Page 10 | To think you don’t get out of paying the bill because you don’t drink?

ThatHardyWaspAgain · 2025-04-09T18:58:43+00:00

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.

ThinWomansBrain · 09/04/2025 21:54

maybe she was being unreasonable because she was on a sugar high😂
I don't understand why you didn't say X's is (cost of her food + classic coke + her portion of service if there was any, then split the bill three ways between the rest of you.

Loubylie · 09/04/2025 21:56

I think 3 classical colas is a lot. She might have won out on the bill but I doubt she got a good night's sleep?

Loubylie · 09/04/2025 21:57

Serves her right for not tipping.

availablecupcake · 09/04/2025 21:57

amele · 09/04/2025 21:18

If ur splitting the bill why aren’t you just paying for what you had?? You split the bill wrong so it’s on you, you should’ve split the food and then she pays for her drinks on top of that and the rest of you split the alcohol.

my sister and I went out with a friend, when the waiter asked if we are ready to pay, the friend immediately said yes we'll split 3 ways, I was annoyed as it made no sense, and it meant my sis and I were paying more than what we had as friends order cost way more than ours. We were paying separately anyway so it would’ve made sense that we just pay for what we ate/drank.

Next time this happens, loudly jump in with “I’ll go first because I know what I had and then she’ll go second because hers was also cheaper and she knows what she had”

We all need a repertoire of stock responses to prepare for these cfs.

Delatron · 09/04/2025 21:58

Why are people not understanding the OP? Is it because they are so quick to jump in with the ‘I’m not subsidising anyone’s booze’ - this isn’t what happened…. She made them split her cokes which were about £1 less. Petty.

AthWat · 09/04/2025 21:59

Coconutter24 · 09/04/2025 21:50

I also read the posts! Maybe OP and her friends should of thought of it at the time 🤷‍♀️ then there’d be no need for the thread.

You’ve tried so hard to write your post well, whilst also trying to be condescending yet you can’t even spell the word because?….

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I apologise humbly for that typo. Well done to you for spotting it.

I certainly should have checked my typing. I should have, indeed.

ThisFluentBiscuit · 09/04/2025 21:59

I'm British, but have lived in the US for 18 years. Over here, it's easy to get separate bills and only pay for what you have, but you MUST tell the server at the start. It's something to do with the restaurant-industry software. It's much more difficult to separate it out by what people consumed later in the process. But doing individual bills from the start is very easy.

Years ago, when going out in groups in the UK, I remember it was very difficult, if not impossible, for restaurants to separate out what everyone had. My question is, has that changed? Can you be billed individually if you ask at the start? It's been about 20 years since I've been out for a group meal in the UK that wasn't family, with my dad usually paying for everyone!

ManchesterLu · 09/04/2025 21:59

You either split the bill or you don't. If you do, you suck up any kind of discrepancy with prices between who had what.

There's nothing wrong with either option - just make sure you make it clear before you start, so everyone knows where they stand.

beAsensible1 · 09/04/2025 22:00

You should’ve just made them give her a separate bill including her service and then split yours 3 ways. Shes actually a cheeky cow.

availablecupcake · 09/04/2025 22:01

Iceandfire92 · 09/04/2025 21:41

She sounds like a right penny pincher. The sort to chip in "I only had a tap water and a grain of rice" and the sort to run off early to catch the train conveniently before the bill comes in avoiding paying their share of the tip/service charge. I would understand if one person had multiple cocktails and she had water but come on, life is really too short. If there's a few pounds difference, save everyone and the waiting staff the ballache and just split the bill. If you have to quibble over a few quid, perhaps you should prioritise things other than going out.

Edited

But some people do have tap water and rice, and they should be able to do that freely and the champagne and “market prices” person should be able to have what they want as well without anyone feeling bad.

The way to do this is to pay for what you had, or only be friends with people who are fabulously wealthy so that is never ever an issue.

katepilar · 09/04/2025 22:01

NC28 · 09/04/2025 20:06

Back in the days when alcohol was notably more expensive than soft drinks, I’d have thought she was fair enough.

But full fat Coke is subject to the sugar tax and usually the prices between that and an alcoholic drink are negligible.

I think it’s a bit cringeworthy to have someone working everyone’s individual cost, then you have the hassle of Joan only having a £20 note and needing £3.45 change, whereas Margaret wants to put her’s on her card. Just a big carry on.

Why is it considered too much work to work out each person cost? Where I am in Europe its done without a wink, the waiter either does the sums on a piece of paper in an instant or if its a lot of people then they come to the till where its get calculated one by one. Its a normal thing thats done on a daily basis without a wink.

