If a friend is paying the restaurant bill, are you conscious of the price of menu items?

[xiShi]

$4.50 is really low. I would never expect friends to try to limit their order that low. Buffalo wings for brunch were a bit much but I would have grabbed a wing or two and enjoyed. Depending one the menu, max of $10/$20 per person would not be too much.

I know my friends and I know how their tastes. We encourage each other to splurge when someone else is picking up the tab. we would generally share and eat offeach other's plate. Of course, we would only do this because we are such good friends... never with someone we barely know.

[DaniellaG]

I agree about picking up the tip if a friend is paying. Also I know for myself if a friend pays that time I will pick up the bill in a future outing so it will balance it out. Someone mentioned income of the friend and I really agree with being mindful of the persons financial status. Usually if they pick the restaurant they are aware of what the cost will be.

[brokencrayola]

I would order what I wanted but around the cost of the person I am eating with, or less. I would never order something that cost more or take advantage of the situation.

[Larry Siegel]

Of course I do. I have a number of friends who are very rich, and I still do. It's the only polite thing to do.

[sophie10]

Lol yeah I ask what theyre getting first and try and get something similar or in the same price range. I once had a friend who was down on her luck so I took her out to eat. I ordered a plate that was about 9.00 or so.. hers? 14.99!!! It was a cheap delicious mexican restaurant. I wasnt expecting it and she also got a beer. The bill was larger than I expected and it was because of what she got.

[Gfab1]

I would make a point to avoid the most expensive dishes on the menu. I would also offer to pay the tip. I wouldn't feel bad about getting one beer or a glass of wine unless I knew that the friend was tight on money. Then again, if I knew he/she was tight on money I'd feel bad about letting him/her treat me in the first place! If they absolutely insisted anyway, I'd order something inexpensive in that case and forego any alcoholic beverage.

[The Postman]

Well, if a friend brought me to an expensive restaurant and offered to pay, he/she should not be offended if I order a medium priced main or something. It would be silly to expect me to just order an appetizer or snack lol. If it's a cheap place then well yeah, I'd just order as if I were paying. Don't have a big appetite so probably won't be spending much.

[Koale]

Originally Posted by chiroptera

I have a feeling I worded the subject poorly but here's what I mean.

If you go for a meal out with a friend and they say "it's my treat" do you try to keep the cost of your meal roughly in the same ball-park as the friend's meal? Personally, if the friend orders a $10 entree, I will order something that costs about the same, or less. I wouldn't order the $30 entree plus a cocktail if the person paying was just getting the $10 entree and a coffee. I keep the cost of what I'm ordering about the same as what the person who is paying is ordering.

Today I offered to treat three friends to brunch. Nothing fancy, an impromtu cheap diner-type meal at a cheap diner. I ordered a $4.50 plain cheese omelette and just drank water. (Not because I was trying to be thrifty, but because that's what I wanted to eat and drink at the time.) Combined, the other three ordered soft drinks, coffee, a plate of buffalo chicken wings, a meat-lovers omelette, a southern omelette, a hot dog with all the fixings and a plate of cheesy coney fries.

So the bill came to about $33, plus 20 percent tip, so I paid $40.

So, that's fine, I did offer to treat, after all. But for sure, if a friend and peer offers to treat for a meal, I follow their lead, as it were, when it comes to picking something from the menu.

I guess that little 'lead' didn't quite work out, huh? Very funny.
Koale

[thatswanlady]

If a friend offers to treat me to a meal, I order about the same as I do when I'm paying. I don't usually order the most expensive item on the menu, nor do I seek out the cheapest option. I order what sounds good to me -- though to be fair, if I'm stuck between two options (which usually happens), I will almost always order the cheaper of the two if I know someone else is paying.

When I'm paying, I often order a pricier item just to make them feel comfortable. I also don't offer to treat if I can't afford it. There have been times in my life that the only place I could afford to treat someone was a diner, and that's fine. It's the gesture that counts -- but if you offer to treat, you need to be prepared for the idea that someone might decide to order the filet + lobster, should you be in a place that offers such an option.

[jim9251]

My friends wait until after I order to tell me it's their treat. They know better.