The Daily Camera/ Mirror picture

[WhiteBeastofWotan]

I use my fuckin hands, cram that salad in my pie hole, make it my bitch.

 

[Macharius]

^+1 Pork Slap for you sir.

 

[Dead_Lioness]

^ It's actually a good beer! I tried all of their beers and they are not bad!

 

[El Stormo]

Hahah the idea of eating etiquette is utterly laughable to me. People are really like this? I doubt I could even keep a straight face if I were in a situation where it was expected of me to know and practice something so retarded.

Well, there's eating etiquette, which is completely stupid, but there's also plain decent manners, and while I'm not too demanding in that department personally, I do think it's important that people display good manners, appropriate to the situation of course. I don't mind people eating with their hands among friends, but I do expect them to at least use a knife and fork in more formal situations.

 

[Shpongled]

Understandable, but if you point out that I'm not holding my fork with the correct hand, I'm going to laugh in your face. Formal or not.

 

[Dead_Lioness]

Well, there's eating etiquette, which is completely stupid, but there's also plain decent manners, and while I'm not too demanding in that department personally, I do think it's important that people display good manners, appropriate to the situation of course. I don't mind people eating with their hands among friends, but I do expect them to at least use a knife and fork in more formal situations.

^ yeah I'm the same way... I'm not a 'formal' person, but I think in certain situations it is important to know and have good manners..


Having said that though, I will never point out to anyone that they are not holding their fork properly, because that... will essentially be rude (and not display my good manners!)

 

[El Stormo]

Understandable, but if you point out that I'm not holding my fork with the correct hand, I'm going to laugh in your face. Formal or not.

Ha, no I'm not that prissy. Just don't stuff your face with your hands

 

[Shpongled]

What would you seriously do in real life if I did? I'm genuinely curious to know. Would you walk out or just say something or what?

Dog knows stuffing your face with food is absolutely revolting behavior, amirite Olivia Munn?

 

[WhiteBeastofWotan]

Its only acceptable when its hot chicks doing so with phallic shaped foods amirite

 

[Shpongled]

yes

 

[TomAwesome]

So it would be less acceptable for me to shove several sausages half way into my mouth and let them dangle and wiggle about?

 

[Shpongled]

yes

 

[WhiteBeastofWotan]

Quite.

 

[Dead Winter]

^ I have seen people do that, it's very 'English' (mostly I see it in the US though)
I grew up with my French mom, my upbringing was more west-Euro hence why I eat with knife in my right hand and fork on the left and never switch when cutting/eating

This is correct...it's very "proper" English/American. In Italy, it's the complete opposite; you keep your fork in your left hand and use the knife with your right and NEVER put your hands in your lap...you should keep them on the table at all times. A lot depends on the local culture and that's why I said western Anglo-Saxon eating etiquette.

Granted, you don't eat like this at home, and I usually just keep the fork in my left hand and cut with my right when I'm at home, but in a formal situation, what I described by switching hands is the proper, formal etiquette for us. If you are at a dinner with the English or Americans and the company is rather high society for lack of a better phrase, then you should eat like this. If you are in Italy, you should most definitely not eat like this, as it would be an insult.

Proper etiquette is also knowing the etiquette of the country in which you are eating. Like I said, if all you do is eat bullshit with your drinking buddies then it's not that big of a deal, but if you're at a formal ball or banquet or any "black tie affair", you should know how to conduct yourself.

All that said, most other countries besides England/America have a much different approach to eating. For us it's almost like a character your are acting out at the dinner table. When you drink, you hold the glass with so many fingers and drink one sip at a time, putting the drink down each time. You should know with which glass to drink water and wine as well as which fork is the salad fork and the dinner fork, and in which place they go. However, it's usually accepted to keep your fork in your left hand and turn it over to put it in your mouth as long as you don't do it for more than a few bites. Also, you NEVER cut more than you eat. You cut a piece, you eat a piece. You cut a piece, you eat a piece. You don't cut it like you would cut a child's food for them, like in a bunch of little pieces and then eat them all with just the fork.

 

[Dead Winter]

Understandable, but if you point out that I'm not holding my fork with the correct hand, I'm going to laugh in your face. Formal or not.

But we would probably never be in a situation in which I would have to point that out, nor would I point it out; just as Karen said, pointing it out is rude. Context is everything. How many times have you been to a formal dinner? Weddings aren't formal events, btw. It all depends on context. Formal dinners typically bore me to death and I avoid them like the plague, but if I am forced to go to one, I know how to conduct myself depending on the company.

There is certain behavior that is expected of you in certain contexts, and that is, in essence, etiquette. For the same reason you don't fart and burp in public, you don't drink water out of your wine glass if you're not 5. Granted, the impact isn't as much of a big deal as someone ripping one at the dinner table, but it's still etiquette.

Like I said, context is everything. However, if you hold your fork like a 4 year old, like in a fist, that would be simply pathetic. How you conduct yourself at the dinner table reveals volumes about your history, class, upbringing, and education.

Also, when eating soup, you gently tip the spoon away from you and not towards you when eating.

Did you know that there's actually a proper etiquette for eating a hamburger? You're supposed to use both hands, eat it as fast as you can within reason, and not talk at all while eating it. It's not considered a food over which you have a discussion, therefore it's considered rude to take too long to eat your burger.

 

[replicated]

That's a lot of rules. I'm glad it's considered rude to criticize others eating habits over here. Although one of my biggest peeves is when someone sticks their pinky out when taking a drink of something. wtf is with that?

 

[Dead Winter]

That goes back to what I said about using so many fingers to hold your glass. You're not supposed to use your pinky because it looks like you're a child drinking Kool-Aid out of a sippy cup.

I think it's rude everywhere to criticize others' eating habits.

 

[replicated]

So you're not supposed to touch your glass with 4 fingers? I thought that not using your pinky made you look haughty or something. I don't know. I should shut up.

 

[Dead Winter]

Haha no no! It's good that you're curious!

It looks haughty because people are probably doing it out of context. I wouldn't hold my glass of Dr. Pepper with a thumb and three fingers, and anyone who does so IS a haughty douchebag. You have to remember that at a formal dinner all glasses have stems, and that's why you don't hold it with all four fingers and thumb. Think about it; would you hold a wine glass like a beer can?

 

[Captain Beard]

Meh, any country that can set stringent rules for table manners, on what used to be considered a life-required exercise, too much time on their hands.