The Half-Off Deals page on The 814 Times offers an array of new gift certificates from area retailers, golf courses, restaurants, day spas and more at 50% of their regular retail value.

Give the gift of massage…  a round of golf at a new course…  dinner for two and more!  Readers can purchase all gift certificates for 1/2 price.

New Half-Off Deals are featured each week.  Happy Shopping!

The current featured Half-Off Deal is for Hedges Fine Food and Spirits.

HEDGES Fine Food and Spirits offers a casual dining atmosphere serving steaks, Italian, seafood, sandwiches, salads, burgers and more!

Serving lunch and dinner, hours are Monday through Thursday 11:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.; Friday 11:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m.; and Saturday 4:00 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.  Closed on Sunday.  Bar hours are Monday through Friday 11:00 a.m. until closing and Saturday 4:00 p.m. until closing

Hedges also has beautiful banquet room facilities– the perfect setting for ALL occasions– bridal showers, baby showers, rehearsal dinners, small weddings, birthday parties and business meetings.

Family-owned, serving the Clearfield area since 1986.  We look forward to serving you!

View our Menu!

Hurry don’t miss this deal!

Restrictions are as follows:

• Denomination:   $50.00
• Can deal voucher be used for alcohol?   NO
• Cash back for unused portion?   NO
• Use more than one deal voucher per visit?   NO
• No cash value
• Tax and gratuity not included
• One per table

Visit the Half-Off Deals page to view and/or purchase this Half-Off Deal and others as well.

- E

(image courtesy of BlueFairlane/flickr.com)

Is paper cash becoming a collector’s item like the Buffalo nickel?

It would seem that way, considering the increase in the number of plastic-only food establishments. A number of restaurants and food trucks make paying with the swipe of a card on a smartphone as easy as foodtruck mini-pies. The latest, and seemingly most convenient, mobile payment option is paying via a QR code.

In San Francisco’s Metreon, a gourmet sandwich shop called Split Bread is the latest eatery to offer such service. Each tabletop has a metal stripe with a QR code printed on it. Patrons sit down and scan the QR code with their smartphones to pull-up the digital menu. Customers place their order without ever speaking to a real person. When their order is ready, they pick it up at the counter.

You can also order ahead and grab sandwiches to-go, entering your expected pick-up time online. But one thing you can’t do is pay with cash. The manager of Split Bread told me that about 30% of their customers order and pay through the QR codes on the tables. Eventually, they hope to get that number to 100%. But, he said, they might keep a register to two in order to keep the not-so- QR-savvy customers coming back.

David Silverglide, one of the founders of Split Bread, said they wanted to provide a payment option that was seamless for customers, device agnostic and wouldn’t force customers to download an app.

Ordering using the QR codes on the table isn’t necessarily more time efficient, at least for now — but it is cool. Eventually, Silverglide said it will save time and allow groups of people to avoid lines and the hassle of splitting bills. In the future, you’ll be able to sit at a table and have a tab open.

“We want to make sure as the payment space evolves, that we can adapt quickly,” he said.

The Melt, a gourmet grilled-cheese sandwich shop that has been popping up with new locations all over San Francisco since its opening in September, began accepting QR code payments about a month after its opening. QR codes let consumers bypass the lines, plus for customers, it can be a fun way to use your smartphone.

“Melt.com online orders are running between 5-10% of all transactions depending on store location,” Paul Coletta, CMO at The Melt states.  Patrons can skip the line and redeem the QR code anytime.

Eateries that eschew cash are common in San Francisco, and food trucks that use mobile payment services such as Google Wallet, PayPal Here or Square to process payments are common place.

But using plastic for every purchase — plus apps that remember your banking information — concerns many customers. After all, information hacks have occurred in the past due to weak security in certain mobile payment systems.

Standing in a food truck line in San Francisco (the food truck used Square), I chatted with a customer who expressed his concern about mobile payments.

“If the guy loses his phone, what happens to that information?” he said. Like many of his friends, he said, he’s concerned about mobile security but it’s just the way mobile payments are headed. Plus, he added, it is convenient.

(content courtesy of mashable.com/Freeman; image courtesy of seoskye.com)

- E

GET $50.00 WORTH OF CERTIFICATES FOR JUST $25.00!

The Half-Off Deals page on The 814 Times offers an array of new gift certificates from area retailers, golf courses, restaurants, day spas and more at 50% of their regular retail value.

Give the gift of massage…  a round of golf at a new course…  dinner for two and more!  Readers can purchase all gift certificates for 1/2 price.

New Half-Off Deals are featured each week.  Happy Shopping!

The current featured Half-Off Deal is for Diamond View Restaurant/St. Marys Golf Club .

The St. Marys Golf Club and the Diamond View Restaurant and Lounge are known as the place to be in St. Marys.

From a drink and sandwiches after golfing with friends, to a quiet, intimate dinner for two or a family gathering, you can find what you are looking for right here.

Hurry don’t miss this deal!

• Denomination:   $50.00
• How many deals can I purchase?   2
• Can deal voucher be used for alcohol?   YES
• Cash back for unused portion?   NO
• No cash value.
• Tax and gratuity not included
• Not valid on Pro Shop Merchandise

Visit the Half-Off Deals page to view and/or purchase this Half-Off Deal and others as well.

> Editor