Figuring out how to split a restaurant bill can be a difficult business at times.
If you're out with a good friend or partner, someone you know very well and get on with, then usually a 50/50 seems fine. You shared wine, similar food, no problem. If there's a slight disparity, then the first round at the bar is on the one who had more.
But in big groups or with people you don't know quite so well things can get a little more complicated, as people who end up eating and drinking more pay less than their share. Meanwhile, someone who skipped a starter might end up being stung by the three cocktails, starter, and dessert that their companion had.
On the other hand, when everyone is keeping track of everything, it can quickly descend into chaos when the bill arrives as everyone tries to tote up the precise list of things they ordered.
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Nonetheless, one woman was left furious when she ended up being landed with a bill that was nearly three times the value of the items she had actually ordered. Yikes!
She explained that three of her companions had ended up choosing to have a 'chef's special' after being talked into it by their waiter.
Taking to Mumsnet, she wrote: "I’m in a hobby group and about every 2-3 months we treat ourselves to a nice dinner. There’s usually 8-10 of us and we always split the bill. It’s normally around £50 per person.
"This week we went to a restaurant which was more on the upper end of what we usually go for. Mains were £25 - £45.
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"We all choose our food, but when ordering, the waiter managed to talk three of us into trying "the chef's special".
"This was a rather elaborate and unusual dish. He didn’t mention the price but I would have thought it would be between £55-£60 at least from the description. When the bill came, they realised that it was over £90.
"The 3 offered to take one bottle of wine out of the total and share it between them to make up for their expensive dish.
"In the end we paid £110 each and they paid £125 each. However, my main was £25 plus drinks (I only had one water and one glass of wine from the shared bottle, others had much more to drink, and most had a starter but I didn’t)."
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Firstly, I want to know what on earth was in this chef's special that cost £90 a go!
It does seem a little unwise to order something without checking the price first of all, especially when you land someone with an unexpected £110 bill.
Restaurant specials can be a dicey business as well. Although they're often framed as something unique or fancy, they are sometimes used as way for kitchens to use up ingredients which are going out of date soon.
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