Settling the Dinner Bill: A Spectrum of Choices

I've just finished reading (with a great deal of fascination) three blogposts by three different people who were all at the same dinner party.

They present three very different viewpoints as to how the dinner bill should have been settled:

• Split the Bill: Tara Hunt at HorsePigCow
• Against Splitting the Bill: Stephanie Booth at Climb to the Stars
  
• Be the Bank: Stowe Boyd at Ambivalence

I found it fascinating because there was some discussion as to whether or not the difference in opinion was cultural. I suppose culture plays a big part of it, but I've personally experienced major differences in bill-settling habits even in my own social circles here in Manila.

For example, I have a set of friends that routinely splits the bill, despite the fact that some don't drink and others don't order appetizers, dessert, or coffee.

I've also been in situations at the other end of the spectrum. My "favorite" experience is a get-together where someone actually whipped out a calculator when the bill arrived, and pointedly asked each person how many slices of pizza they ate that evening so they can figure out how much each person should pay. Frankly, how anyone can possibly remember how many slices they've had after several beers or margaritas is beyond me.

I've also been at birthday dinners where the celebrant announces ahead of time that they'll cover the first Px,000 of the bill, then leaves the group to order their dinners as they see fit. If the group doesn't spend beyond that pre-announced amount, then only the celebrant pays. If the group bill goes over, then everyone else splits the difference evenly.

At work, our usual practice is to have one person pay the bill at the restaurant, then someone volunteers to 'do the math' so that each individual is charged correctly, down to the centavo, with the tip factored in. The computation is done off-line, when we're all back at the office, and no one bothers to double-check if the figure is correct. We each just get an email or SMS saying how much we owe, and we dutifully go and pay the person who had advanced the payment. That person doesn't bother to check the total either.

Ordinarily, we wouldn't be this anal about the lunch bill at work, but since it's the same group of people eating out together on an almost daily basis, simply splitting the bill equally would have grown increasingly inequitable in the long run, especially for the very light eaters.

What I've found from observation is that splitting the bill evenly is a lot easier to handle when everyone in the group is still single or have no pressing financial burden. When you're a mixed group of singles and couples, especially in cases where the couples have children, then budgeting becomes more of an concern.

In the end, I don't think there's a right or wrong way to settle the bill. The actual approach doesn't matter, provided everyone understands right at the onset what the rules of the group are. I'm lucky enough that I can afford to simply go with the group norm, whatever that norm may be.

Coffee Buns

For someone who loves coffee, I've sooo terribly behind on the whole idea of coffee buns.

The Dessert Comes First blog has featured three so far (complete with wonderful photos), but I've yet to try any of them:

• Roti Mum, currently with one branch at SM Megamall
• Deli France, pretty much in all the major shopping areas
• Kopi Roti, with branches in Morato, Blue Ridge, and Mall of Asia, among others

The first and last ones on the list appear to be worthy of extra effort to visit.

FUD about Splenda

I saw a blog post on the Sustainable is Good blog, which talks about the makers of Splenda buying hundreds of negative domain names with their brand.

And you know what? It's kinda hard not to wonder why Splenda's manufacturer would buy a domain called splendakills.com -- it can only mean they think there's a good chance someone else would buy it and use it.

It does make you stop and think, doesn't it?

* * *

I also found a site called Is Splenda Safe last night, and I must say I was a bit peeved by all the inuendo and FUD-sowing (fear, uncertainty, and doubt) on the home page:

Within my book, I reveal the scientific evidence strongly suggesting the chemical sweetener sucralose (Splenda) may harm your body. - Dr. Janet Starr Hull

Note the use of the words "scientific evidence" -- which helps add credibility to the statement. It's just too bad that the weight of the words gets watered down later: apparently, the evidence merely suggests that it may harm your body (emphasis mine).

What gets to me is the fact that the site doesn't really answer the question that its name asks. There's no outright statement that Splenda is unsafe, or in what quantities it becomes unsafe. It is strongly implied it, though, and visitors are urged to buy a $24.95 book to learn the whole truth.

And therein lies my problem with the site. If Splenda is such a hazardous substance and there's scientific proof of it, then that information should be distributed for free, pushed across the blogosphere, hyped in the news, and the product itself should be pulled from the supermarket shelves.

The way it's being handled now just leaves a bad taste in the mouth (no pun intended).

New Find: Food Blog

Just found a food blog today called Dessert Comes First.

It's incredibly pretty, and it looks like the type of blog that can provide hours of fascinating reading. Now I know where I will look the next time the family wants to try a new lunch venue.

Solo Lunch

I relish those rare days when I get to have lunch alone at a restaurant.

Not that I'd want to be eating lunch alone everyday, but there are times when you just want some alone time with your thoughts, a magazine, and a favorite meal -- especially when you've been bombarded with 'interrupts' for several days on end.

I am reminded of a conversation I had some time ago with some gal pals -- many were of the opinion that women who eat alone at restaurants are a sad lot, so they avoid being that kind of person at all costs.

For some reason, I've never really experienced that kind of hang-up. I guess it's because I don't spend time checking out the people seated at the other tables, and I simply assume that no one else is bothering to check out what I'm doing.

Maybe if it were the evening of Valentine's Day and the rest of the tables had couples being all lovey-dovey, I might feel a tad out of place. But for the most part, this kind of quiet time is welcome and refreshing.