
There is a way to catch the restaurant. A big enough group can have people move around and some restaurants say they need to stay in the same chair. If there was food sharing where it was one meal split among you, they can get you. But it’s separate meals, dine and dash doesn’t fall on you because you paid for your meal.
So this date might of intentionally shared a meal knowing he can leave because of it. That is why dine and dash has lines they can’t cross to get you to pay. This is why when keeping the meals separate and distinct will isolate such people and you can sniff them out they’ll do it ahead of time.
If he never shared in text he will pay and just says it verbally, do not share one meal. Any meal shared assume you’ll need to pay. If he has a meal and he didn’t pay, leaving makes him dine and dash. So the restaurant will have the bill and you’ll claim what’s yours and they can’t get you on the other stuff.