Along with the parades and ceremonies from coast to coast, another tradition has marched to the forefront for Veterans Day.
Veterans and active-duty service members, your meal’s on the house Nov. 11 at a number of central Ohio restaurants.
Here’s a far-from-exhaustive list of freebies and discounts. Most require some form of military identification to redeem the offer. You can find more at military.com.
101 Craft Kitchen
Discount: $10 off. Where: 7509 Sawmill Road, Dublin; 397 Stoneridge Lane, Gahanna; 817 Polaris Pkwy., Westerville; 101craftkitchen.com.
Bob Evans
Freebie: Choose from 10 meals, including the classic breakfast (two eggs, breakfast meat, bread), Sunrise (two eggs; hash browns, home fries or fruit; bread), biscuits and gravy, brioche French toast, buttermilk hotcakes, and Down-Home Country-Fried Steak (with mashed potatoes, green beans and bread). Where: Visit bobevans.com for locations in central Ohio.
Charleys Cheesesteaks
Freebie: gourmet fries. Where: 3900 Morse Road, Northeast Side; 1855 Morse Road, Northland; 5033 N. High St., Clintonville; 3849 E. Broad St., Whitehall; charleys.com.
Chicken Salad Chick
Freebie: Scoop or sandwich, one side, regular drink. Where: 1056 Dublin Road, Grandview Heights; 687 Worthington Road, Westerville; 6304 E. Dublin Granville Road, Northeast Side; chickensaladchick.com.
Chipotle
Freebie: Buy-one, get-one entrees from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Where: Visit chipotle.com to find your nearest location.
From Nov. 11 to Nov. 16, customers also can round up their tab on the Chipotle app or website to donate to the United Service Organizations.
City Barbeque
Freebie: complimentary meal, including a sandwich, one side and a drink. Where: Visit citybbq.com to find your nearest location.
Eddie Merlot’s
Freebie: Eddie’s Prime Cheeseburger with fries. Where: 1570 Polaris Parkway, Far North Side; 614-433-7307; eddiemerlots.com/columbus.
El Vaquero
Discount: 20% off. Where: Visit vaquerorestaurant.com for a list of all 13 locations in central Ohio.
Fusian
Freebie: 10-piece signature roll (spicy tuna, spicy salmon, California, spring chicken, crispy shrimp, vegan, salmon crunch, Philly roll, PB&J). Where: 4214 N. High St., Clintonville; 855 W. 5th Ave., Fifth by Northwest; 4190 Worth Ave., Easton Town Center; fusian.com.
Golden Corral
Freebie: dinner buffet and beverage. Where: 2005 Stringtown Road, Grove City; 4750 E. Main St., Whitehall; 1660 N. Bridge St., Chillicothe; goldencorral.com.
Hofbräuhaus
Freebie: one meal, up to $20 value, anytime from Nov. 11 to Nov. 17. Where: 800 Goodale Blvd., Grandview Heights; hofbrauhauscolumbus.com.
Huey Magoo’s
Freebie: three-piece tenders meal with the purchase of a regular beverage. Where: 53 W. Wilson Bridge Road, Worthington; 15720 U.S. Hwy. 36, Marysville; 23601 U.S. Hwy. 23, Circleville; hueymagoos.com.
Johnson’s Real Ice Cream
Freebie: single scoop. Where: Johnson’s has ice cream shops in Bexley, Canal Winchester, Dublin, Grandview Heights, Italian Village, New Albany, Pickerington and Powell. Visit johnsonsrealicecream.com for exact locations.
Logan’s Roadhouse
Freebie: dine-in meal from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Where: 1657 Stringtown Road, Grove City; logansroadhouse.com.
McDonald’s
Freebie: Egg McMuffin meal, including a hash brown and any size soft drink, tea or coffee, or three-piece McCrispy Strips meal, with medium fries and any size soft drink, tea or coffee. The free meals are available via dine-in or drive-through, not on the McDonald’s app. Where: Visit mcdonalds.com for locations in central Ohio. The deals are only available via dine-in or drive-thru. The deals are not available in the McDonald’s app. Breakfast meals are only available until 10:30am.
Raising Cane’s
Discount: 10% off entire purchase for active or nonactive military, fire, police and emergency medical personnel, as well as their families. The offer is good every day, but you must show a valid ID. Where: Visit raisingcanes.com for locations in central Ohio.
Savvy Sliders
Freebie: original or fried chicken slider. Where: 2106 N. High St., University District; 1450 W. Broad St., Franklinton; savvysliders.com
Sheetz
Freebie: half turkey sub (including extras and add-ons) and regular size fountain drink, plus a car wash at locations with that service. Where: Visit sheetz.com to find your nearest location.
Sheetz customers also can donate loyalty points during November to the USO. One-hundred points equals a $1 donation.
Smokey Bones
Freebie: bacon cheeseburger, pulled-pork sandwich or chicken tender platter, with a side. Where: 3939 Morse Crossing, Easton; 2200 Baltimore Reynoldsburg Road, Reynoldsburg; 1615 Stringtown Road, Grove City; smokeybones.com.
Starbucks
Freebie: tall (12 ounces) brewed coffee, hot or iced. Where: Visit starbucks.com to find your nearest location.
Texas de Brazil Steakhouse
Discount: 15% off dinner or lunch for up to four, through Thursday, Nov. 13. Where: 4040 Easton Station, Easton Town Center; texasdebrazil.com.
Torchy’s Tacos
Freebie: taco and a non-alcoholic beverage. Where: 3726 W. Dublin Granville Road, Northwest Side; 6042 N. Hamilton Road, Northeast Side; torchystacos.com.
Twin Peaks
Freebie: lunch from a select menu. Where: 1611 Polaris Parkway, Far North Side; twinpeaksrestaurant.com.
White Castle
Freebie: individual combo meal or breakfast combo meal. Where: Visit whitecastle.com to find your nearest location.
Bob Vitale can be reached at rvitale@dispatch.com or at @dispatchdining on the Instagram social platform.
(This story has been updated with additional information.)
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: These Columbus area restaurants are offering free meals and other deals for Veterans Day
Reporting by Bob Vitale, Columbus Dispatch / The Columbus Dispatch
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