The American Express Love Dining is one of the biggest dining programmes in Singapore, offering up to 50% off the bill at 20 restaurants and 7 hotels.
The savings can really stack up for those who dine out frequently, covering significant portions of the annual fee and then some.
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| AMEX Love Dining |
Truth be told, Love Dining has shrunk over the years and lost some of its headliners. I miss visiting 15 Stamford and getting 50% off the lobster every time, munching away and wondering whether this was too good to be true. That said, it still has some big names on the roster, and taste is so subjective anyway- maybe you’re a bigger fan of the current line up than I am!
In this post, I’ll walk you through everything you need to know about the AMEX Love Dining programme.
Which cards are eligible for Love Dining?
Love Dining is available to all principal and supplementary cardholders of the following cards:
- AMEX Platinum Credit Card
- AMEX Platinum Reserve
- AMEX Platinum Charge
- AMEX Centurion
The benefit is not available to foreign-issued AMEX Platinum cards.
Which restaurants participate in Love Dining?
Here’s the latest Love Dining list, accurate as of the time of publishing.
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| Restaurants (20) | |
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| T&Cs | |
| Hotels (7) | |
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| T&Cs | |
| *No Love Dining @ Hotels savings available; cardholders instead enjoy 20% off total bill | |
Are reservations necessary?
Most restaurants will allow walk-ins, but some will have a special allocation each night for Love Dining cardholders.
- Swissotel The Stamford: SKAI Restaurant, SKAI Bar
- Fairmont Singapore: Prego, Mikuni
In that case, you’ll need to reserve in advance, and mention that you’re using Love Dining benefits.
And while we’re on the topic of reservations, a quick reminder that some restaurants will not offer Love Dining privileges when reservations are made on 3rd party reservation sites or apps like Chope, Makan+ and Quandoo.
- Restaurants: Atrium Restaurant, Napoleon Food & Wine Bar, Wooloomooloo Steakhouse, and Xin Cuisine Chinese Restaurant
- Hotels: Fairmont Singapore, Swissotel The Stamford, Paradox
What is the Love Dining discount?
Love Dining offers a 15-50% discount on a la carte food items during lunch or dinner, depending on the number of diners.
| 🍽️ AMEX Love Dining Discount | |
| Number of Diners | Discount on Food Bill |
| Card member | 15%* |
| Card member + 1 guest | 50% |
| Card member + 2 guests | 35%^ |
| Card member + 3 guests | 25% |
| Card member + 4-9 guests (hotels) or 4-19 guests (restaurants) | 20% |
| *10% at Fairmont Singapore, Swissotel The Stamford, Paradox Singapore ^33% at Fairmont Singapore, Swissotel The Stamford, Paradox Singapore |
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| 👍 50% off for up to 5 adults |
| On Mondays, participating restaurants at Fairmont, Swissotel The Stamford and Paradox offers 50% off the food bill for up to five adults. I personally think most of these establishments are extremely mediocre, but hey, you might feel different. |
The discount does not apply to beverages, taxes or service charges.
Set menus are generally excluded, although Wooloomooloo only allows Love Dining discounts on its “specially curated” Love Dining set menu.
How are children counted?
Restaurants
Children aged seven and above are counted as one adult diner.
Children aged between 1-6 years old are counted according to the following scheme:
- 2 children= 1 adult headcount
- 3-4 children= 2 adult headcount
Hotels
The policy on children differs by hotel. I’ve extracted the relevant terms below.
Fairmont Singapore
- Children of age between 1 to 5 eat for free at buffet restaurants
- Only 1 child per paying adult is entitled to eat for free
- Children of age between 6 and 12 can order from the kids’ menu at restaurants serving a la carte or enjoy children’s price at buffet restaurants and hence not considered as a diner in the calculation of Love Dining @ Hotel savings
- In the case of a party consisting of 1 Card Member and 1 child dining, Card Member and diner will have to order a dish per person in order to enjoy the varying discounts. Children will be considered as a diner in calculation of Love Dining @ Hotel savings when they order from the adult a la carte menu
- Children of age 13 and above will be considered as a diner in the calculation of Love Dining @ Hotel savings
- Love Dining @ Hotel benefits at Mikuni and Prego at Fairmont Singapore are based on the following system
- 1-2 children are equivalent to 1 adult
- 3-4 children are equivalent to 2 adults
Resorts World Sentosa
- Children below age seven (7) are not counted as guest diners.
