Question about paying at restaurants

[Trinity]

Just a quick question hope that somebody has the answer. My friends and I are going to Disneyworld November 8-10. It is a group of 5. We have made dinner reservations for the evenings that we will be on site. Does Disney have a rule that you cant split up the ticket between everybody. Just wondering how we are going to deal with the ticket at the end of the dinner. Hope somebody can help me out.

Trinity :veryconfu :veryconfu

 

[The Mom]

If the restaurants won't (or can't) split the tab, I suggest that you each take a meal. It should even out, but may not. How "picky" you want to be depends upon everyone in your party. Some restaurants are a lot more expensive than others.

The other alternative (which, after a bad experience, I 've been known to use) is to bring a notebook and calculator. Either let one person be in charge, or pass the notebook down, and write down the item and price AS IT'S BEING ORDERED! Don't forget drinks, coffee, dessert, etc...some restaurants charge for refills, some don't. (It's amazing how many people can't remember the price of what they've ordered....and very few guess a "higher" number! )

Also, make sure you ask what the local tax is, and everyone should agree on what percentage tip should be left. If I'm embarassed by someone else's idea of adequate, I always throw in a little extra in mine.

Again, one person will be responsible for paying the tab. As long as everyone knows this in advance...and they bring cash...it will work fine. (WDW has many ATMs in the parks.)

I'm not terribly fussy about this...as long as someone is "in the ballpark" I don't worry about every penny...if I like them enough to vacation with them, I don't mind "treating" a little, even if it wasn't my intention.

 

[wannabeBelle]

well it usually isnt Disneyworld but the girls and I do tend to go out to dinner occasionally. Generally what we do is when the bill comes, unless someone has ordered WAY above and beyond what everyone else did, is to split the bill by 5 and just do that. Incidentally the local tax is 6 percent so doubling the tax which works fine here in NYC (8.25) Does not work in Florida. Id say definitely carry a calculator anyhow. My trick is to do ten percent of the bill and then half of that to equal out to at least 15% I also tip more than that if I feel the service was exceptional. If someone did order more than the others (either in items or cost of the items) Id say that Mom's Idea works out very well. And she is right, people always seem to recall EXACTLY what they ordered!!! Belle

 

[Lord Alfred]

The only problem with this is when you are dealing with several people and none of them carry cash and they all use credit/debit cards.

I'm not walking around WDW with $60-70 dollars in my pocket every day to lose or get stolen, and I'm not going to pay exhorbitant $3-$4 fees to get money out of those ATMs.

The rule of thumb is to "TELL THEM BEFORE YOU ORDER!!" If you forget to tell them first, of course they are going to put it all on one bill. If they refuse to split the checks, ask to speak with a manager. If he refuses, get up and leave the restaurant.

I've never had a problem with splitting the check at WDW, by the way..

 

[The Mom]

Originally posted by wannabeBelle
well it usually isnt Disneyworld but the girls and I do tend to go out to dinner occasionally. Generally what we do is when the bill comes, unless someone has ordered WAY above and beyond what everyone else did, is to split the bill by 5 and just do that. Incidentally the local tax is 6 percent so doubling the tax which works fine here in NYC (8.25) Does not work in Florida. Id say definitely carry a calculator anyhow. My trick is to do ten percent of the bill and then half of that to equal out to at least 15% I also tip more than that if I feel the service was exceptional. If someone did order more than the others (either in items or cost of the items) Id say that Mom's Idea works out very well. And she is right, people always seem to recall EXACTLY what they ordered!!! Belle

We tried just dividing the bill (this is when eating out at our family reunions) but we always got someone crying unfair. "My wife's a vegetarian, so our share should be lower" "I only drank water...you guys had cokes." "They charged a sharing fee...I refuse to pay it." "I only had one glass of wine...your husband had two, you owe more." And on, and on, and on!

And people would recall exactly what they, and everyone else ordered...they would just "remember" it costing a dollar or two less! :lol: After asking to check the menu again several times, we started writing it down.

 

[frazierle]

We never had a problem splitting a bill as long as we let them know when we were seated. This works best if you travel with cheapskapes or penny pinchers. We tried the each take turns method and my night we seem to end up at someplace nice, their night we're picking up burgers somewhere. Splitting the bill would probably be the least stressfull also.

 

[wannabeBelle]

hey there Mom. I do agree with you. As I said generally we tend to eat at places where the prices dont fluctuate much, but as you said the "little extras" can certainly add up!! I would definitely try to split the bill initially. I cant see why they wouldnt want to /wouldnt be able to. Any Cast members want to weigh in on this? Belle

 

[Mag1575]

I can't help with the original question, but tax at WDW is 6%



Mark

 

[Married@WDW]

Originally posted by frazierle
We never had a problem splitting a bill as long as we let them know when we were seated. This works best if you travel with cheapskapes or penny pinchers. We tried the each take turns method and my night we seem to end up at someplace nice, their night we're picking up burgers somewhere. Splitting the bill would probably be the least stressfull also.

It's not all about penny pinching. My husband and I don't really drink, especially when we're out to dinner (we like alcohol, just have no tolerance for it and we're really stupid drunks). When we're out with friends -- most of whom driink A LOT -- it's really not fair to split the bill.

And while I LOVE to eat, and honestly build my vacations around my favorite Disney restaurants, many people also don't think that way. They'd rather skip apps, desserts, drinks and order the cheapest thing on the menu so they can buy more souveniers.

To each his own -- ask them ahead of time to split the check and you won't have any arguments from the wait staff.