Table Etiquette - In decades past, table manners were taught at home, drilled into you every night until you just couldn’t stand to hear about it anymore. “no elbows on the table!” “use your napkin!” The tone of the instructor indicated their horror. Breaking table etiquette was almost a crime.
Today, while attending a party, you may notice table etiquette has fallen by the wayside. So here’s a crash course rundown on the basics, in case you fell between the cracks and haven’t yet learned the important social meanings and consequences of proper table etiquette.
Let’s say you’ve been invited to your girlfriend’s home for a “getting-to-know-you” dinner with her parents. No need to freak. Whether it’s a simple family meal or elegant dinner, the basic rules are the same. Here’s how to make a good impression.
When you’re invited to be seated, don’t just plop down in your chair. Offer to pull Mom’s chair out, gracefully sliding the chair to a comfortable seating position. Repeat with girlfriend. You’ll definitely make points here.
Once seated, check out the table setting. You may see a napkin rolled artfully up in a napkin ring. Simply pick it up, slide the napkin out, setting the ring to the left of your table setting. Unfold the napkin and spread it across your lap. You’ll look silly just clutching the napkin possessively in your hand.
Take a peek at where knives and forks are placed. Utensils flank each side. If there’s just a knife, fork and spoon, no problem. You know what to do with them.
If you find multiple forks and spoons, here’s the secret of using utensils according to proper table etiquette. Utensils farthest from the plate are used first. So if you’ve got a large spoon, whatever arrives first at the table and requires a spoon to eat it, wins! A bowl of soup takes a soup spoon. The salad Use the smaller salad fork at the outside of the table setting. These utensils are removed after each course, so you just keep moving towards the middle. Proper table etiquette is almost yours.
You may see a small plate to the left of your setting, with a tiny knife resting on the plate. The small plate is for bread and the little knife is for buttering the bread. When the butter dish is passed, your personal bread knife is used to place the butter on your plate, never applied directly to the bread first!
If someone says grace, absolutely don’t make any silly comments like "rub-a-dub-dub, thanks for the grub!" The person saying grace may stand or simply put their hands on the table. Bow your head in respect and chirp in with your "amen" at the end.
As dinner is served, don’t neglect to thank the person serving or offering the food. The rest is easy. No elbows, use your napkin and sit up straight! You’ll be a hit with the parents.
Previous Articles Highlighter:
Take Out Boxes (1)
...She does have the choice of recycling or burning, but for the most part, she burns them. She quite often has the same problem, however, because her take out boxes, as few as they are, seem to pile u...
Teapot Cake (2)
...tea party. If you aren’t an avid baker you can certainly use a couple of boxes of cake mix to make this showpiece. Choose the favorite flavor of the birthday girl for the cake. One new and fun ...
Teflon Sheet (3)
...one pan that does not have it, and I do use that a lot, but the rest of them have to have the substance on them or everything would stick. Many feel like I do, and this does make cooking easier all ...
Vegetarian Crock Pot (4)
...probably find that adding your own personal touches to one of the recipes will give you the best results. No two families have exactly the same tastes. Some prefer more chili powder while others ...
Wedding Cake Decorating (5)
...even consider this a possibility and instead order an extravagant cake that can cost hundreds, if not thousands of dollars. If there is someone in your family who enjoys baking and is creativ...
Wedding Cake Designs (6)
...ceremony and all the traditional hoopla. Not to say that there aren’t some wonderful aspects of this tradition. I personally like sorting through all the wedding cake designs. How can anyone n...
Wedding Cookies (7)
...I would make some interesting wedding cookies with innovative designs. I took the assignment as a complement and began working on unique designs for wedding cookie project. My first design was ac...
Whole Foods Market (8)
...friendly veneer, the whole foods supermarket hides a thick core of evil. I have been to many whole foods markets, and it is always the same story. They are all – every last one of...
Wood Fired Pizza Oven (9)
...many of women and men in my 30 years and all of them eat pizza. Now, the key is to find the best pizza around. For example, have you ever tasted pizza prepared in a wood fired pizza oven That stuff ...
Worlds Finest Chocolates (10)
...I have tried some of the worlds finest candies from all over. I have tried Ghiradelli chocolates, Belgian chocolates – you name it and I have tried it. Nonetheless, no one does it like my...
