Dining Out for Life, the annual event that raises money for AIDS service organizations through restaurant donations, is coming back to Philly this Thursday. Now in its 21st year in the city, various restaurants will donate a portion of their proceeds from the night and in turn they get listed in a marketing campaign effort. Back in 1991, this was an idea created by an ActionAIDS volunteer right here in Philly and now this fundraising effort happens in 55 cities in American and Canada, with more than 3,500 restaurants participating. On average, almost $4 million is raised and the money stays in the city it was donated from to support the local organizations there.

This Thursday, over 200 restaurants in Philly and the neighboring Delware Valley region will be helping out. Each participating eatery will give 33% of the cost of patrons’ meals to the cause. Some of the participating restaurants are Fork Restaurant, Garces Trading Co., Bistro St. Tropez, and the Meritage. Go here for a full listing of all the restaurants and go out to eat on Thursday to do your part, which simply enough is just eating.