which franchises 1,895 locations of the Marble Slab Creamery, MaggieMoo’s, Pretzel Time, Pretzelmaker and Great American Cookies brands.

Seattle-based Taco Del Mar, with more than 260 quick-service units, is giving away a free taco on Tax Day to each customer who comes in with a printable coupon. Coupons can be found at http://download.tacodelmar.com/email/2009Tax/Tax2009.htm and are good only on April 15.

Independent operators also are looking to give diners back a small portion of what Uncle Sam takes away.

Among some of the specials, Grafton Street Pub and Grill in Cambridge, Mass., will be offering items on its late-night bar menu for $9.90 or less from 10 p.m. to 12 midnight on April 15. The $9.90 price tag is in recognition of the 990 forms that nonprofit organizations must file.

Guests at the upscale Italian restaurant Va Pensiero in Evanston, Ill., will receive 15-cent martinis on April 15, while Ivan Kane’s Cafe Wa s in Hollywood, Calif., will offer a free Tax Day lunch from a special lunch menu. Among the offerings are a classic French dip sandwich, warm ratatouille salad, French onion soup, and a house-smoked roasted organic turkey sandwich.

Contact Robin Lee Allen at rallen@nrn.com and Ron Ruggless at rruggles@nrn.com.