When Elena Tronco’s companion suggested they split the check after a first date, she wasn’t prepared for him to hand her a Groupon saying, “This should cover my half.”  Ms. Tronco, 28, of North Center, paid about $75, compared to her date’s $30 tab.

“That made me not want to even try a second date,” she says.  “I thought it said a lot about who he was overall, like trying to keep up with the Joneses but can’t.”

Coupons may be trendy, but bargain-hunters tempted to use them for romance or business meals still must choose between their love of a bargain and fear of looking cheap.

“A lot of people are so self-conscious about it, they just don’t use it,” says P.J. McGuire, president of Chicago business etiquette firm Modet Inc.  “They’d rather find another way to pay for it than embarrass themselves.”

Coupon holders who need to keep their thriftiness private should go to the restaurant early and speak to the maitre d’ or manager, Ms. McGuire says.  At the end of the meal, they can excuse themselves and settle the bill away from the table.

Norma Rodriguez de Yagcier, a senior accreditation administrator at a Chicago-based non-profit, says the organization used a coupon in April to cater a lunch for visiting doctors.  The meal cost about $100, half their usual bill.

“We’ve all been feeling the economic turmoil,” she says.  “This is a way we can cut down on one of our bigger expenses.”

June 14, 2010