A Case of Reverse Entitlement: “I’m Not Paying for That!”

The Situation

I was 23, out for a group dinner at one of those trendy, overpriced restaurants—the kind that puts microgreens on everything and charges $5 for “handcrafted” ice cubes. The food was fine, nothing spectacular, but I was there more for the company than the meal.

Then the bill arrived. And there it was, hiding among the usual overpriced nonsense: a $3 charge for splitting an entrée.

I hadn’t split an entrée.

I flagged down the waiter. “What’s this?” I asked, pointing at the charge.

“Oh, that’s a standard fee if we see food being shared.”

Now, let’s be clear—at no point did I hand my plate over to anyone. All that happened was that I let my friend take a single bite from my dish. One bite. And they wanted three bucks for it.

This was war.

The Handling of It

I sat back, crossed my arms, and prepared for battle. “So, if I had eaten the whole thing myself, there wouldn’t be a charge. But because a single forkful traveled across the table, that’s three dollars?”

The waiter, clearly trained for this nonsense, shrugged. “It’s just the policy.”

“Well, my policy is not paying for things I didn’t do.”

The table went quiet. My friends, clearly entertained, watched as I prepared my case like a lawyer in a courtroom drama. I pointed out that no extra plate was brought, no food was divided, and that my single act of generosity shouldn’t come with a financial penalty.

The waiter, growing uncomfortable, called over the manager. The manager, in turn, gave me a tired look like she had fought this battle too many times before. “Sir, it’s really just a small charge.”

“If it’s so small, take it off,” I said.

Now it was a principle thing. They were betting I’d let it go because it was ‘just’ three dollars. But I knew if I caved, I’d be sending a message: that I was okay with being nickel-and-dimed for nothing.

The Consequences

The manager sighed, pulled out a pen, and scribbled the charge off the bill. Victory. I smiled, thanked her, and handed over my card—because I’m not a monster, I still paid for my meal. Just not for their ridiculous charge.

As we left, my friend patted me on the back. “That was inspiring,” he said.

“I know,” I replied.

And that’s how I won three dollars and the moral high ground in one night.

Lesson Learned

Always check the bill. Always challenge nonsense fees. And most importantly, never let a restaurant charge you for being nice.