Bulk Chocolate (11)
...the process of candy making, especially chocolates, can be frustrating if poor quality or the wrong ingredients are used. Chocolate is a very tricky ingredient to work with and if it is not dealt wi...
Salad Recipes (12)
...we would get together closer to the date and come up with a menu. Three weeks prior to the get together those of us that were organizing the event got together. I asked the other four women over to ...
Crock Pot Soup (13)
...to their crock pot soup recipe while others swear by chicken broth. It’s really a matter of finding a recipe that contains ingredients that your family loves and then tweaking it to blend ...
Fish Recipe (14)
...fish recipe offers great flavor and is usually quick and easy to cook. Your friendly, local fish merchant is normally willing to fillet and prepare the fish or you can buy ready to cook fish in the s...
Ice Cream Machine (15)
...over other items on the registry but we added it anyway. I was very happy and surprised to find that my great-aunt bought the unusual item for us. This was an unexpected gift from her because she ...
Pepper Grinders (16)
...down the coffee bean. The resulting pepper is fresher than what you get out of the store, and it gives your food a brighter taste. There is something great about using pepper grinders to sprinkle ...
Pepper Plant (17)
...good. That year I planted celery, green bell peppers and one jalapeño pepper plant so that I would all the ingredients from the garden. We had never tried to raise peppers before. I did not t...
Bbq Recipes (18)
...an excellent fuel. A barbecue feast should smell, look and taste good. Be careful not to undercook anything as that can be harmful, but there’s no need to set everything on fire either. Good co...
Healthy Recipes (19)
...hospital and so there are many innovative procedures that are preformed there. The hospital receives patients from all over the United States so there was a four month waiting list prior to dad&rsquo...
Hershey Chocolate (20)
...line with Hershey’s Syrup, Chocolate Chips, Krackel Bar and Mr. Goodbar. The recipe for chocolate is different to that of European companies, who use less sugar and more cocoa but Hershey sti...
Hot Pepper Sauce (21)
...Green, yellow, orange or red, there’s a heat to match your index. A hot pepper sauce can transform a ho-hum casserole into an exciting rave-review dish. Let’s take a look at some m...
Hot Sauce (22)
...and had seen a recipe he wanted to try. He asked the day before so I bought the ingredients that he needed on my way home from work. It was a southwestern recipe, which is one of his favorite cuisine...
Italian Cooking (23)
...Italian cooking, in all other regions of Italy, remains much as it has for centuries. Each region has foods not found in other areas. In southern Italy, you’ll find olive oil, tomatoes, pepp...
Rotisserie Cooking (24)
...in this way cooks evenly but it needs to keep moist, so basting is advisable. Rotisserie cooking is good for keeping the flavor in. You can cook just about anything using this method but chicke...
Slow Cookers (25)
...– cooking – a heck of a lot easier. If you’ve never used slow cookers, you owe it to yourself to try this fabulous time saver. If you’ve got one stuck away in garage storag...
Barbecue Sauce Recipe (26)
...and have experimented in the kitchen for years. I have developed several recipes. My most famous accomplishment is a barbecue sauce recipe. Several years ago my husband and I were hosting a patio...
Chocolate Brownies (27)
...any type of gathering. They’ll be gone in no time. Nuts, cherries, raspberries, marshmallows, caramel, peanut butter, white chocolate, and mint flavoring are just some of the ingredients that...
Chocolate Cake Recipe (28)
...same menu. The first night they have a fish fry, the second evening they grill steaks and the third evening they have spare ribs and sauerkraut. They also have chili and soup for lunch, and for brea...
Chocolate Fudge (29)
...my son’s. My mother prepared mainly comfort foods. These were the foods that my father preferred. Her specialties were pot roast, baked chicken, wonderful gravy and chocolate fudge. After man...
Easy Dinner Recipes (30)
...yet easy dinner recipes. Maybe these will change your daily eating habits. It’s easy to eat healthy and be cost efficient at the same time. This is the deal. I like to make a grocery list once...
