While Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas typically dominate food headlines and press releases this time of year, November 11 is also an important moment in the calendar for restaurants. Every Veterans Day, many food businesses announce deals and discounts for both veterans and active-duty members of the military to express their gratitude for their service. These offers usually land on the day itself, of course, but they can sometimes extend to the day before and after.
Videos by Sporked
This year, Red Robin’s been quick out of the gate to announce its Veterans Day deal – and it’s offering a good plate of food for no cost whatsoever. Here’s what you can get, and how you can get it.
Red Robin Veteran Day Offer
This year, Red Robin’s serving up its Red’s Big Tavern Burger and Bottomless Steak Fries for veterans and active-duty military members – for free. Substitutions or extras can be added or made for an additional charge, but the standard burger is pretty good as it stands: a made-to-order patty hit with American cheese, Red’s Secret Sauce, lettuce and tomato, on a brioche bun. The Bottomless Steak Fries, meanwhile, don’t have any actual steak (just for the avoidance of doubt); instead, they’re steak-style, thick-cut potato strips sprinkled with Red’s Original seasoning.
To redeem this offer, you’ll need to have a valid military ID or proof of service, which will be checked in-store – and you can only get it as a dine-in option. You don’t have to make an additional purchase here, though: You can just grab the free food if you wish.
Further Deals
So far, Red Robin’s been the only restaurant we’ve seen that’s officially announced its Veterans Day offer for 2026 – but there are usually a lot of eateries that have their own. Chains like Buffalo Wild Wings, Red Lobster, BJ’s, and Smashburger typically serve up Veterans Day deals, and all of them tend to involve free food in some form. BWW, for instance, gave veterans and active-duty service members complimentary boneless wings and fries in 2025, while Red Lobster served up a free shrimp meal. We can likely expect more announcements to arrive in the coming days and weeks.
Red Robin, meanwhile, has been pretty busy elsewhere. Just last week, it added a ton of new menu items (including a Prime Rib burger), and prior to that, it was busy collaborating with the Kelce brothers, just a couple of weeks after Travis and Taylor’s wedding. Those folks just never stop, do they?
Thoughts? Questions? Complete disagreement? Leave a comment!