- Children of age seven (7) and above are counted as guest diners and are counted according to a communal dining concept which means
- 2 children guest diners will be counted as 1 adult guest diner and
- 3 to 4 children guest diners will be counted as 2 adult guest diners etc
Singapore Marriott Tang Plaza
- Children of age four (4) and below are not counted as guest diners and are entitled to dine for free
- If Children of age five (5) and above orders from qualifying main course on the à la carte menu at Wan Hao Chinese Restaurant/Crossroads Café/Lobby Lounge, it will be considered as a guest diner in the calculation of Love Dining @ Hotel savings
Swissotel The Stamford
- Children of age between 1 to 5 eat for free at buffet restaurants
- Only 1 child per paying adult is entitled to eat for free
- Children of age between 6 and 12 can order from the kids’ menu at restaurants serving a la carte or enjoy children’s price at buffet restaurants and hence not considered as a diner in the calculation of Love Dining @ Hotel savings
- In the case of a party consisting of 1 Card Member and 1 child dining, Card Member and diner will have to order a dish per person in order to enjoy the varying discounts. Children will be considered as a diner in calculation of Love Dining @ Hotel savings when they order from the adult a la carte menu
- Children of age 13 and above will be considered as a diner in the calculation of Love Dining @ Hotel savings
Paradox Singapore
- Children of age between 1 to 5 eat for free at buffet restaurants
- Only 1 child per paying adult is entitled to eat for free
- Children of age between 6 and 12 can order from the kids’ menu at restaurants serving a la carte or enjoy children’s price at buffet restaurants and hence not considered as a diner in the calculation of Love Dining @ Hotel savings
- In the case of a party consisting of 1 Card Member and 1 child dining, Card Member and diner will have to order a dish per person in order to enjoy the varying discounts. Children will be considered as a diner in calculation of Love Dining @ Hotel savings when they order from the adult a la carte menu
- Children of age 13 and above will be considered as a diner in the calculation of Love Dining @ Hotel savings
St Regis Singapore
- Children of age 4 and below are not counted as guest diners
- Children of age 5 and above are counted as guest diners
W Sentosa Cove
- SKIRT and the kitchen table
- Children age 6 and below are not considered as a diner in the calculation of the Love Dining privileges
- Children age 7 and above are considered as a diner in the calculation of the Love Dining privileges
- WOOBAR
- Children of age 12 and below will not be counted as a diner in the calculation of the Love Dining privileges
- Children of age 13 and above will be considered as a diner in the calculation of the Love Dining privileges
What items are eligible?
Each diner must order at least one qualifying food item (usually a main course) to enjoy the Love Dining discount, which will then be applied to all food items on the bill, be it appetisers, mains or desserts.
Individual restaurants may exclude certain items from the Love Dining discount, typically those using more expensive ingredients like lobster or wagyu beef. These exclusions can be found in the T&Cs (Restaurants, Hotels); when in doubt, always consult your waiter before ordering.
Love Dining discounts are applicable for dining in only. Therefore, you’re technically not allowed to take away anything- even leftovers. Some places are more strict with this rule than others, however.
What are the blackout dates?
Restaurants
Standard blackout dates include:
- Eve of Public Holiday
- Public Holiday
- Valentine’s Day
- Mother’s Day
- Father’s Day
On top of this, certain restaurants have additional blackout dates:
| Period | Restaurants |
| Eve of CNY and 15 days of CNY |
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| Eve of Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day |
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| F1 Singapore Grand Prix |
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Hotels
Fairmont Singapore
- No blackout dates for Asian Market Cafe, Mikuni, Prego
- The Eight and ANTI:DOTE will only offer a 20% discount on total food bill on eve of public holidays, public holidays, Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day and Singapore F1
Resorts World Sentosa
- Eve of public holidays
- Public holidays
- Valentine’s Day
- Mother’s Day
- Father’s Day
Singapore Marriott Tang Plaza
- Eve of public holidays
- Public holidays
- 15 days of CNY (Wan Hao Chinese restaurant only)
- Valentine’s Day
- Mother’s Day
- Father’s Day
- Thanksgiving Day
- Others (not specified)
Swissotel The Stamford
- No blackout dates for Kopi Tiam, SKAI Restaurant and Clove
- The Stamford Brasserie will only offer a 20% discount on total food bill on eve of public holidays, public holidays, Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day and Singapore F1
Paradox Singapore
- Eve of CNY at Ellenborough Market Cafe
St Regis Singapore
- Eve of public holidays
- Public holidays
- 15 days of CNY (Yan Ting only)
- Easter weekend
- Valentine’s Day
- Mother’s Day
- Father’s Day
W Sentosa Cove
- Eve of public holidays
- Public holidays
- CNY week (Kitchen Table only)
- Easter Sunday
- F1 period
- Valentine’s Day
- Mother’s Day
- Father’s Day
Can I use a digital card to pay?
