How to invite somebody for a meal in a restaurant remotely?

Question

My use case is the following:
I know somebody who helps me a lot over the Internet.
I would like to invite him for a meal to a restaurant that is local only to him.
How can I manage the invitation, if

I do not want to pay in advance
only want to pay the exact amount

Is there a payment provider that has this functionality?

Vicky · Answer

I have done this in the past with two different restaurants. In both cases I contacted the restaurant, explaining my desire and providing my credit card details over the phone. I also agreed a limit on the spend in case the recipient went mad and ordered 10 bottles of their most expensive vintage champagne :-)
In one case the restaurant gave me a nice gift certificate that I could give to the recipient, and in the other case I mocked one up myself. I then gave the certificate to the recipient and they made a reservation and told me the details of the reservation. I contacted the restaurant again and confirmed that this reservation was the one I wanted to pay for.
The recipient then attended the restaurant, did not have to pay anything, and the restaurant charged the bill to the credit card details I had provided.
This does require you to trust the restaurant with your credit card details.

How to invite somebody for a meal in a restaurant remotely?

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