And the vendor is the one who benefits more from the steak dinner. Most vendors love taking out clients to expensive meals. It grows the business as a result.

And the vendor is the one who benefits more from the steak dinner. Most vendors love taking out clients to expensive meals. It grows the business as a result. I'm a big fan of creative outs in negotiations (figure out what you value and the other party doesn't value and ask for it as a concession, or change the deal to create more value) but this was more like "in return for giving a concession to the vendor, we are giving another one."