Veterans Day Deals: The Best Offers and Freebies This Weekend

Every Friday, we scan the weekly ads, deal sites and retailer marketing emails to find the best deals available for the coming week. With Veterans Day coming this Sunday, here are a few of the best deals that retailers and restaurants are offering in celebration, including many freebies for veterans and active-duty military members.

• A number of restaurants offer free meals for veterans and active-duty military personnel. Coupon site BeFrugal passes along this special menu from seafood restaurant McCormick and Schmick: Veterans with proper identification can get any one item from the menu for free on Sunday. Olive Garden has its own special menu for veterans on Sunday, with six possible free meals (including unlimited salad and breadsticks). On Monday, veterans can get a free "Big Two Do Breakfast" and coffee during breakfast hours at Friendly's. And Offers.com point us to this deal from California Pizza Kitchen, which offers veterans a free pizza and non-alcoholic drink on either Sunday or Monday.

• While most National Parks offer free admission year-round, those that do charge admission periodically offer fee-free days and weekends. Veterans Day weekend is one such time, and there's no military ID required -- admission is free for everyone at more than 100 participating parks on Saturday and Sunday.

• Coupon site Coupon Sherpa points us to Grace for Vets, an international organization which gets the car wash industry to provide free washes to military members and veterans on Veterans Day. The site has a state-by-state directory of car wash locations participating this Sunday. As the site notes, no identification is required to get the free car wash, just tell them that you're a veteran. "This may lead to some abuse, but we believe that the program must be based on one of the guiding principles for a veteran, honor," says the organization.

• Finally, a number of retailers are having special sales events connected with the holiday weekend. Crocs, for instance, will give you 25% off non-sale items on its website with the code VETERANS. The code is good through 11:59 p.m. EST Monday, and Crocs stores are likewise participating. Brooks Brothers, meanwhile, is running a clearance sale on its site this weekend, taking up to 70% off.

Matt Brownell is the consumer and retail reporter for DailyFinance. You can reach him at Matt.Brownell@teamaol.com, and follow him on Twitter at @Brownellorama.