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AIBU?

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Original poster

To think you don’t get out of paying the bill because you don’t drink?

458 replies

ThatHardyWaspAgain · 09/04/2025 19:58

I’m sure this has been done many times before by people in similar scenarios.

I went out for a bit of lunch with two friend’s and one of them brought another friend along that I’ve never met but was nice enough.

However, when it came to the bill, she said ‘’Can we please calculate it all with the alcohol you’ve had separately paid for? Because I only had classical cokes’’

So, we did as she asked. Added up everything but removed the drinks. So 3 of us paid for our drinks in a split, and then did another split for the rest with her and her food and classical colas.

The annoying bit is, she had 3 of them. And they weren’t really much different in price to most of our alcohol.

We all had the same roast and mango cheesecake.

I wouldn’t mind but she kept insisting we all had a dessert so she didn’t feel alone in having one. We’re adults after all but it is a bit annoying

Separate thread to come to see if I would be U to tell my friend not to bring her along again

She also didn’t tip.

OP posts:
Daisy12Maisie · 09/04/2025 21:03

Fine that she didn’t want to pay for other people’s alcohol. In general I would never expect someone to sub my glass of wine or whatever but once the alcohol was taken off you should have just said your meal was £11 or whatever and your drinks were £10 so your bill was £21. We will split the rest of the bill between us. Done. So the issue was her not paying for her drinks. I agree that you don’t get them for free/ subsidised by others just because they are non alcoholic.
I get that there was only a £2 difference but sometimes the difference is vast so it’s a good rule to have in general i think. But 3 cokes are things she should pay for herself.

Boreded · 09/04/2025 21:01

Eldermilleniallyogii · 09/04/2025 20:08

You don't need to keep calling it a classical coke OP

Better than when morons call it a full fat coke…anyone checked the fat content for Coca Cola recently?

tilypu · 09/04/2025 21:00

Her cokes were £3.373333333 each? How odd.

SugarandSpiceandAllThingsNaice · 09/04/2025 20:59

AthWat · 09/04/2025 20:32

No, it happened because she asked for the alcohol to be removed and paid separately, but not her soft drinks. They should have refused, but that's what she asked for.

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God, this is just like the girl math meme. She was clearly asking the group to just pay their own bills. Yes she worded it awkwardly but it wasn’t meant to be interpreted as do some wierd girl maths that results in you paying for my cokes.

When an adult doesn’t want to just pay a % of the full bill, they tend to say I didn’t have alcohol as the reason why. The response to that is to just have everyone pay for their own food and drink.

Goldbar · 09/04/2025 20:58

Surely you either split the bill or each pay for your own (including drinks)?

GertrudePerkinsPaperyThing · 09/04/2025 20:57

BobnLen · 09/04/2025 20:47

I don't think I could manage 3 classical cokes

No, I also get bored of any given soft drink after one or maybe two, and would go on to water.

Sofiewoo · 09/04/2025 20:54

springbringshope · 09/04/2025 20:48

I read it as the OP did t mind separating out the alcohol but it’s a bit rich for the coke drinker to expect everyone to include her beverages in the main bill.

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I don’t think a single person is suggesting that’s normal though?
You either split it evenly because you’ve all ordered similar, or because you’re close friends and don’t care, or you pay for what you had.

WonderingWanda · 09/04/2025 20:54

It's fine to pay for your own drinks but that's what should've happened, she should've paid for hers too. It's so easy to just pay for what you've had in restaurants I don't know why you didn't just all pay for what you had. I guess next time you will know to do that instead.

EmeraldRoulette · 09/04/2025 20:53

ThatHardyWaspAgain · 09/04/2025 20:03

Our alcohol total was £12.50 and her cokes all came to £10.12

So it’s okay for us to sub her drinks just because they’re non alcohol?

How much alcohol was there? It's crap in this instance but historically, when Iwas driving, I always asked for a split. I'd never quibble over £2 though.

redboxer321 · 09/04/2025 20:53

TheWonderhorse · 09/04/2025 20:34

I don't mean to be that wanker but 10.12 doesn't divide by three.

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I'll be that wanker... how can 3 cokes add up to £10.12. That would make them £3.37 each. Perhaps it's only classical cola that is oddly priced.

springbringshope · 09/04/2025 20:52

ThatHardyWaspAgain · 09/04/2025 20:03

Our alcohol total was £12.50 and her cokes all came to £10.12

So it’s okay for us to sub her drinks just because they’re non alcohol?

The total for all your alcohol was 12.50?
And she drank £10:12 of coke?
Then why were you all so stoopid and not say ‘of course. We will remove all the drinks, that is 10.12 for you and 12.50 divided up for us’.
why would you not have done that?

Sofiewoo · 09/04/2025 20:52

Gogogo12345 · 09/04/2025 20:43

It's very easy to do. Just ask for separate bills at the start

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You don’t even need to ask for separate bills, the server is literally just inputting the amount into the card reader regardless. You just all say “I’m paying £30/£25/£35”
The actual bill on the table will be itemised.

