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>"In my experience, many restaurants have a limit on how many ways they can split the bill," That limit is artificially imposed though isn't? I also think this

>"In my experience, many restaurants have a limit on how many ways they can split the bill," That limit is artificially imposed though isn't? I also think this is mostly an American thing because its perceived as a "hassle" which is ironic because they're being tipped for their "service" in the US. In Sweden I noticed for instance instance you can get a meal with a group of 10 people and at the end of the meal the server will walk around with card machine and run the individual cards at the table. It's not seen as a hassle at all just part of the job.

saimiam 9y ago
I only experienced this resistance to splitting bills in New York. Where I live now, largish city in the South, they'll gladly split the bill any which way you want. Same with Midwest cities - no issues splitting.
- bogomipz 9y ago
  Indeed I was mostly thinking NYC there but its the same in LA too.
Swizec 9y ago
A lot of restaurants are won't split bills too many ways because it takes time and impacts table turnover. When you have a line out the door, turnover matters. Back in Slovenia bill splitting doesn't exist. To me it's a completely American thing. The best they can do in Slovenia is charge everyone individually for their items, but that's not really bill splitting.
- bogomipz 9y ago
  >"A lot of restaurants are won't split bills too many ways because it takes time and impacts table turnover." How much time time does it really take? Let's compare it to a single check with with cash as the form of payment. Some diner at the table needs to go through the bill and and collect the money or else the bill gets passed around and then everyone antes up their portion, there always come confusion about what something on the check is or who had what. Then you need to collect all the cash and make change for everyone. Then the server needs to settle the check at the register. Is that really any lengthier than just splitting up the check for individual diners? I am doubting it.
  - Swizec 9y ago
    Yeah people don't do that. The way splitting works in the US is that you split evenly. So 1 person pays then says "Everyone venmo me $X" and the party leaves.
    - bogomipz 9y ago
      I'm quite familiar with the way it works in the US. If it's a birthday dinner or your circle of friends then yes people will likely split it evenly, but if you are a mixed group of people then people will generally pay for what they had. But regardless if its just "60 bucks a head" everyone at the table needs to settle up, and everyone throws in cash in a pile and takes their change out of the pile and then the pile needs to be sorted and counted and sometimes its short etc.
    - throwaway91111 9y ago
      Only assholes ask for this. It's definitely not the norm. This is the fastest way to encorage me never to eat with you.
  - moonka 9y ago
    >Then the server needs to settle the check at the register. This is where the time becomes an issue. Running each card can take awhile, and when you add up 4-5 cards, you get a real impact on time that the server can't be taking care of anything else. In a job that doesn't have a lot of downtime, 5-6 minutes tied to a computer can be detrimental.
  - throwaway91111 9y ago
    Nobody splits with cash, though.
- abritinthebay 9y ago
  That’s the restaurants excuse but it doesn’t hold up. The couple of minutes spent doing it when places support it is usually replaced with several times longer of diners working out how to handle it amongst each other at the table
- fma 9y ago
  Restaurants in China don't split bills. It's a foreign concept. You'll often find people at a table fight each other to pay for the entire bill.
- lawnchair_larry 9y ago
  That is literally what bill splitting is
a13n 9y ago
I think it's more that credit cards charge the restaurant a flat fee per bill ($0.30ish?) So that eats into their profits at some point.
smnrchrds 9y ago
Same in Canada. Sometimes you have to tell them in advance so they keep track of each person's orders separately instead of assigning all purchases to the table. I haven't seen a restaurant that outright wouldn't do split bills.

saimiam 9y ago

I only experienced this resistance to splitting bills in New York. Where I live now, largish city in the South, they'll gladly split the bill any which way you want. Same with Midwest cities - no issues splitting.

bogomipz 9y ago
Indeed I was mostly thinking NYC there but its the same in LA too.

Swizec 9y ago

A lot of restaurants are won't split bills too many ways because it takes time and impacts table turnover. When you have a line out the door, turnover matters. Back in Slovenia bill splitting doesn't exist. To me it's a completely American thing. The best they can do in Slovenia is charge everyone individually for their items, but that's not really bill splitting.

bogomipz 9y ago
>"A lot of restaurants are won't split bills too many ways because it takes time and impacts table turnover." How much time time does it really take? Let's compare it to a single check with with cash as the form of payment. Some diner at the table needs to go through the bill and and collect the money or else the bill gets passed around and then everyone antes up their portion, there always come confusion about what something on the check is or who had what. Then you need to collect all the cash and make change for everyone. Then the server needs to settle the check at the register. Is that really any lengthier than just splitting up the check for individual diners? I am doubting it.
- Swizec 9y ago
  Yeah people don't do that. The way splitting works in the US is that you split evenly. So 1 person pays then says "Everyone venmo me $X" and the party leaves.
  - bogomipz 9y ago
    I'm quite familiar with the way it works in the US. If it's a birthday dinner or your circle of friends then yes people will likely split it evenly, but if you are a mixed group of people then people will generally pay for what they had. But regardless if its just "60 bucks a head" everyone at the table needs to settle up, and everyone throws in cash in a pile and takes their change out of the pile and then the pile needs to be sorted and counted and sometimes its short etc.
  - throwaway91111 9y ago
    Only assholes ask for this. It's definitely not the norm. This is the fastest way to encorage me never to eat with you.
- moonka 9y ago
  >Then the server needs to settle the check at the register. This is where the time becomes an issue. Running each card can take awhile, and when you add up 4-5 cards, you get a real impact on time that the server can't be taking care of anything else. In a job that doesn't have a lot of downtime, 5-6 minutes tied to a computer can be detrimental.
- throwaway91111 9y ago
  Nobody splits with cash, though.
abritinthebay 9y ago
That’s the restaurants excuse but it doesn’t hold up. The couple of minutes spent doing it when places support it is usually replaced with several times longer of diners working out how to handle it amongst each other at the table
fma 9y ago
Restaurants in China don't split bills. It's a foreign concept. You'll often find people at a table fight each other to pay for the entire bill.
lawnchair_larry 9y ago
That is literally what bill splitting is

a13n 9y ago

I think it's more that credit cards charge the restaurant a flat fee per bill ($0.30ish?) So that eats into their profits at some point.

smnrchrds 9y ago

Same in Canada. Sometimes you have to tell them in advance so they keep track of each person's orders separately instead of assigning all purchases to the table. I haven't seen a restaurant that outright wouldn't do split bills.