So, should I pay?

Where are you from? That's probably the most important question. I'm not sure how dating etiquette goes in Europe, but in the United States, unless you're specifically going as friends with no romantic thoughts or intentions whatsoever, the man should probably pay. There's a difference between being "patriarchal" and gentlemanly.

It all depends in what part of the world you live, what your age is and what kind of restaurant you are taking her. Did you ask her out? If yes i think it is ok that you pay for the food and she would probably appreciate it. If it was a mutual agreement of: hey lets hang, you are better of to suggest to go dutch.

I think it is important to decide before hand, what you are going to do, to avoid uncomfortable situations.

The majority of ladies/females/girls likes to be treated to something special. If you have romantic feelings for her, it is a good moment to show her by paying the bill this time and suggest she can pay half next time if she insists to pay half (this way you are getting almost guaranteed another date) (oh the guilt).

If you have only friendship feelings or suspect she has those, you split the bill, this to prevent her from thinking you want something from her and that might only chase her of. Many women on a first date like man that take control in pretentiously uncomfortable situations like that. So no matter what you decide to do, do it with confident.

So, should i stay or should i go?

You can't have your cake and eat it too. If women are our equals, then they ought to share an equal part in responsibility. The only choice is to split the cost. There are exceptions. A special treat such a a birthday dinner for example. This applies to men as well. Be egalitarian. Men paying for dinner is an outdated and sexist idea and if a woman wants to take advantage of it, then let her also give up equality in other areas lest she be revealed as a hypocrite.

you pay, it's the safest thing to do. She'll tell you if she wants to pay (a part).
But expecting she will pay for herself is something you can't do.
So I'd go with buying her dinner and if she's uncomfortable she'll tell you.

I would pay for the dinner; however, make sure to know how much you can afford and set a limit beforehand. I remember the first dinner date I went on with my wife, girlfriend at the time. I got the bill and realized that I didn't have enough money to pay for it. I was short by a few dollars, but man I felt like a blue chicken in a white dress. I joked that I was going to ditch her, confidence as mentioned earlier in this thread. I went and looked through my car for extra cash, but to no avail. In the end, she footed the last few dollars on a debit card. Every time after that, when we go on dates, I set a price limit for the meal and have had no issues.

Also, being a Christian affects my view. According to scripture, women are the weaker vessel. Even people who don't believe in the bible can agree that, in general, women are weaker. In accordance to this, I adhere to the behavior of the man caring for the woman, as told to in the bible. Therefore, in most instances, even if the woman offered to pay, I would politely refuse.

Pay on first date, but set your priorities straight from the get-go. :P I too believe in splitting the bill, but we also alternate who buys who dinner. It's always been like that for me and I've never had a problem :D

Unfortunately, I think you should expect to have to pay most of the time. I offer to pay whenever I hang out with male and female friends (they do the same out of politeness). It's best to bring the topic up in a nice way, if possible, and discuss how it will work in the future. A friend's girlfriend confronted him early in their relationship because he refused to let her pay even half of the bill. He assumed that she wanted to be polite and that she was testing him lol. They then had an agreement to alternate between who pays. After he graduated from school though, he footed every bill until she graduated. My girlfriend has been paying for our meals for a while now because she earns more than me.

Offer to pay but if she won't have it just don't insist too much. One thing I've done in the past is say (assuming you want another date) that she could pay the next time. Kind of a nice way to tell her you're hoping there will be more dates.

If you want just fuck her pay, if you really like do not pay.

I would pay double the value... I would feel ashmed if she would do it... Unless you don't have enough money.

If it is considered a date it tends to be polite for the guy to at least offer to pay for her. She can decline and pay her half or offer to pay for you on something else that night (or a future date) but it is best to at least make that offer. Us independent girls are used to the guy at least offering and normally don't find it insulting because it is meant to be polite.