The figure decides between two doors. What a head costs, what it covers and whether drinks are extra gets compared in about ninety seconds, so a restaurant that hides it loses without ever knowing.
Price per head decides between two doors. All-you-can-eat terms, what is included and whether drinks are extra is compared quickly, and a restaurant that hides the figure loses that comparison in silence.
Eight people on a Friday is genuinely hard to book. Somebody searching for a large table has already been turned away twice, so stating plainly the biggest party you seat, and how far ahead to ask, wins that booking outright.
One vegetarian in the group decides everything. A divided pot with a meat-free side, or a halal broth, is what allows a mixed table to come at all, and those words get looked up by whoever is organising around a constraint.