Qantas has struck a deal with Rockpool Dining Group that will allow frequent flyer members to earn points at any of their restaurants.
Under the new arrangement Qantas frequent fliers can also pick up the bill at these restaurants, which include the likes of Rockpool Bar and Grill, Fratelli Fresh and the Burger Project, with their points.
The rewards system is set to launch on Friday and for the first six months until May 31, 2018 members will earn double the usual number of points per dollar.
Members will generally receive two points per dollar spent (or four for the first six months) at Rockpool’s premium and casual dining options, such as Sake Restaurant and Bar and the Argyle, and one point per dollar spent (or two for the first six months) at Rockpool’s fast casual options, like Burger Project Fratelli Famous and Sake Jr.
Redeeming points to cover your meal incurs a rate of $20 per 4000 points, and the minimum redemption increment is 4000 points.
Based on that, it would take over 6000 Burger Project classic burgers to fly economy from Sydney from Paris (based on an estimate of 60,000 points), or 800 to fly to Melbourne (based on an estimate of 8000 points) – or half these amounts if you ate them all in the next six months. And for the same number of points it would take to get a one-way ticket to Melbourne, you could buy four burgers.
The move comes Qantas has been expanding its frequent flyer program significantly over the past few years. Most recently, they secured a partnership with Uber that will allow users to earn points on trips to and from the airport if they book them at the same time as their flights.
Rewards are also available to people using Airbnb, and even for staying fit in partnership with private health insurer NIB. All of these partnerships are leading to the rewards program becoming one of Qantas’ most profitable divisions.
While Qantas rewards are already up for grabs for making bookings at partnered restaurants on Qantas’ website, this is the first time points have been able to be both earned and spent with any one partner. If people also book their meal through Qantas and pay with a frequent flyer credit card, they could earn three sets of points on their meal while dining at any of the Rockpool brands – one point per dollar on the card and 100 points per diner for booking.
Rockpool Dining Group includes 57 restaurants across 16 brands in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth.
Neil Perry, the culinary director of Rockpool Dining Group, has served as Qantas’ consulting chef for the past 20 years. He expressed excitement about extending their partnership, saying, “I now feel like Qantas has 60 new lounges”.
Qantas Loyalty executive manager commercial David Young told Fairfax Media the program was aimed at diversifying rewards for Qantas’ customers.
“Our members enjoy good food and wine which is why the Rockpool Dining Group partnership is a fitting one, offering them more opportunities to earn and use their Qantas Points.”