JorgyPorgy · 09/04/2025 22:01

AthWat · 09/04/2025 21:40

It's not at all implicit in your original comment of

"If there’s not much difference in price with the cola and the alcoholic drinks then it seems a bit petty to not just split the bill 3 ways. But where I live alcohol is considerably more expensive than soft drinks and i wouldn’t want to sub someone else’s alcohol bill if I wasn’t drinking or not drinking as much."

that that is what you think, as the OP was not saying she was petty not to split the bill, or that she should have paid other people's drinks bill, just annoyed that she got everyone else to split her cokes - which you don't even mention.

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Athwat, I was replying to your comment on my second post where my POV was implicit . I cannot believe your lack of comprehension here. (I only say this because you are raging at everyone for not reading properly and now you do the same - a tad hypocritical of you 😄)

fromthegecko · 09/04/2025 22:02

Delatron · 09/04/2025 21:58

Why are people not understanding the OP? Is it because they are so quick to jump in with the ‘I’m not subsidising anyone’s booze’ - this isn’t what happened…. She made them split her cokes which were about £1 less. Petty.

It's even worse than that, isn't it? Because the cost difference between alcoholic and soft drinks didn't matter at all. She's just got them to pay for their own drinks plus 75% of hers, irrespective of price differential.

CalmDownCats · 09/04/2025 22:02

She shouldn't pay for your booze and you shouldn't pay for her coke. However the fact that she requested not to pay for the alcohol yet she was happy for the rest of you to cover her 'classical' coke stinks. I wouldn't be rushing to have lunch with her again if I were you.

Coconutter24 · 09/04/2025 22:04

AthWat · 09/04/2025 21:59

I apologise humbly for that typo. Well done to you for spotting it.

I certainly should have checked my typing. I should have, indeed.

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👍

Gogogo12345 · 09/04/2025 22:09

ThisFluentBiscuit · 09/04/2025 21:59

I'm British, but have lived in the US for 18 years. Over here, it's easy to get separate bills and only pay for what you have, but you MUST tell the server at the start. It's something to do with the restaurant-industry software. It's much more difficult to separate it out by what people consumed later in the process. But doing individual bills from the start is very easy.

Years ago, when going out in groups in the UK, I remember it was very difficult, if not impossible, for restaurants to separate out what everyone had. My question is, has that changed? Can you be billed individually if you ask at the start? It's been about 20 years since I've been out for a group meal in the UK that wasn't family, with my dad usually paying for everyone!

Edited

Yes it can

whynotwhatknot · 09/04/2025 22:09

Gogogo12345 · 09/04/2025 20:43

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

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alot of places here wont do that ive tried they say its their system-i think its jut being lazy

StupidBoy · 09/04/2025 22:10

Classical cokes is hilarious

Delatron · 09/04/2025 22:10

fromthegecko · 09/04/2025 22:02

It's even worse than that, isn't it? Because the cost difference between alcoholic and soft drinks didn't matter at all. She's just got them to pay for their own drinks plus 75% of hers, irrespective of price differential.

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Yeah exactly. So she was tight on two counts…

Yet people on here don’t see that and are just focusing on the alcohol part which isn’t the point at all.

AthWat · 09/04/2025 22:11

JorgyPorgy · 09/04/2025 22:01

Athwat, I was replying to your comment on my second post where my POV was implicit . I cannot believe your lack of comprehension here. (I only say this because you are raging at everyone for not reading properly and now you do the same - a tad hypocritical of you 😄)

Show quote history

My comment on your second post was pointing out to you the reason I made my first post, as you didn't acknowledge that that was the original point of the OP's question. Never mind, it's not important.

Interl0per · 09/04/2025 22:11

I am on both sides of this

I don't drink, and appreciate those friends who willingly pay for what we have ordered (I also don't often fancy dessert!)

I hadn't realised how much the gap between alcoholic and non-alcoholic drink prices has (apparently) lessened.

When I first started paying for orders, I'd pay £2 for drinks all meal, and other guests would pay £5-15 each. With a party of 4 that's a big discrepancy. If things have narrowed a lot then maybe there's a good conversation to have - others may not know that.

But, either way, expecting others to pay towards your coke while refusing to pay towards their alcohol is CF (unless you bought a big bottle of coke to drink/water the spirits down ;--)

HelpMeUnpickThis · 09/04/2025 22:13

Eldermilleniallyogii · 09/04/2025 20:08

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

@Eldermilleniallyogii right?! It’s killing me 🤣.

Jabberwok · 09/04/2025 22:13

OldCottageGreenhouse · 09/04/2025 20:02

So you wanted her to pay towards your alcohol?

But she made them pay towards her cokes...so what would she have done if you were drinking non alcoholic beers/gin/cider

She's a cf...and you got played

Bogginsthe3rd · 09/04/2025 22:13

Friend be like

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

lalaloopyhead · 09/04/2025 22:14

MissScarletInTheBallroom · 09/04/2025 20:05

So many people with poor reading comprehension on this thread.

I was thinking exactly the same thing, it's not a difficult scenario to understand!