StrangerThings1 · 09/04/2025 20:51

ThatHardyWaspAgain · 09/04/2025 19:58

I’m sure this has been done many times before by people in similar scenarios.

I went out for a bit of lunch with two friend’s and one of them brought another friend along that I’ve never met but was nice enough.

However, when it came to the bill, she said ‘’Can we please calculate it all with the alcohol you’ve had separately paid for? Because I only had classical cokes’’

So, we did as she asked. Added up everything but removed the drinks. So 3 of us paid for our drinks in a split, and then did another split for the rest with her and her food and classical colas.

The annoying bit is, she had 3 of them. And they weren’t really much different in price to most of our alcohol.

We all had the same roast and mango cheesecake.

I wouldn’t mind but she kept insisting we all had a dessert so she didn’t feel alone in having one. We’re adults after all but it is a bit annoying

Separate thread to come to see if I would be U to tell my friend not to bring her along again

She also didn’t tip.

When it was the first time meeting ye, she shouldn’t have said anything if she was trying to form a friendship

As she did say something, I think it would have been less complicated if ye all paid separately

She should have paid for her own drinks if the rest of ye were paying for your own so I don’t understand why ye paid for hers, she brought the whole issue up

HueyLouisAndDewey · 09/04/2025 20:51

Hwi · 09/04/2025 20:44

It is because of tight arses like you that they add a service charge on, which is loathed by service staff.

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tipping isn't needed in the UK because the staff are paid minimum wage. It's different in the US. I only tip for exceptional service, because I want to tip someone. I don't believe in giving money that isn't owed under compulsion. I'm not stingy in any way just a strong believer in financial self care.

goldenretrieverenergy · 09/04/2025 20:50

You all sound tight.
You should’ve paid just for what you had + tip separately if you wanted to.

PeachPumpkin · 09/04/2025 20:50

YANBU, OP. It was cheeky of her to keep her drinks in the shared bill and only remove the alcohol. I’m also a non-drinker and wouldn’t have done this.

Cherrytree86 · 09/04/2025 20:49

TheJollyMoose · 09/04/2025 20:01

YABU. I don’t drink and I won’t facilitate other people drinking either.

I don’t split the bill - I will pay for what I’ve eaten and drank.

Oh and no, I don’t tip either. You aren’t helping when you tip, you know. You aren’t being kind or a good citizen.

You’re part of the problem and you’re keeping wages low by tipping because employers have no incentive to up wages when mugs like you will flash the cash to make yourselves feel good.

@TheJollyMoose

yeah but three cokes would cost more than one glass of wine for example, so splitting the bill is fine.

TheWonderhorse · 09/04/2025 20:49

AthWat · 09/04/2025 20:47

They neednt have been pints. Lareg and small measures of other sizes are available.

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Mate it was a joke!

GertrudePerkinsPaperyThing · 09/04/2025 20:49

ThatHardyWaspAgain · 09/04/2025 20:03

Our alcohol total was £12.50 and her cokes all came to £10.12

So it’s okay for us to sub her drinks just because they’re non alcohol?

Hardly anyone is saying this!

Sounds like it would have been much easier if everyone had just paid for what they had.

Potatosaladsalsa · 09/04/2025 20:48

You’re unreasonable for calling it classiCAL coke. What the f

springbringshope · 09/04/2025 20:48

Sofiewoo · 09/04/2025 20:01

Why didn’t you just each pay for what you had ordered?
You seem to be suggesting it was an issue for you to slightly sub her coke, but not an issue to split the bill in 4 and have her sub you?

With friends I’m always happy to just split the bill when I’ve had less but I guess she didn’t know you.

I read it as the OP did t mind separating out the alcohol but it’s a bit rich for the coke drinker to expect everyone to include her beverages in the main bill.

Glitchymn1 · 09/04/2025 20:47

ThatHardyWaspAgain · 09/04/2025 20:03

Our alcohol total was £12.50 and her cokes all came to £10.12

So it’s okay for us to sub her drinks just because they’re non alcohol?

Not in this circumstance as there’s not much in it.
If someone is having a few soft drinks whilst everyone else orders cocktails, bottles of wine then YABU.

Our one friend is the Des, she takes us all home so we buy her cokes, ‘classical cola's’ from now on. 🤣

Clementorangeade · 09/04/2025 20:47

ThatHardyWaspAgain · 09/04/2025 20:03

Our alcohol total was £12.50 and her cokes all came to £10.12

So it’s okay for us to sub her drinks just because they’re non alcohol?

No, she should have paid for the coke.
Who did the calculations, why did you do the split the way you did? Doesn’t really make sense.

As the price was almost the same she should have let this go imho.
Presumably she wasn’t keeping an eye on costs and has been burnt before though?

BobnLen · 09/04/2025 20:47

I don't think I could manage 3 classical cokes

AthWat · 09/04/2025 20:47

TheWonderhorse · 09/04/2025 20:42

True.

I want to meet someone who can do 2.5 pints of coke over lunch. I think the alcohol would likely have been the healthy option.

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They neednt have been pints. Lareg and small measures of other sizes are available.