Festive freebies: Trying the birthday freebies in Palo Alto

From complementary desserts to drinks, Palo Alto’s wide variety of shops and restaurants have ways to make your upcoming birthday even sweeter. This comprehensive guide offers insight to Palo Alto’s chain stores and small businesses that provide the best birthday freebies. We visited three local hotspots: Stanford Shopping Mall, Downtown Palo Alto and Town and Country Village. In order to guarantee your freebies, make sure to sign up for each store’s rewards program a couple weeks in advance with your email, enter your birthdate and make sure to visit on your birthday!

Lilo Sayag and Jacob Domingo

October 9, 2025

CHOCOLATE CUPCAKE — Sprinkles, located at Stanford Shopping Center in Palo Alto, is a chain that sells cupcakes and other baked goods. Pictured is a dark chocolate cupcake, made with Belgian Dark Chocolate cake topped with bittersweet chocolate frosting and chocolate paillettes.

STANFORD SHOPPING MALL:

Stanford Shopping Mall is packed with a variety of restaurants. Here’s our list of the ones that offer birthday freebies. The Melt offers a free dessert through their app via a one time promo code: a chocolate chunk cookie, soft serve ice cream, marshmallow bar or a dark chocolate brownie. Sprinkles gives a free cupcake of your choice available through their apps via a one-time promo code. Pinkberry will knock $5 off your purchase. This discount is available through their app via a one-time promo code. Shake Shack provides a free milkshake for their classic flavors: vanilla, chocolate, strawberry, coffee and caramel. This reward is redeemable through their app, via a one-time promo code.

CHOCOLATE CUPCAKE — Sprinkles, located at Stanford Shopping Center in Palo Alto, is a chain that sells cupcakes and other baked goods. Pictured is a dark chocolate cupcake, made with Belgian Dark Chocolate cake topped with bittersweet chocolate frosting and chocolate paillettes. (Lilo Sayag)

DOWNTOWN PALO ALTO:

Downtown Palo Alto is a charming, small-town area of Palo Alto that ranges from local art galleries to well-known chains. Starbucks offers a free drink, given that you have made at least one purchase before your birthday each year. This reward is only redeemable on the day of, through the app or in-store. Coupa Cafe offers a free small birthday coffee from its menu of drinks. The reward can be redeemed in-store via QR code through the rewards app. Sephora is a cosmetic shop that supplies a wide range of personal care and beauty products. In order to redeem birthday rewards, customers must sign up for their Beauty Insider rewards program. During a customer’s birthday month, they may get a choice of mini gifts varying from cologne to beauty products. They can be redeemed by either ordering through the app or online with a minimum of a $25 purchase, or going in store to get them for free.

ROADSIDE SWEETS — Gott’s Roadside at Town and Country Village is an American restaurant that specializes in modern roadside classics. On your birthday, they’ll treat you to a large soft serve cone of either vanilla, chocolate or a swirl of both with the choice of additional toppings.

TOWN & COUNTRY VILLAGE:

Town and Country Village has been open since the 1950s, serving Palo Alto with an array of lifestyle shops, restaurants, and daily services. Gott’s Roadside is a family-style diner mainly known for its American cuisine featuring many classics such as burgers and fries. Even without a rewards program, when customers walk into the store and let the cashier know it’s their birthday, a $5.99 ice-cream cone is offered for free with their choice of flavor: vanilla, chocolate or a swirl of both. Gott’s even allows free customizations with typically 99-cent toppings at the counter. Jamba Juice offers a small smoothie of your choice for free, that usually costs $9.99. This reward may be redeemed at any store when presenting a QR code at checkout through their rewards app. Peet’s Coffee also offers a free small drink of your choice on your birthday. This freebie can be redeemed at any store when presenting a QR code at checkout through their rewards app.

ROADSIDE SWEETS — Gott’s Roadside at Town and Country Village is an American restaurant that specializes in modern roadside classics. On your birthday, they’ll treat you to a large soft serve cone of either vanilla, chocolate or a swirl of both with the choice of additional toppings. (Lilo Sayag)