I was shamed for refusing to pay $227 for a group dinner when I only spent $35
A cash-strapped mum has unleashed on a group of friends, after being asked to pay a whopping $227 for a dinner that only cost her $35.
Don’t get drained by group dinners, whether it be on a night out with friends, while on holidays or even a family get together.
A cash-strapped woman in the US has warned people not to go to group dinners without first working out how the bill will be split — after she was asked to cough up US$150 (AU$227) despite ordering just (US$25) AU$35 worth of food.
Aryan Strauss took to TikTok to recount the drama in a viral video that has clocked up 2.1 million views since it was posted last week, the New York Post reports.
“I have no money, I’m a single mum,” Strauss declared at the outset of her clip before explaining that she was invited to a friend’s birthday dinner at a Brazilian-style steakhouse.
Strauss stated that her friend — a successful model — was the only person she knew at the dinner. Other attendees were seemingly affluent, and included one woman flaunting her expensive new breast implants.
Despite her precarious financial situation, Strauss said that she wanted to pay for her pal’s meal as it was her birthday. The mum-of-two found a buy-one-get-one-free coupon for the restaurant.
She and the pal each ordered a US$50 ($75) main. However, Strauss subsequently complained about her chewy filet mignon, with a waiter saying it would be taken off the bill.
“I order water and I order no dessert,” the TikTokker added, saying she expected her share of the bill to come to US$25, after her meal was removed by the waiter.
Strauss noted that a few other attendees left the dinner early, but assumed that they would have sorted out payment details with the birthday girl.
However, the broke mum was stunned when the final bill came to the table and the group expected her to pay a whopping US$150 to cover those who did the dine and dash.
Strauss fumed, “I just got the basic US$50 meal, so it should’ve been US$25 tops [with the chewy filet mignon taken off the bill].”
Strauss refused to fork over US$150, but conceded to paying US$50. Embarrassingly, she just had US$48 in her account and US$10 in cash, which she planned to leave as a tip.
Without US$50 in her bank to cover her share, Strauss says she was forced to write a cheque to her friend, who was “definitely irritated” about the ordeal.
“I was the bad guy in this situation,” the TikTokker claimed, before issuing a warning to her viewers: “Never sit down to dinner with anybody, friend or otherwise, unless you’ve already talked about how it’s getting split, and what your budget is if you’re all going to split the bill evenly.”
Hundreds of viewers chimed in, with some saying they already refuse to split the bill evenly.
“Split bills is not fair because there is always someone who orders extra expensive and someone’s order cheap. It is better separate bills,” one declared.
However, others said Strauss was in the wrong for going out to dinner with so little money to her name.
“If you don’t have $$, don’t go,” one TikTok user bluntly commented.
Strauss later shared a follow-up video admitting that she was reckless to go out to dinner with such little cash to her name. She claimed the incident took place several years ago and she is now more responsible with her money.
This article originally appeared on the New York Post and has been republished with permission