Rules of etiquette at the table: the purpose of cutlery

“Why do I need table etiquette if I don’t go to restaurants? ", many people think. But in fact, everyone should know the elementary rules. The rules of good manners can be useful both at a party and in public institutions. In order to feel free and confident in society, it is not enough to know in which hand and how exactly to hold a spoon. Therefore, it is worth studying all the rules in more detail.

In order not to get into an absurd position in an expensive establishment, you need to know the basic rules of table etiquette.

As soon as you arrive at the establishment, take off your outer clothing and leave it in the wardrobe, the ladies can straighten their hair in front of the mirror. You need to more thoroughly correct makeup and comb your hair only in the ladies' room.

Be sure to remember how to sit at the table correctly, because it all starts with this. Do not sit too close to the table or positioned so that it will then be difficult to reach the appliances. You need to sit at the table with a straight back. And it is important to remember that the table should be comfortable. Therefore, you should immediately sit down comfortablyso as not to be distracted from the meal in search of a comfortable position.

It is worth remembering that in no case should you put your elbows on the table. This is taught even to children from an early age, but in adulthood, not everyone remembers this rule. You can only put your hands on the table.

If it becomes necessary to take a salt shaker or, for example, bread, then you can’t get up from your seat or reach across the table to get what you want.

If you were asked to pass the bread, then never take it in your hands when passing it. It will be true if you pass a basket of bakery products, and the person takes as much as he needs.

You shouldn't tuck the napkin, which is usually located on the plate, behind the collar, as is shown in many films. This can only be done if a child is sitting at the table. An adult should carefully spread a napkin on his lap. A napkin should be taken only when the main dishes have been served., after finishing the meal, you can gently wipe her mouth and hands, and then she should be put on the table.

During the feast, you can take cookies, some types of cakes and fruits with your hands. The rest of the dishes should be eaten exclusively with cutlery. It is also worth remembering that it is strictly forbidden to chew with an open mouth, talk with a full mouth and rush while eating.

The correct use of cutlery speaks of your deep knowledge of etiquette. Using familiar appliances at home, in a restaurant or at a party, according to all the rules of etiquette, is not so difficult. Proper serving already tells you exactly how to use cutlery. Objects must be held in the hand that corresponds to the side of the plate near which the cutlery lies.

You need to take first those items that are from the very edge, and not near the plate itself. Remember that directly during the meal, the hands should be overhang. So it will be more convenient to handle the dish, and it will comply with the rules of etiquette. If during dinner your left hand is free while your right hand is busy, then you can’t keep it on your knees, lowering it under the table.

You need to hold a wine glass or a glass of wine by the leg with three fingers. Sometimes it is allowed to touch the leg with four or all five fingers. If you take a glass by the base, then prints will remain and, moreover, the drink will heat up, which should not be.

Glasses with other drinks that are served cold, such as champagne or white wine, should also be held by the bottom of the stem itself. If you want to put ice, for example, in whiskey, then you need to put ice pieces only with special tongs. A glass of cognac can be held by the base in such a way that so that the leg passes through the fingers.

You need to start a meal only when food and drinks are served at your table. Satisfying hunger with bread sticks or bread, as many do, is not worth it.

The spoon should always be in the right hand only, even if you are left-handed by nature. In order for it to fit correctly in your hand, your thumb should be on top of the handle of the device itself.

The fork must be held in the left hand.Of course, sometimes there are exceptions when it is held in the right hand. This is allowed when you are served a dish that does not require the use of a knife. For example, it can be the most delicate casserole, a lush and tasty omelette, or vegetables. Then it is quite possible to use this cutlery in the right hand.

Remember that first courses, namely all kinds of soups, must be eaten very carefully. Scoop the broth away from you with a spoon. So the soup will not spill, it will not stain the tablecloth and clothes. A spoon with soup should be brought as carefully as possible to your mouth.

When soup is served with large pieces of meat or poultry, you must first eat the entire broth - the liquid part of the dish. And after that, you can eat meat with the help of cutlery such as a fork and knife. That's the etiquette.

In the case when soup is served with meatballs or, as they are now fashionably called, meat-balls, they can be divided into small pieces with a spoon. The same can be done with dumplings. When finishing the soup, be sure to tilt the plate slightly towards you, holding it with one hand. In order not to get into an uncomfortable position, leave some liquid from the dish in the plate, do not eat the dish to the end. This is quite acceptable.

If a steak or some other meat dish was served, then the fork should be in the left hand, and the knife in the right. A large piece of meat should not be cut all at once into convenient pieces. Each time you need to cut off a not very large piece and immediately send it to your mouth.Of course, it will be more convenient to immediately divide the dish into portioned pieces and enjoy the meat without using a knife, but this is wrong. If a special sauce was served with the meat, then they only need to water the meat itself, but in no case a side dish.

