Chain Restaurant 3-Course Deals Are Popular — But Which Offer The Most Bang For Your Buck?

Multi-course meals typically involve leisurely gourmet dining at relatively high prices, depending on the venue or occasion. For example, a four-course winemaker's dinner can easily run $150 or more based on wine quality and reputation. But spending several hours and big bucks on a lavish dining experience seems more like a special occasion than a casual meal out with family or friends. Somewhere nestled between the extremes, the latest version of multi-course eating has carved out a comfy niche: three-course meal deals now offered by some of your favorite chain restaurants.

We're not talking fast food drive-in joints, but rather the family-friendly sit-down venues spreading across wide swaths of American cities. While some of these eateries offer these three-course meal specials for takeout or delivery, the whole point is to settle in for a parade of tasty entrées, appetizers, and dessert courses, all served at real tables by real people. We're focusing on five affordable restaurant chains that provide this experience, including Outback Steakhouse, P.F. Chang's, Chili's, Melting Pot, and Logan's Roadhouse, bringing you a deeper look at what to expect from each.

Outback Steakhouse is known for hearty, casual meals in a relaxed environment, offering seasonal specials along with anytime fan favorites such as Bloomin' Onions, Alice Springs Chicken, and those famous steaks. But of all the things you should know about Outback Steakhouse, here's a new one: the chain offers the Aussie 3-Course Meal with three tiers of set prices, quietly resting on the menu with little fanfare. You'll pay either $14.99, $17.99, or $20.99 based on which entrée the diner chooses. The steakhouse calls this a limited-time offering, but it seems to crop up repeatedly.

This time around, the deal starts you off with a soup or salad, regardless of which price tier you choose. Included starter options are baked potato soup, house salad, or Caesar salad. For a few more dollars, it's possible to upgrade to Tasmanian Chili or blue cheese pecan chopped salad. All three tiers come with a classic steakhouse side dish alongside one of Outback's favorite "Down Under" entrées, including the Bloomin' Fried Chicken or burgers, eight-piece grilled shrimp or chicken "on the barbie," six- or eight-ounce center-cut sirloin steaks, a half-rack of Outback ribs, and more, spread across the three set-price options.  

The third course crowns the procession with a slice of New York-style cheesecake drizzled in either raspberry or chocolate sauce. It's important to note that the 3-course meal is for dine-in only, and that prices, selections, and participation may vary by location. 

Chili's has jumped on the three-course meal deal wagon with its 3 For Me combo. This chain offers a beverage as part of the trio instead of a dessert, similar to most of its competitors. But the beverage choices are generous, including fountain drinks, iced tea, and lemonade, plus two margarita selections for $4 or $6 extra. The meals, including the beverage, appetizer, and entrée with regular side dish, come in three tiers, priced at $11, $15, and $17, which makes them less expensive than Outback's version. The meals are available for lunch and dinner, with delivery and pickup options as well.

However, included appetizers are quite basic, with a choice of a house side salad, a cup of soup, or chips and salsa. An upgrade option perks things up a bit with a Dip Trio of chips and three tasty dips. Entrée selections too are limited within each category but get increasingly more interesting as the price inches up.

The lowest-priced entrée tier offers two types of burgers or a crispy chicken sandwich with fries, while the mid-priced category ($15) takes things up a notch with options for a bacon burger, three-count chicken crispers with fries, or chicken bacon ranch quesadillas. For $2 more, the highest-priced group provides your choice of a double cheeseburger, bacon guac crispy chicken sandwich, Cajun shrimp pasta with garlic bread, or a classic six-ounce sirloin steak joined by loaded mashed potatoes and steamed broccoli.

P.F. Chang's adds Asian-inspired food to the three-course meal party, joining its chain restaurant cohorts in offering set prices for its multi-course setup. It's a bit more nuanced in its approach than others, as the experience is designed specifically for groups of two or more. The whole thing is labeled under the name Chef's Feast, offering selections starting at $19.99 per person.

Instead of including drinks or desserts in its multi-course meals, P.F. Chang's rolls out the first course as a choice between a house salad, egg drop soup, or hot & sour soup. Next comes a shared appetizer for the table, with options for edamame, pork egg rolls, veggie spring rolls, or the restaurant's wildly popular crispy fried green beans. Upgraded premium appetizers widen the range with items such as crab wontons, California rolls, dumplings, and lettuce wraps.

Then comes the procession of tasty entrées for this Chef's Feast, with six offerings included in the basic three-course dinner price, each accompanied by a side of rice. Some of the chain's well-loved dishes perch on this list, such as crispy honey chicken and its signature lo mein with a selection of meats, shrimp, or tofu. The next price level bumps you into the territory of firecracker shrimp, pad Thai, Mongolian beef, and more. The Deluxe level offers either a Mongolian or teriyaki trio. By request, you can choose vegetarian and gluten-free options. Diners are welcome to eat in-house or via takeout, though third-party delivery services are excluded.

Melting Pot inches onto the three-course meal scene, but at present, the action takes place only one night per week. The Melting Pot website bills it as the BFFF 3-Course meal, with "shareable sips and delicious dips." The extra F in the "best friends forever" moniker is a Melting Pot adaptation that reads "Best Fondue Friends Forever." As with any dining experience at Melting Pot, known as one of America's top cheese-themed restaurants, fondue steals the show with steamy, creamy pots of cheesy and chocolatey goodness. Between the first-course cheese fondue and the third-course chocolate one, there's a fresh salad to crunch things up a bit.

Diners start with a cheese fondue, with the featured option being the Bacon Mac & Cheese Fondue created from artisan cheeses, elbow macaroni, and crispy bacon. However, with this deal, you can choose any cheese fondue on the menu. The same goes for the other two courses, including the type of salad. The recommended grand finale third course is the Lavender & Blueberry White Chocolate Fondue with, you guessed it, white chocolate, blueberries, and a blackberry caviar topping. But plenty of other chocolate fondues call from the Melting Pot menu, so feel free to explore. 

The price is set depending on location and generally varies between $34 and $44 per person for Melting Pot's BFFF 3-Course Meal. This lands on the higher side compared to other chain-style restaurants, but it's a comparatively more extensive dining experience suitable for lingering. There's also the option to add an entrée and make it four courses for between $50 and $60 per person.

Finally, in this roundup of three-fer dining spots, Logan's Roadhouse gallops onto the list with its Real-Deal Meal special. Known for sit-down dining and made-from-scratch meals, Logan's also presents one of the most affordable options for three-course dining. The price starts at $11.99 (without upgrades) and rises as high as $16.99 depending on the chosen entrée. For the set price per person, you'll get a drink, salad, and entrée, plus bottomless rolls.

Included beverages are the usual soft drinks and iced tea, but shelling out an extra $3 to $4 bumps up the liquids to either 16 or 22 ounces of Bud Light or Miller Light beers, or to the alcohol-infused Roadhouse Tea. Slipping in an appetizer of onion rings before the salad tacks on an additional $4. The salad course sticks to the basics of garden or Caesar, leaving more tummy room for one of the seven entrée selections.

Entrées are where you see the price escalating per selection. For the base $11.99 price, choose between a peppercorn bacon chicken sandwich or the restaurant's popular Original Roadies, three mini steakhouse burgers with cheese slipped inside the joint's signature rolls. For just a dollar more, make your entrée an All American Cheeseburger, or for $14.99, the options extend to wood-grilled chicken or hand-breaded chicken tenders. Finally, the three-course meal options top out at $16.99 for either beer-battered fish or a center-cut top sirloin steak. The deals are available all day long, at select locations, for sit-down only.