Man Cheered for Asking to Split Bill on First Date With 'Beautiful Woman'

A man has been cheered for calling off a date after the woman he had invited out slammed him for being "cheap."

In a post with over 20,000 upvotes on Reddit, user u/SeniorHumor shared the story in which he asked his date to split the bill.

"I went to the mall yesterday to buy a pair of sunglasses. I met the sales attendant and asked for a specific pair of sunglasses. She immediately replied that they don't carry them in-store, and I'd have to order them online. She asked if I'm interested in trying any other pairs, and I said okay," he recalled. "We started talking through the process, and we hit it off really quickly and realized we have so much in common."

After clicking in the store, they swapped details so they could keep talking.

"We exchanged Instagram IDs and added each other. We continued our conversations later that night until around 3 a.m.," wrote the Redditor.

After the late-night chat, he asked the sales assistant if she would like to get coffee, and to pick a place she would feel comfortable. But he wasn't expecting what happened next.

"She replied that she would text me the place and time. Around 5 p.m., she texted me the address of a fancy seafood place. I reminded her that we were only planning a coffee date," he wrote. "She said she wants to go to this restaurant, and we could have a peaceful time talking there."

"I jokingly said, 'Well, we're gonna have to split the bill.' She didn't respond for some time. Then she said, and I quote, 'If you can afford those sunglasses, you sure can afford to pay a fancy bill.' I responded that I can pay the bill, but I won't because we're just getting to know each other, and that's why I suggested a coffee date," said the poster.

Stunned by the woman's response, he was quick to call everything off.

"She called me cheap for not choosing to take a beautiful woman to a fancy restaurant, and I'm on the losing side," he said. "I just said it was nice knowing her."

Arguments over who pays the bill after a date aren't unusual. One woman left her boyfriend after he refused to split the bill, while another woman recalled the moment she was invoiced by her date after deciding not to see him again.

"Our general advice when it comes to paying is the person who has invited the guest or suggested the dinner pays the bill," Elizabeth Wyse, editorial director of Debrett's etiquette coaching company, told Newsweek.

Dates are special circumstances and in the past the general rule has been for the person who suggested the date to pay.

"The general rule still applies; don't go Dutch on dates," said Wyse. "The person who asks someone out should take charge of the date. Deciding on the venue, specifying a time to meet, and picking up the bill."

However, Wyse explained that sharing expenses even on a first date is becoming more common.

"Dating has changed, and many people who have met on online dating sites are going on first dates by mutual consent," she said. "In these circumstances—if both parties feel they are meeting by mutual agreement and neither person is taking the initiative—then it would be acceptable to 'neutralize' the event by agreeing to split the bill."

The incident sparked some serious conversation online where over 3,000 people shared their reactions—overwhelmingly siding with the man who called off the date.

"It's better to be called cheap, then to be used for extravagant freebies," said one commenter.

Another suggested that the man had "dodged a bullet," and one comment said: "She wanted free food. You made the right choice here."

"Sounds like it's not her first time getting a free meal out of someone," said another reply. "She was never into you, only using you."

After reading the responses, the poster was pleased that others felt he had made the right decision in refusing the date.

He also added a little extra payback: "Today, I actually made a reservation at the same seafood place she wanted to go to, but the reservation is only for myself. I didn't invite her.

"I went there, had a nice dinner, took a photo, and posted it on my Instagram story. She is still added to my Instagram, and she saw it. I feel bad for doing this, but I wanted to show that I'm not cheap. It's just me," he wrote.

Newsweek has reached out to u/SeniorHumor for comment. We were not able to verify the details of this case.

Have you noticed any red flags that made you end a relationship? Let us know via life@newsweek.com. We can ask experts for advice, and your story could be featured on Newsweek.