In the event that the meat has already been eaten and there is a side dish left, then it can be eaten without a knife, while it is allowed to hold the fork in the right hand. If a light vegetable salad was served with a meat dish, which will replace the usual side dish, that is, it should be in the plate in which it was served.

Such meat dishes, where meat is cooked on the bone, cannot be eaten to the end. In no case should you gnaw the bone, take it with your hands and gnaw the meat. You need to eat exactly as much as you can cut the meat from the bone.

When eating such second courses as cabbage rolls or cutlets, it is quite acceptable to use only a fork, which should be held in the right hand.

Salads are eaten exclusively with forks. If there are large pieces or large lettuce leaves in the dish, then it is quite possible to cut them with a knife and continue the meal.

When bread is served for dinner in the form of a portioned bun or just sliced ​​bread, then a piece of the product should be put on a pie plate, after which it can be broken off into pieces, but not bitten off. If the bread is already spread with butter or caviar, then it cannot be eaten with knives and forks or cut. Complex sandwiches are allowed to be eaten with the help of appliances, otherwise the dish may break into pieces.

Snacks such as cheese, sausages, ham, rolls should be carefully pricked with a special fork. Large pieces of such a snack should be divided into small ones, and this can be done immediately, and then consumed with a fork. Always take only as much as you can eat. Do not fill your plate with various types of snacks at once.

Shrimps are often served for dinner now, and not everyone knows exactly how to eat them correctly. If shrimp are served as an appetizer, in which there is already a skewer, then you need to take it, dip it in the sauce and then eat it. If shrimp are an addition to the main course, then they need to be done with the help of specially designated devices.

The end of dinner is also an important moment that requires some knowledge and adherence to the rules. After eating, for example, after you finish the soup, the spoon should be left in the plate itself. Do not put it after use on the surface of the table or on a cloth napkin.

When you deal with the meat dish, the fork along with the knife must be left in the plate, placing them parallel to each other. If your meal has not yet ended, then these cutlery should be crossed. Thanks to this, the waiter, having looked at the plate, will understand that it is still impossible to take away the cutlery and the dish.

During dinner, if you need to use a napkin, you can use paper products. At the same time, the linen napkin remains on the knees until the person has finished the meal. Women are strictly forbidden to use tissue napkins even at the end of dinner if their lips are made up. Use only paper napkins.

Rules of etiquette and behavior at the table are needed not only when you are in a restaurant.This can come in handy at home if you plan a holiday and the arrival of invited guests. Every self-respecting hostess should know exactly how to properly set the table.

First you need to lay a tablecloth on the table. When choosing a tablecloth for a festive table, be sure to consider its size. The tablecloth should not interfere with guests during the feast. Too long or short edges are wrong. The edges of the tablecloth should barely reach the seat of the chair, keep this in mind.

Choose napkins to match the tablecloth. Cloth napkins can be folded in a variety of ways using a special ring. A folded napkin must be placed directly on the plate of each guest.

Plates should also be placed correctly. In no case do not put them directly to the edge of the table, step back at least three centimeters so that the guests can sit comfortably. A soup spoon should be located on the right side of the plate. Always place it with the convex side down.

On the same side, you should place the knife. Its sharp side should be directed directly to the plate. The fork, as you already know, should be exclusively on the left side. You need to put this item with the teeth up. Glasses for drinks are placed opposite the knife.

Always put the gravy boat on a small saucer so that guests do not stain the tablecloth during dinner. There should be a napkin on the plate, and only then you can put the gravy boat itself. If you are serving a table with individual gravy boats, then they should be on the left side of the patty plate.

There are also a number of additional rules:

• Bread should be taken exclusively with your hands, and not pricked with a fork.
• By cutting off a portioned piece of meat, you can grab a little side dish and eat it all together.
• If you eat soup, then a tablespoon should remain in the plate all the time. No need to spread it on the table or lean against the edge of the plate.
• At a dinner party at home, a la carte dishes should be served on the left side of the guest.
• From a common gravy boat, you need to take the sauce with a special spoon. And you should take a little sauce so that it is enough for everyone present.
• You should never eat sauce from a plate by dipping bread in it.

• If a drink is accidentally spilled on the tablecloth or a drop of soup or sauce has fallen, then the stain should be blotted with a napkin and left on the table.
• If the cutlery fell to the floor, then do not get up from the chair and rather pick it up. Ask for a new device.
• Do not pick up food that has fallen from the floor. Behave calmly, even if part of the dish has fallen under the table.
• In the event that you bite off a piece of food that is too hot, then rather wash it down with some kind of drink. You should not open your mouth wide, wave your hands and report to everyone that you have burned yourself.
• If a piece of a spicy dish was swallowed, then you can’t drink it down, otherwise it could get even worse.
• If there is a desire to eat a sandwich with pate, then you need to put a piece of bread on your plate, then add a little pate with a special spoon. The pate must be applied to the bread with a knife, and then the finished sandwich is eaten using two cutlery.

How to use cutlery, you can see in the next video.