While some dining etiquette tips are obvious, others can be more difficult to remember. Keeping these rules in mind while dining out can help you avoid being a total jerk at the restaurant!
Some fine-dining rules seem to be designed specifically to make eating more difficult. For example, the tenet that fork tines should point downward at all times is impractical in most situations.
Keep Your Hands Off the Table
There are many things that people do while dining out that are not appropriate. Whether you’re at a fancy restaurant or a fast food joint, proper etiquette is necessary when eating out. It is not acceptable to rock the table with your elbows, talk with your mouth full or otherwise interfere with other diners’ experiences. While some of these etiquette rules seem silly, they are there to ensure that everyone can enjoy their meal without any problems.
One of the most common mistakes people make when dining out is putting their elbows on the table. While this is perfectly fine during conversation between meals or when you’re drinking coffee or tea, it should not be done while the meal is in progress. Placing your elbows on the table is a sign of disrespect for the servers, who are not there to be your babysitters. Instead, if you need to reach for something while the food is being served, ask someone to pass it to you.
It is also not appropriate to use your napkin as a hand towel. Cloth napkins are meant to be placed on your lap to protect your clothes in the event of a spill. This is especially important if you are wearing a dress or suit to dinner. Using your napkin as a hand towel can be annoying and embarrassing for the other guests at the table.
Another thing that people do while eating out that is not appropriate is blowing their nose on the napkin. While this may be an obvious no-no, it’s still a habit that many people continue to practice. If you must blow your nose, do it away from the table or with a tissue.
It is also not polite to talk with your hands in your pockets while you are at the table. This can be incredibly distracting for the other guests at your table and makes it difficult to concentrate on your meal. Additionally, talking with your hands in your pockets can cause you to drop food, which is not a good thing.
Keep Your Napkin On the Table
Eating can be a grubby business and napkins are the first line of defense against dirty hands and messy mouths. Keeping your napkin on the table is not only good manners but also protects the diner’s clothing from food stains. If you have a cloth napkin, it’s best to fold it in half with the crease towards your body. This will allow you to discreetly wipe your face or hands without exposing the napkin to the rest of your dinner companions.
Regardless of whether you are eating at a fine dining restaurant or at your home, napkins are a must-have item for any table. You should use your napkin to blot your lips, handle spills, and wipe your hands throughout the meal. However, you should avoid using your napkin to blow your nose. This is unsanitary and improper. Instead, excuse yourself from the table and use a tissue in the restroom before returning.
When you are seated at the table, place your napkin in your lap. It should be folded in a square or rectangle if it isn’t already. If you are at a formal dinner party, wait for the host or hostess to unfold their napkin and place it in their lap before doing so yourself. Once the napkin is in your lap, it should remain there until you need to use it again or the meal ends.
If you need to leave the table during the meal, you should gently place your napkin on the chair or to the left of your plate. Doing so signals that you will be back soon. It is important not to place the napkin on the plate because this would soil it further.
It is appropriate to tuck your napkin into the corner of your shirt, but never place it on your chest. This is a sign of disrespect and can cause the host or waiter to become uncomfortable. It is also impolite to tuck your napkin into the front of your shirt as this could leave stains on the garment. A better option is to wrap a portion of the napkin around your finger and hold it near your mouth.
Don’t Chew With Your Mouth Closed
Whether you’re eating with friends at a restaurant or at home with your family, chewing with your mouth closed is a quick and effective way to spread germs. Moreover, it’s unappetizing and shows a lack of table manners. Learn more about table manners and everything you can think of relating to food in the new dining blog for millennials.
Chewing with your mouth open also makes it difficult to taste the flavor of your food and can leave a bad impression on others. It also can lead to choking, which is a serious health concern.
In addition, it can be a pain to clean up your hands after chewing with your mouth open, which could cause unnecessary stress for you and the people around you. If you’re a parent, teaching your children to chew with their mouths closed is a good way to set the right dining-etiquette standards for them.
If you have a toddler or preschool-aged child who struggles to follow proper dining etiquette, use picture books to teach them the importance of eating with their mouths closed. This can help to prevent them from developing negative table habits that they will carry with them into adulthood.
One of the most common dining etiquette rules that many people have trouble following is the “rule” of not sharing food with your dining companions. While it is certainly polite to ask your fellow diners if they would like some of your leftovers, this rule should not be applied to every bite that you take in a restaurant.
The insistence that you share your food is also not the most practical when it comes to fine-dining, which typically serves meals on minuscule plates with separate areas for each dish. Instead of dividing your plate into multiple zones, it may be more effective to simply ask for disposable condiments and utensils, such as those little packages of ketchup and mustard that you can buy in grocery stores.
It can be easy to get caught up in the rules of fine dining, but some of them are just downright baffling. For example, why is it considered rude to cut your bread with a knife, but it is perfectly acceptable to tear it into pieces with your fingers?
Wait for Your Food
It is a well-known etiquette rule that you should wait until everyone at the table has their food before beginning to eat. However, many diners ignore this rule in a restaurant when the meal is taking a long time to arrive. This is incredibly rude and makes the rest of the guests feel ignored and inconsiderate.
It might seem like a nice gesture to stack your plates and cups together when you are done with your meal, but doing this can actually cause a delay in the restaurant’s cleanup process. It is best to place the dirty dishes on a tray that has been provided for you so that the restaurant’s overworked staff can clear it away more efficiently.
This rule might have made sense in the past when people were more likely to be sharing their food from a common platter, but it is no longer practical or polite for diners to share their food at a formal restaurant. Rather than tearing the bread that is brought to your table, it is far more appropriate to cut off a few small bites and then chew them slowly before swallowing. If you have a gluten allergy or another dietary restriction, ask your server if it is okay to omit the bread from your meal.
Another rule that has ceased to make any sense at all is the need to pass salt and pepper in pairs. In a world where so many meals are ordered with both salt and pepper, passing just one of these condiments is considered a major faux pas.
As a career hospitality worker, this rule is one of the stupidest I have ever seen. Not only does it ruin the dining experience for those around you, but it also gives the impression that you are trying to take advantage of your server and their hard work.
It is important to remember that a restaurant is a business and that it is okay to leave when your server says so. Staying past your welcome can prevent the wait staff from seating a new group of customers and may even result in a loss of profits.