The rules of etiquette at the table: studying cutlery

Manners of behavior in society indicate the upbringing of a person and his knowledge of the basic rules of etiquette. This primarily concerns visits to cafes and restaurants where you need to properly behave at the table. Etiquette at the table is not only how to keep the devices, eat or drink, it is also important to be able to competently keep up the conversation and be careful in everything.

Etiquette at the table represents a certain knowledge that shape the behavior of people in society. Any mistake made at the table will be immediately noticed and will create an unpleasant impression of the person, so you should check your manners before visiting guests, a cafe or a restaurant, and correct them immediately. This will help to further avoid embarrassing situations and give self-confidence.

Table etiquette consists of a few simple rules.

• Do not sit far from the table or too tightly pressed against its edge. Only brushes can be put on the table.
• Landing should be smooth, to lean over the food - ugly.
• It is considered bad form to reach for dishes. If the plates are placed far away, then you need to ask the other participants of the meal to pass them.
• During the meal you should use napkins. To do this, adults put them on their knees, and small children napkins tucked by the collar.
• All dishes should be placed in plates with cutlery. The exceptions to this rule are fruits, sugar, biscuits or pastries.
• It is important to remember that the instruments on the left are designed to hold with the left hand, and those on the right for the right hand.

Besides, at the table can not talk loudly. When maintaining the conversation, first of all, you need to listen to the interlocutor, without interrupting him, and only then give an answer. Implementation of these recommendations is not particularly difficult, so they should always be followed.

Table setting is the main component of any meal. If the solemn dinner takes place at home, then the impression of the owners of the house will depend on its design. Many people compare the table setting with a real work of art, since it is important not only to properly arrange the cutlery and know their purpose, but also to create a festive atmosphere with the help of colors and napkin decoration.

To set the table beautifully, you first need to lay a tablecloth, then you can arrange plates, glasses, glasses, wine glasses, cutlery and napkins. Their location is established by the rules of etiquette and can not be changed at its own discretion.

According to the rules of serving, the corners of the tablecloth should cover the legs of the furniture, but not be too long, leaving a distance of 25-30 cm to the floor. The canvas is spread out with free movements, and it is important to pay attention to the fact that there is no air between the table and the fabric. You can not stretch the corners of the tablecloth, otherwise the canvas will lose its shape and aesthetic appearance.

After the tablecloth has taken the correct position on the table, you can proceed to the next stage of serving and set up the plates. There are many varieties of plates, each of which has its own purpose. Most often, the main plates are placed on the table, which can be used to serve different types of dishes, as well as additional ones - for salads, bread, pies, oysters, eggs, jam and fruit. The use of the number of plates depends on whether you plan a regular dinner or gala dinner.

Plates before meals carefully washed and wiped dry, preferably - to shine. Put the plates in front of the seat. Ugly, when they lie on the edge of the tabletop, so when serving it should be avoided. In the event that the dinner will consist of several dishes, table plates are placed under the eateries.

Great attention should also be paid to the placement of cutlery. The forks must be laid out to the left and the knives to the right of the plate. In this case, next to the knife must be a tablespoon. For a festive dinner, which provides a rich menu, first place snack appliances: fish and table knife, soup spoon, fork. The distance between the cutlery should not exceed 1 cm.

After the cutlery go to the arrangement of glasses and wine glasses. They are set from the highest to the lowest, starting with glasses for water, wine, champagne and ending with a glass for juice and glasses for strong alcoholic beverages. The final touch in the table setting are napkins, which are a decorative element and fall on their knees.

Gala dinner or lunch begins with a landing at the table. In this case, guests must occupy a place specified in the invitation. If this is not, you must wait for the owners of the house and clarify where you can stay. After landing at the table on his knees put a napkin that you need to unfold and shake. In the event that the table is served with napkins in the rings, they are carefully removed and the ring is placed in the upper corner of the cutlery. At the end of the meal, a tissue napkin is taken over the center and put back on the ring.

Sitting at the table should be comfortable so that it is convenient to use cutlery. Put your elbows on the table is strictly prohibited, as this is an example of bad taste. After serving, you need to wait for all the participants of the meal, and only then you can begin to eat. Dishes that are located at a distance, you must ask to pass, and not reach for them across the table.

It is also important to take into account some other points.

• Food is transmitted only from left to right, so all dishes can move only in this direction. To do this, one participant of the meal holds the dish, and the second fills the plate, or the neighbor simply transfers the dish, and the addressee holds the plate on his own and pours the food.
• The inconvenient in shape and heavy dishes can not be kept on weight - they are put on the table before each transfer to another guest.
• It is recommended to transfer items of dishes with handles and tureens so that the handles are directed to the neighbor who accepts the dish.