Greek Recipes (31)
...land is suited to the rearing of sheep and goats, rather than beef and so goat meat and lamb are much more common. Locally caught fish take up much of Greek menus, especially in coastal areas. There ...
Healthy Lunch Recipes (32)
...staying fit is important, and we all know basic sports to keep ourselves in shape, but when it comes to meals, cooking healthy is a different story. As far as foods and meals go, the barrage of r...
Beef Jerky Recipes (33)
...but most people can afford to have a bit of red meat every now and again. One especially delicious way to include red meat in your diet is with beef jerky. With all the beef jerky recipes ...
Cereal Boxes (34)
...are cereal boxes depicting the new craze. It is almost enough to make your head spin. What I’ve also noticed is how the cereal boxes are starting to cost so much more money these days. Some of ...
Chocolate Covered Strawberries (35)
...that was a bit selfish of me, but I paid for the cake and the extra cost for the chocolate covered strawberries, so I wanted to be sure to enjoy them. You can easily make your own chocolate covered ...
Coffee Machine (36)
...the can. It does something much more fascinating and imperative. It has a built-in coffee bean grinder. This means you can purchase the beans of your choice, and enjoy a fresh cup of Joe every mornin...
Dunkin Donuts Coffee (37)
...to mind For me it’s fast food for lunch, because everyone is in a big rush and convenience is all that matters. For dinner it’s take-out from the Chinese place down the street or mayb...
Ice Cream Machine (38)
...and a mellow atmosphere With a professional ice cream machine, you can make tons of profitable ice cream. Whether intended for home or business use, you are sure to find a suitable ice cream machin...
Italian Cooking (39)
...in learning. Even better, if you have a friend or family member who is a great chef or cook, you can ask them to teach you something about Italian cooking. I had a roommate in college who was p...
Jobs For Cooks (40)
...There are jobs for cooks that entail making the salads or perhaps doing prep work for the head chef. Cooks may find that this is a great way to learn more about fine cuisine, and they may also f...
Low Acid Coffee (41)
...my years of service to my company I have had many great experiences as well as some that provoked anxiety. I have learned that a good cup of coffee can be my best friend and my worst enemy....
Books For Cooks (42)
...you so desire. The more you learn about food and cooking, the more you want to know. When you’ve explored all your favorite cuisines, you find yourself branching out. If you aren’t a foo...
Easy Dinner (43)
...start running around the house like maniacs. It isn’t always easy to find something that you can turn into an easy dinner. I want my kids to eat healthy and enjoy their dinners. A lot of the r...
Kitchen Scale (44)
...cook books and recipe magazines mark ingredients by weight rather than volume. You may well wonder why. Let’s say you’re making an apple pie. An American recipe may call for “s...
Low Fat Cooking (45)
...my best to eat right. But since that’s not doing the trick, I’m going to have to make some lifestyle changes right away. For instance one thing decided to do is change my kitchen and shop...
Simple Recipes (46)
...out after graduation. I had always been thin and hadn’t worried about it. Suddenly, there was a diamond ring on my finger and I was thinking about how I’d now have to make meals for s...
Electric Ice Cream Maker (47)
...could make any homemade ice cream recipes that we could dream of. Little did I know that convenience is not always a good thing. With the crank operated ice cream machine, making ice cream was a l...
Kitchen Gadgets (48)
...to and I also receive kitchen gadgets as gifts. There are basic fundamentals that I update every so often, such as the food processor and deep fryer. Now, I’m not saying that an ice cream mak...
Cake Decorating Magazine (49)
...at my own pace is very important to me. I use my cake decorating magazine to help me progress at a comfortable speed. This helps me remember the steps in the process way better than just watchi...
Chocolate Cake Recipe (50)
...family for great chocolate cake recipes is a double edged sword. On one hand, the relative may be more than flattered that you would like to adopt her approach to baking. Then again, she might wan...
Chocolate Chip Cookies (51)
...I have started searching for new recipes for chocolate chip cookies to add to my collection. The great thing about the Internet is you can find information very quickly and you can print the recip...
Healthy Dinner Recipes (52)
...of nutrition. We all know we need fruits and vegetables, protein, dairy and grains included in our daily meals. Easy enough. Everyone has their favorites in each group, so just choose foods you ...
