God, I hated when people tried to do that to a big party. That was actually one of the reasons we developed a "meal plan" which pretty much spelled out the food choices. They were at set prices and we would offer a fish, chicken, and steak choice. You could place your order in advance and we would be prepared for it. You could order anything of course, but only a couple of people would be allowed to do so. Separate checks in many cases for liquor, beer, or wine. Now many corporations just said !@#$ it and made it a free for all. Some servers tried to pad the tab. They didn't last long.