I don't want to offer any legal advice, but I suggest against charging for food and drinks.
Depending on your state's law, you may be running an illegal casino for profit if you host a game and have people pay money for drinks and snacks. Does this sound ridiculous? Of course it does, but here are examples from
South Carolina (
also here) and
Virginia (where host charged for snacks/sandwiches, got raided by police, and either lost in court or plead guilty.)
No problem if guys get together, decide to order pizza and split the cost - as long as the person who does not want pizza can abstain and not pay. Also ok if you want to donate to the host a few bucks at the end of the night, as long as its optional.
Chances are that nobody will know or care even if you charge your guests for chips- unless you live in South Carolina or similar minded state - but my safe suggestion is BYOB in addition to generosity of the host, or order in on site. Tip of the hat to Krafticus, Bergs, Guinness, and all other generous hosts, too many to name.
Random notes:
Different states have different laws. For example, in WI you can play poker in a bar/public place, as long as the owner does not charge rake or does not require you to purchase anything. I have fond memories of playing for 3 years in the back of Uncle Bob's cigar bar & wet bar in Appleton. Had Uncle Bob required people to buy soda/cigars, whatever, he would be running an illegal casino. Under Virginia law, this is prohibited - a public place can't allow you to play rake free poker.
South Carolina involved a $20 game (or $10, depending on source) with a snack fee. Local police had an undercover guy in the game in order to eventually get low-level misdemeanor convictions and $100 fines. Case went all the way to the state supreme court that upheld the convictions in an insane split decision.
Wiki has good summary. Or
here
South Carolina police also raided a know game that they had busted before multiple times for fines wit full cooperation. This time they decided on a full-blown raid, 72 year-old host thought it was a robbery and fired some shots got 5 years.
Also Here
Virginia case - when the big money restaurant owner copped a plea, the state still retained charges against the single-mom waitress, just for the hell of it, to get a conviction and
$3,000 more. Why the dude was charging for sandwiches while hosting a $2,000 buy-in is another matter.
I confess I have never bothered to look up my state's law on this topic. But when I hosted games in Virginia, I did. I end with one of my favorite bits from the criminal code section
18.2-333: "
Nothing in this article shall be construed to prevent any contest of speed or skill between men, animals, fowl or vehicles..."