Imagine going out for dinner with a group of friends in India. The food is finished, the conversation is still going strong, and the waiter arrives with the bill. Suddenly, a familiar drama begins.
One person grabs the bill, another insists on paying, and a third announces that everyone should simply split the amount equally. Someone who ordered only a lime soda ends up paying for somebody else's expensive cocktail.
Now imagine the same scene in Germany.
There is no dramatic struggle over the bill. One person pays for two beers and a plate of pasta. Another settles the amount for a pizza and a glass of wine. Everyone pays for exactly what they consumed.
Welcome to Germany, where even a casual night out can come with a healthy dose of financial discipline.
Germany is famous for its engineering, punctuality and precision. Apparently, the country's preference for keeping things organised extends to restaurant bills as well.
Unlike in India, where treating friends to food and drinks is often considered a gesture of affection, many Germans prefer to settle their individual expenses.
The thinking is straightforward. Why should someone who had one beer pay the same amount as a friend who enjoyed four? A bartender says that people often keep track of who has bought drinks and how many rounds each person has paid for.
The preference is not necessarily about saving money. It is about ensuring that nobody feels they have paid more than their fair share. This approach is closely connected to fairness and certainty.
Buying rounds can become uncomfortable when nobody knows how long the evening will last or how many drinks will be ordered. Paying individually removes the possibility of someone feeling financially disadvantaged.
Interestingly, Germans have a saying that captures this philosophy: Klare Rechnung, gute Freunde. It roughly translates to `clear accounts, be good friends.' The idea is that financial clarity can actually protect relationships.
For Indian readers, this might sound familiar in another context. Think of a group trip where one friend books the hotel, another pays for the taxi, and someone else promises to settle everything later.
By the end of the journey, the holiday memories are wonderful, but the expense calculations can be a nightmare. Germany's approach avoids much of this confusion from the beginning.
Of course, Germany is not a country where everyone follows exactly the same drinking customs. In southern Germany, particularly Bavaria, buying rounds for friends is more common.
Traditional beer gardens, where beer is often served in enormous one-litre mugs, have a more communal drinking culture.
The same applies to celebrations such as harvest festivals, Cologne's Carnival and Hamburg's Port Anniversary.
At these gatherings, buying a round can be part of the festive spirit. Insisting on paying only for your own drink might even appear excessively formal.
So the rules change depending on where you are and what kind of celebration you are attending.
For Indians visiting Germany, the safest approach is to assume that everyone will pay for themselves unless someone explicitly offers to treat the group.
A useful German phrase is Ich lade dich ein, meaning that the person is inviting you and offering to pay.
Restaurant staff are also accustomed to customers settling bills separately. A waiter may ask Getrennt oder zusammen?, which means separately or together.
If you want to pay only for your order, the response is simple: Getrennt, bitte, or separately, please. There is nothing embarrassing about it. In fact, it is perfectly normal.
For Indian travellers, Germany's restaurant etiquette offers an interesting lesson about how different cultures view generosity and fairness.
In India, paying for friends can be an expression of warmth, hospitality and social bonding. In Germany, ensuring that nobody owes anybody anything can serve a similar purpose.
Neither approach is inherently better. They simply reflect different expectations around money and friendship.
And perhaps there is one practical takeaway for the next Indian group dinner: friendship does not necessarily become stronger because everyone pays an equal share.
(Inputs from a BBC Travel feature).