Eating out can cause financial fights. Who pays on a first date and who pays at a family dinner?

FOOD fight! Cool, I feel like a Blazing Saddles pie fight.

The default position for payment for all restaurant meals is … Boomers, of course, should pay for everything. While they still can. And then for some time after, given they will be mooching off the labours and taxes of Gen X and Gen Y in their retirement for the next 150 years.

And if there are no Boomers at the table, call one. Tell them to hand over their credit card details to the wait staff come bill time.

As Boomers’ credit cards aren’t always going to be available, here are some fall back positions.

Okay, first date. Look, I get this whole sexism equality thing. But getting the guy to pay for everything, or for women to demand to pay half, is a load of bollocks.

This isn’t revolutionary. But it should be to the person that did the asking that solicited the “yes” that led to a restaurant table being booked. Part of the having the gumption to ask someone out should be the assumption that you’re paying for the cocktails and crayfish. And that should be much easier than asking the question.

If it’s a family dinner, hmm, tricky.

It should really be about catching up. About being with family. It could be the cheapest, nastiest, Chinese restaurant and cost should be irrelevant because the laughter and updates should mean that everyone is happy to pay their share come bill time.

Sadly, cost is often a factor. If someone else is paying – always grateful – never order the most expensive thing on the menu.

Bruce Brammall is the author of Debt Man Walking (www.debtman.com.au) and principal adviser with Castellan Financial Consulting.