"-L." > writes:

>Why not? If that's what they want to eat, they should order it. It is
>up to the host to choose the restaurant that is within his or her
>budget. I seriously don't understand why people get hung up on menu
>prices.

I think it's the idea that some people will take advantage of a host
and order the one $50 item on a menu which is mostly populated with $10
items. These are usually the people who won't host a dinner themselves.
As a host, I would prepare for people to order everything expensive, but
at the same time if I thought someone was taking advantage I might get
upset.
Then again, if I knew they were the type that would take advantage,
I'd never invite them to dinner on my dime again.
When I was an insurance broker, I got snagged into a dinner with a
client as host. I ordered a chicken salad and tea, which is what I like
to eat plus it's not too expensive. The whole night the client snarked
about how fat women (like me) "pretend" to eat healthy in public. You
just can't please some people, and I suspect Mr Client would have been
happier had I ordered an entire cow that evening.

Stacia