According to the Love Dining T&Cs, a physical card is required for verification of eligibility at the point of payment, and digital payments modes are not valid unless otherwise advised by merchants.
Now, I know for a fact that some places are fine with digital cards; I’ve done so at Anti:dote with no problems. That said, it’s certainly safer to have the physical card with you, just in case.
We have multiple Platinum cards. Can we split the bill to enjoy a bigger discount?
If you have a party of four and two AMEX Platinum cards, you might be wondering if you can split the bill such that you enjoy 50% off.
The answer is no. Per the T&Cs:
Diners from the same party are not allowed to split bills even if they request for separate tables. Love Dining @ Restaurants dining privileges are applicable to only one Card per table, per party, per occasion.
Definition of party is a group of two (2) or more persons dining at one (1) or more tables. Where there is a request for side by side or nearby tables, this will be considered one (1) party and the one (1) Card per table/per visit policy will apply. Request for side by side or nearby table is subject to availability.
I’ve heard horror stories of entitled cardholders demanding the staff split the bill for them, or seat them at separate tables next to each other just so they can enjoy the larger discount.
Please don’t be that person.
Do I earn points on the full amount of spend?
As Love Dining is an upfront discount and not a statement credit, Membership Rewards points will be awarded on the discounted amount charged to the card.
Can I enjoy Love Dining benefits when paying with Kris+?
No. To enjoy Love Dining benefits, you must pay with the physical AMEX card (or digital card, at restaurants which accept it).
There are scattered reports of some restaurants allowing stacking of Love Dining and Kris+, but even so it’s a YMMV situation.
Does Love Dining stack with AMEX statement credits?
AMEX Platinum Charge cardholders enjoy S$200 of local dining credits every calendar year, valid at participating restaurants.
In Singapore, the list includes a few restaurants which are also part of Love Dining, namely:
- Asian Market Cafe
- Lawry’s The Prime Rib
- Si Chuan Dou Hua at UOB Plaza
- Wooloomooloo Steakhouse
Cardholders are perfectly at liberty to stack the dining credits with Love Dining benefits; all that matters is the nett amount charged to the card.
For example, if I spend S$400 on food at Si Chuan Dou Hua with a 50% Love Dining benefit, S$237.60 (S$200 + 10% service charge + 8% GST) will be charged to my card. That will then trigger a S$200 statement credit for local dining, making my nett out of pocket cost S$37.60.
Can I stack Love Dining with hotel points earning?
The picture here is mixed.
Officially, Marriott Bonvoy members cannot earn points on dining when a Love Dining discount is used. However, I’ve been able to get Accor Live Limitless points credited when submitting my Love Dining receipt as a retro-credit request.
Conclusion
American Express Love Dining can be a great way of saving on your dining out expenses, though the mileage you get really boils down to whether you fancy the participating restaurants.
Be sure to bring your physical AMEX card with you, and always clarify the qualifying items before ordering!
There are still some decent names left on the list, though I probably wouldn’t pay the annual fee they’re asking for the base card now that I already have Accor Plus.
Hi Aarong, have you noticed the date of the statement credits offer has been changed to 31/12/2024? I haven’t utilized the $200 dining credit for 2023 so far, does it mean I lost the opportunity to use it before the end of this year? or could it be if I were to use it today, I would get $200 back only for the credit of 2024?
There are additional blackout dates for Lawry’s (and possibly other restaurants). Lawry’s blocks 11-31 Dec according to Amex’s T&C or the entire December according to Lawry’s website.