It is necessary to eat slowly - this will allow not only to fully enjoy the food, but also to communicate with the owners of the house or guests. During the meal, the mouth should be kept closed without emitting champing and not knocking with teeth. If the first dishes are too hot, you can not blow on them - just wait a bit until they cool down.

Enter into the conversation is only when food is swallowed.If you need to leave the place, you should first apologize to those present, and only then get up from the table.

To properly behave at a table in a restaurant, it is important to know how to use the devices. As a rule, all main dishes are located on the left, and drinks - on the right. Therefore, everything that lies to the left of the plates, you can safely take. It is necessary to start a meal with the help of devices that are located closer to the plate, and then apply the following ones as the new food is served. It is important to remember that the fork is used with a knife and it is always placed on the left. If the fork is on the right, it means that the dishes will be eaten without a knife.

During the meal, you need to know how to properly put the fork and knife. As a rule, two different styles are used for this.

• American. Provides for the placement of the plug in the left hand and the knife in the right. The knife cuts off a portion, after which it is placed on the upper edge of the plate with the blade inside. It is allowed to eat a dish with a fork, holding it both in the left and in the right hand. For the rest, the fork is placed on the plate with the teeth upwards for 5 hours.
• European. The knife is placed strictly in the right hand and the fork in the left, while shifting the fork from one hand to the other is impossible. In the course of the food it is important to ensure that the fork is constantly teeth down.

All the first dishes are eaten with a tablespoon, so you need to know the rules of etiquette regarding how to bring this cutlery to your mouth. Usually, when serving, soup plates are placed on the table with spoons, or later soup is served with a spoon. You can bring a spoon with food to your mouth with either the side or the sharp edge of the device. As for scooping the first dish, this is done in two ways: from oneself or from right to left.

The spoon directed to the mouth should not be overfilled. To prevent the remnants of soup from dripping from it, the device is recommended to lightly touch the edge of the plate. If the soup is poured, the spoon should remain on the plate.

Etiquette at the table provides not only a beautiful table setting and good communication manners, but also the rules to be followed when eating. An important point is holding glasses and wine glasses in hand. Most often at the gala dinners they serve wine, for these purposes they use special glasses “tulips” or wine glasses with legs. Glasses with white and red wine should be held only by the leg and in no case be covered with their hand. Champagne is treated in the same way - a vessel filled with it is held with three fingers.

As for the glasses for brandy, they can be placed in the palm of your hand - in this way the drink will warm up to the desired temperature. You can add an amber tint to cognac with the help of a slight wiggle of the glass. They take a glass under vodka with three fingers, do not hold the drink in their hands for a long time and quickly drink it.

After eating, when the meal is over, you must give the waiter a sign. To do this, a fork with a knife is placed parallel on the plate in such a way that the teeth of the fork look up, and the blade of the knife faces away. Exactly the same procedure is performed after the end of the dessert.

Spoons after taking the soup should not remain in a deep plate, they are placed near the lower devices. In case you really liked the dish, you can show it to the waiter using “fork and knife gestures”. In this case, the cutlery is placed horizontally in the middle of the plate, the fork is placed teeth up, and the blade of the knife must “look” at it.

The rules of etiquette at the table must be observed not only adults but also children, as the wrong behavior in society will add a negative impression about the whole family. To always be on top and feel confident at a party, cafe or restaurant, you just need to learn simple recommendations and follow them every day. So, etiquette does not tolerate the following shortcomings.

• You can not refuse at the table from certain types of dishes, indicating that they can cause an allergic reaction or do not fit on a diet. To do this, it is advisable to pre-warn the host of the event and tell him what to exclude from the food.
• Food stuck between teeth is considered an unpleasant phenomenon, but you should not remove it immediately at the table, even if there are toothpicks. First, the table is left, and only then the removal is performed in the toilet room.
• Some ladies use bright cosmetics, so at celebrations you may encounter the problem of lipstick marks on the glasses. To eliminate this bad form, you should remove lipstick with a napkin from your face before dinner. This should be done not at the table, but in the toilet room.
• Many people smoke. Of course, smoking is prohibited in restaurants, but sometimes you can find yourself in places where smokers have a place. Here, the important point is that smoking between changes of dishes is not good. This is best done at the end of the meal, and then - only with the permission of those present.
• Placement on the tables of diplomats and handbags is not allowed. The same applies to gloves, hats, gloves and glasses.

At the end of the reception, you should leave a good impression of yourself and politely thank the owners of the house or the organizers of the dinner for the warm welcome, praise the excellent choice of dishes and pleasant communication.

You will learn more about the rules of etiquette at the table from the videos below.