Interviews

Mike Dang: Logan, I’m on my way to a wedding right now! I think there is a rehearsal dinner tonight. Probably fancy? Not sure? Also, I’m bringing a wallet full of cash. Rehearsal dinners are usually paid for by the parents of the bride or groom, but I don’t want to be the one without cash if that’s not the case here. ASSUME NOTHING, basically.

Logan Sachon: OH, HM. I would never consider that. When parents are involved, I always assume everything is covered. But that’s obviously a pretty classist assumption. I do still offer to pay for my share or the tip or something, fully expecting the answer to be no. Like, FULLY. But not at a wedding. You never pay at a wedding!

MD: Yeah, I’ve never heard of anyone going to a rehearsal dinner and then having to pay for him or herself, but I like being prepared anyway. I’m also trying to think of a situation where I was out with someone else’s parents and they didn’t pay for me, but I can’t. It’s part of the parents handbook, probably. “Consider paying for your child’s playmate when out to dinner.” — Dr. Spock

LS: But yes, I think it’s a good idea to always be prepared to pay for your own meal. Like, duh! I think it can be tricky though if someone invites you somewhere you know you can’t afford. A friend was in town recently and invited me out to dinner—she had the place picked. There was no chance she wasn’t going to pay. Okay there was a small chance. But I was 99 percent sure she was going to pay, though it still felt really kind of dicey.