Single Mom Expected to Pay $150 Towards Bill Though Her Share Only Amounted to $25

A single mother recently shared a dining experience with her friend that turned into a total nightmare. She recounted how her affluent friend unexpectedly expected her to foot a hefty bill at a restaurant despite the fact that she ordered less than everyone else.

A single mom of two, Aryan Strauss, was regarded as a bad person by her friend when she refused to take care of a hefty bill at a restaurant because she had ordered less than everybody else.

Aryan narrated her experience on TikTok, saying her friend wanted her to pay $150 towards the bill, yet what she ate at the restaurant only amounted to $25. In the video, which has over two million views, the cash-strapped single mother said she was attending the birthday party of her model friend, who made a good amount of money.

The birthday took place at a Brazilian steakhouse. Narrating how everything unfolded online, Aryan said she was attending the party with her friend. The single mom explained that she discovered a "buy one get one free" birthday coupon online and had planned to cover the expenses for herself and her friend.

Upon arriving at the restaurant, she and her friend ordered and settled down to eat. The TikToker didn't know any of the other birthday attendees. However, as she and her friend ate, Aryan noticed some people leaving halfway through, and she thought that maybe they'd already paid their share.

Surprisingly, the people who left had not paid. Aryan learned this information when her friend asked her to pay not just for her meal but also contribute to the entire bill. "I'm a single mom. I have no money, and I don't know why she thought I ever had money, but I didn't," she lamented. Aryan also revealed that the birthday attendees seemed well off, as one of them even showed off her "new chest."

Aryan lives in a million-dollar home with a friend, but that's not her place. The individuals she resides with are not her biological family, as there are no blood ties. Aside from her financial status, the single mom only ate what she could afford and didn't have any alcoholic beverages or order any desserts. She only ate her food and drank water.

"They wanted me to pay $150 when I just got the basic $50 meal," she explained. Aryan had also complained about the meal she was given, calling it "a piece of fillet Mignon that is so fatty, it just like, it was gross." The TikToker went to rinse her mouth in the sink, and her friend called over the manager.

The manager said he would cover the single mom's meal. Aryan was relieved knowing that all she had to pay was $25, due to a coupon, the cost of her friend's meal. So, when the model asked her to contribute to the entire meal, she was in shock.

"But because those people left and did not pay for their meals, suddenly, I'm like supposed to float this bill? No, Ma'am," she declared. The model became irritated when Aryan refused to pay for everyone. The single mom told her she was not going to pay more than $50. "That's not fair," added Aryan.

Unfortunately, Aryan didn't even have $50 in her account. She wrote her model friend a check as she knew she had a few days to her next paycheck. The single mom noted that her friend wasn't satisfied and, in the end, she "was the bad guy in this situation." Aryan wished she had asked the model back then, "Why would you do this to me if you're supposed to be my friend?"

The single mom said her friend acted in a similar way during her baby shower and several other occasions. She advised people to "never eat in a group without discussing the budget first" so that they wouldn't be caught in situations similar to hers.

Aryan emphasized the importance of discussing how the bill will be split and establishing a budget for equal sharing before sitting down to dinner with anyone, whether a friend or otherwise.

Most online users agreed with Aryan. "Anybody who gets mad because one person just paid for their own meal just wanted a discount," a user wrote. One person was relieved, saying that it seemed they had a reliable circle of friends because their default assumption is that each person pays for their own meals unless someone specified otherwise.

Some users recommended that Aryan should always inform the waiter about separate checks as soon as she takes her seat. "No grown adult should expect others to pay for them," the person added. Another person noted that they weren't particularly stingy, but it irked them when people go overboard ordering excessive bottles of wine and dessert and then suggesting the bill be split evenly.

Aryan is no longer friends with the model, as she said their friendship ended over thank you cards at her friend's baby shower. Now, she always asks how a bill will be handled, or she never orders at all.

Here's a story about in-laws who began "forgetting" to take their wallets to restaurants once their daughter-in-law got her inheritance.