Kitchen Equipment (53)
...to shopping for a week at a time which they will now have to do because the distance they will be from shops. My daughter told me that she is going to have to invest in some kitchen equipment beca...
Low Carb Cooking (54)
...you lay a foundation you are well on your way to a carbohydrate-controlled diet. There are a handful of things to consider and there are a few tips and tricks to take with you to the kitchen. Afte...
Southern Living Cookbook (55)
...is so much information in this one text that I wonder why on earth anyone would need another cooking publication at all. The text is filled with a ton of useful hints and help and a plethora of ...
Baby Feeding (56)
...was also on formula. Our methods of baby feeding were vastly different from each other even though we had the same pediatrician. I guess I took the pediatrician’s advice about baby feeding muc...
Barbecue Sauce Recipe (57)
...barbecue sauce recipes, but it was just not the same. People who had praised my cooking in the past were much less lavish with their praise. I just could not get the same results. I looked everyw...
Barbeque Ribs (58)
...sauce. The ribs should be baby back, and the sauce should be one that everyone in the family likes. Sauce choice for barbeque ribs is one of the most important parts, so choose well. To make t...
Bbq Sauce (59)
...and I have a pretty neat setup. She mails me a package of Aussie favorites, and I in turn mail her something back. It’s my turn now, and I am taking my sweet time. I’m glad she understan...
Beef Jerky Recipes (60)
...beef jerky recipes are a popular way to prepare a delicious – if unhealthy – snack food. Most of the time, people who cook up a beef jerky recipe are hunters. The best beef jerky, after...
Belgian Chocolate (61)
...a reputation for being the best. This may have been the boast of the Swiss at one time, before the Belgians raced ahead. There is a long tradition of chocolate making in Belgium, which only needed a ...
Birthday Cake (62)
...had their assigned chores. When your chores were done you had free time until dinner. Mom’s traditions around birthdays included picking your favorite meal as well as your birthday cake. The...
Birthday Candles (63)
...will have the same feeling when I am approaching forty, but I do have to admit that my thirties so far have been the best years of my life, perhaps the forties will be even better. When you get older...
Bottled Drinking Water (64)
...flavors such as lemon, strawberry or mango. I just want a glass of water! Is bottled drinking water superior to tap water Some people think so and the debate rages on. Tap water has got a bad image ...
Broiler Pan (65)
...My children are involved in many activities but we all try to make an effort to avoid making plans over the dinner hour. My husband’s job is set hours with few exceptions so we mainly need to ...
Burr Coffee Grinder (66)
...I must have a decent source of coffee nearby. I guess you could say it would be pretty miserable if I went camping or was lost in the wilderness and could not have my daily coffee. I might consid...
Cake Decorating Ideas (67)
...about special occasions that call for a cake that send me to the kitchen with my brain packed full with elaborate cake decorating ideas. It started when my husband turned thirty and I wanted to cele...
Cake Decorating Supplies (68)
...Craft Store or Bed, Bath and Beyond both have a great selection of cake making and cake decorating supplies. You can find almost anything you need, and if you wait for a sale, you can f...
Cake Designs (69)
...you want simple cake designs, you can find them all over the Internet. Cake decorators have samples of their work posted on their websites, and you may find the best cake designs by simply search...
Camping Cookware (70)
...a week is not something I want to go through again. I also learned that you have to buy special camping cookware when you go, and I learned this buy ruining most of my good pans. It seems like com...
Ceramic Coffee Mug (71)
...help me handle my coffee habit. If you drink a lot of coffee like I do, you don’t want to have to run to the coffee pot for a refill every ten minutes. This is why I own a large ceramic coffee...
Cereal Boxes (72)
...of the number of cereals we need. It’s happened though. I now have two cupboards full of cereal boxes. I’m not even sure why. What I do know is that my husband and my daughter always ha...
Chef Choice Knife Sharpener (73)
...the point. Before I got my chef choice knife sharpener, I used to buy a lot of serrated knives. I figured that, using serrated knives, I could get by easily without a chefs choice knife sharpener, ...
Chef Hat (74)
...my fifth birthday, my parents began to teach me how to cook. It was something that I had wanted to do since I was about three years old. My mom was a great cook, as was my dad. They both worked part...
