Diners tend to face an awkward predicament at restaurant tables when the waiter finally presents the bill.
It's an unwritten rule that people either pay for their specific portion or to split the payment equally amongst each other - but this has been known to cause friction among customers.
Taking to Reddit, a man explained how he fell sour with a pal after he refused to equally split the bill since he 'barely ate anything'.
The anonymous user sought advice on the popular forum, questioning: "Am I the a**hole for not wanting to pay an equal portion of a restaurant bill when I barely ate anything?"
He claims that he was invited by a friend - who he's referring to as 'Sam' - to a restaurant in the city with some pals.
However, after being very sick for years, he says that his diet is strictly limited and he can only 'eat certain foods'.
Unfortunately, he admits that restaurants are tricky as they don't always have the ability to be accommodating.
The man explained: "I ordered a fish soup bowl, but I immediately had a reaction when trying it so I couldn't finish. So Sam ate it. I ended up ordering a dish with half of the food taken out, which was basically just a pile of loose meat.
"After putting away my own food, I had to sit for over an hour waiting for my friends to finish... Sam then gets the bill and pays for it on their card. I didn't see the bill, so I asked Sam if all was well and they briefly said we can go into it later - but it was not brought up again.
"I didn't think much of it until a week goes by. Then I get a message from Sam with a photo of the receipt. There was no request to pay, but I already knew that this was Sam's way of telling me they'd like me to pay something. The bill with tax was 180. And the tip was 55. So in total, Sam paid 235.
"As far as what I ordered, the fish bowl was 15, which I didn't even eat. And the 'loose meat' was another 15. I also only drank water while everyone else drank alcohol. So I sent £30, which I thought was more than fair, considering what I actually ate. But then Sam passive-aggressively asks me if I looked closely enough at the tip. Keep in mind there were five of us. So clearly Sam wanted us to split it evenly.
"I sent another £20, making my contribution £50. And now things are weird and awkward. I don't like fighting over money with friends and family. So I personally feel like it's best that I decline any future invitations from Sam to eat at restaurants I'm unfamiliar with."
Seeking advice, the man questioned: "If I had taken issue with paying an equal portion of the bill, would I be the a**hole here?"
The bloke's post has raked in over 850 comments to date - where people were torn over the man's refusal.
One person claimed: "I think your friend ate the soup to stop you complaining and over-tipped because you were embarrassing her. She obviously thought the staff went above and beyond."
Meanwhile, a second said: "I'm a bartender, and god bless big tippers, but even I think that's a little ridiculous. Especially the expectation that others will be ok to tip as you do."
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