Solera Restaurant $30 Discount Coupon

Site: Solera Restaurant

Location: 900 Hennepin Ave. S., Minneapolis (check out the map here)

Deal: $50 gift certificate for $20

Details: Groupon is making a huge impact here in Minneapolis, and in just a few hours, people have snapped up more than 1,200 coupons for Solera. Should the next one be you? The Spanish restaurant's small but sharable tapas make for a fun evening for a big group, since you'll have the opportunity to try a little bit of everything. Since it's right in the heart of downtown, you can plan for a meal before or after the show. Grab apps, dessert, and a couple of glasses of wine and you'll round out your $50 experience in no time at all.

Don't Take My Word For It: Yeah, it's a 6-year-old Star Tribune review, but it still stands.

Expiration: Buy the coupon until January 31; you must use it by August 1, 2010

Source: Groupon.com

Disclosure: The links are connected to my personal Groupon account, so I think I get some sort of kickback. Feel free to use it, or just type in the website.

Aveda Institute Gift Certificate

Site: Aveda Institute

Location: 400 Central Ave SE (check it out here)

Deal: $50 gift certificate for $25 (visit this link)

Details: The chances of getting a good haircut at a reasonable price seem vanishingly small these days, but there's an exception at the Aveda Institute. You may feel a smidgen like a guinea pig as you get your hair cut, or colored (the stylists are in the finishing stages of their training, so a pro will help guide their efforts), but you can't beat the price. And now you can chop the price even more than your hair by grabbing this deal. There are a few details to note: you've got to use the cert in a single visit, and you've got to use it on a service, not products. That said, when you leave feeling like a million bucks, you'll realize that this one was worth every penny.

Expiration: Sale starts Thursday, 1/27/10. When the 100 gift certificates are gone, they're gone.

Source: The Valentine Store at Half Off Deals

Peninsula Malaysian Cuisine for $2

Site: Peninsula Malaysian Cuisine

Location: 2608 Nicollet Ave. S. (map here)

Deal: $25 gift certificate for $2

Details: If you follow the deals on Restaurant.com, you know they've got a pretty slick setup: You buy a $25 restaurant gift certificate for $10. Usually you've got to spend $35 at the meal, but with the restaurants they feature, this isn't a tough hurdle to clear. As the month goes on, the deals get sweeter—50 percent, 70 percent, and 80 percent off the discounted prices. Right now, you can go to Restaurant.com and get $25 certificates for $2 just by entering the code BONUS at the checkout (Here's a link directly to the Peninsula offering.) Peninsula is one of their newest featured restaurants, and the food is smashing, from roti canai—crispy, addictive pancake appetizers—to the delightful mango chicken. Though the service can be haphazard at times, the food is unforgettable.

Don't Take My Word For It: Click here to read a tiny City Pages review that highlights some of the restaurant's tastiest dishes.

Expiration: The end of January—or till they're gone, whichever comes first.

Source: Restaurant.com

Free Walker Art Center Admission

Site: Walker Art Center

Location: 1750 Hennepin Ave. S. (directions here)

Deal: 2 free passes ($20 total value)

Details: If you're a resident of Hennepin County and you've got a library card, you're in luck. Macy's has once again sponsored the Museum Adventure Pass, where you can check out two free passes to one of 18 area museums. The Walker deal is especially sweet, since tickets will normally set you back $10 apiece, unless you go on the super-crowded free nights. To get the deal, head to one of your local libraries and either look for the museum pass station or ask one of the librarians. These passes go quickly, so it's worth calling the library ahead of time to make sure they're still available. (Find your local library's hours, phone number, and location here.)

Expiration: September 9, 2010

Source: Museum Adventure Pass