Chicken Dinner (75)
...we got was a chicken dinner. I don’t know what it was about this dinner, but it was always so good, and we could not wait until the next time we could have one. The restaurant that made them is...
Chile Pepper Magazine (76)
...dream come true. Any way you cut it, there’s a recipe you’ll love. The Chile Pepper magazine caters to a niche market of millions of hot chile lovers, featuring recipes from th...
Chocolate Apples (77)
...We lived in that same town until I was an adult. I remember taking one of my girlfriends to get chocolate apples at the fair. She was from a bigger city. The county fair was something totally ne...
Chocolate Brownies (78)
...I know a lot of people like to do this. Just because my idea of the perfect brownie is different from everyone else does not mean I won’t enjoy one now and then. When I make chocolate brown...
Chocolate Cake Recipe (79)
...teach you anything that she knows. She is always willing to explain sewing, cooking, or advanced mathematics. There is one thing, however, that she guards jealously. It is her greatest secret, and o...
Chocolate Chip Cookies (80)
...quit raving about this awesome new recipe. Soon Nestle heard about Wakefield’s combination and in 1939 purchased the rights to use the recipe for “the Famous Toll House Cookie”, whi...
Chocolate Covered Potato Chips (81)
...it all. You probably can’t imagine a funky or bizarre treat we don’t have. There are even chocolate covered popcorn and gummy bears in this great nation. So if you’re looking for s...
Chocolate Covered Strawberries (82)
...chocolate covered strawberries you need to use very good quality chocolate. The candy bar from the corner store is not going to work in this instance. The best chocolate strawberries are dipped i...
Chocolate Factory (83)
...Depp version of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and my daughter was terrified for weeks after that. She didn’t bother to watch Charlie and the Chocolate Factory before she let me four-year...
Chocolate Fondue Fountain (84)
...portion of the unit and another which controls the flow basin at the top. Although you may use what’s known as “compound” chocolate, the higher quality “couverture” ...
Chocolate Peanut Butter (85)
...some salt added to it. I have always loved to cook chocolate recipes, and chocolate peanut butter cookies are my favorite. To me, however, they do not work if they use the processed peanut butter. Y...
Coffee Can (86)
...of 2007, there will be yet another product on the market that will save people an extra few moments in the mornings. If you’re one who likes to sleep in for an extra few moments, that concep...
Coffee Machine (87)
...over it. No one else was allowed to take care of it, not even Mama. It’s certainly true that we British don’t know how to make coffee, we are a nation of tea drinkers after all. We have i...
Coffee Of The Month Clubs (88)
...clubs. What would you say to a fine, piping hot latte right now Wait, let me guess; you will take it. That’s pretty much what I thought. Heck we all love coffee. Or at least ninety some perce...
Coffee Shop (89)
...shop within miles. Sure, restaurants and convenience stores have coffee, but they just don’t count as heavenly coffee shops. Some towns have an abundance of coffee shops. In some places, ...
Cooking Courses (90)
...in taste and presentation. We decided that this would be fun as well as helpful in our lives. The first evening of the cooking courses found the four of us putting on hair nets and aprons. Of cou...
Cooking For 2 (91)
...cooking for 2 I had to make huge adjustments. I did not realize how much two boys in their late teens eat. The first meal I put on the table for the two of us had enough leftovers for most of ...
Creme Brulee Torch (92)
...The item is definitely commercial quality and the design is sleek and sophisticated. I just immediately associate anything that has flames with smoking. However, after using the crème brulee t...
Crock Pot Soup (93)
...eye. If you’re unfamiliar with crock pot soup recipes, you need to take a look at some cook books. A crock pot soup is easy and fast to prepare, cooks itself while you’re out doing e...
Cuisinart Grind And Brew Coffee Maker (94)
...and Brew coffee maker is the perfect machine for anybody who likes things to be at the peak of freshness. It also appeals to the lazy part in all of us as well. I kept whole coffee beans in the h...
Custom Coffee Cup (95)
...them. Custom promotional products, such as custom T-shirts and custom coffee cups, can do just that. When I first started out in business, I ran my own coffee shop. It was a notoriously difficult ti...