We all love eating out...it's so much easier to enjoy your food when you don't have to worry about preparing and cooking or cleaning up afterwards, isn't it? And with so many restaurants out there, with new ones popping out like zits on a teenager's face, we are truly spoilt for choices. However, how many of us are truly aware of the proper way to behave when dining in a restaurant? Do you have the proper table manners and dining etiquette down to pat? Do you know what's acceptable and what's deplorable? How do you carry yourselves in a posh restaurant or a casual cafe? Unless you're really the anti-social type, chances are you'll alway be eating with other people, be it your friends, colleagues, dates, friends of friends, relatives and whatnots. So, you don't want to give the impression that you're just out of prison every time you "attack" your food with gusto. Me and my family are guilty of this, cos everytime we eat out, we tend to 'attack' the food rather than slowly enjoy every bite. We can go through the whole seven-course dinner in just 15 minutes, believe it or not. I'm not sure if it's genetic, or we're just victims of poor dining etiquette.
Of course, you don't have to go all out with these etiquette and practise them to the T either. Or people will probably think you're a houlier-than-thou, uptight, pretentious little prick. Hmm..it's truly a fine line to walk.
Well, fear not food-lovers, for help is at hand with this handy guide to the do's and don'ts of eating out. And by no means that these tips are original or comprehensive. You can probably find all of these, or better tips, easily through Googling. But let me save you the time and hassle, so you can read all about them in one article.
For the first part of this article, I'll focus on the DO'S
Do's:
-Know your audience: when eating out with friends or other people, always make sure that the venue you choose is acceptable to everyone. Some people are vegans, while some can't take certain foods because of their cultural or religious practices. And then there're people who are allergic to certain types of foods. It pays to double check on this before deciding on where to eat. Also, when eating out with a bunch of seniors, choosing to go to Burger King is probably not such a swell idea. You don't want to see them pop their dentures when chewing the burger halfway. As well, some people may not like certain type of food, like for me personally, I don't like seafood or certain Japanese foods like sushi. So, checking on your dining mates' preferences before hand will SAVE you lots of headache.
- Be punctual: Because nothing spoils the appetite than waiting for late-comers. You're not fashionably late, you're just late. AND unless you're out there saving the world or making babies, always make sure yo arrive a bit earlier if not promptly. And the 'better late than never' excuse only applies if you're a celebrity or a VIP. We should make a new rule that whoever arrive the latest will have to foot the bills. Oooh, that will scare a lot of people into being punctual.
- Dress for the occasion: This mostly applies when you're dining in a 'proper' restaurant where they have a dress code. There's a distinct difference between casual wear and formal wear. A good way to remember it is this: casual is hat you usually wear when meeting up with friends, while formal is what you wear when attending weddings or going out with your boss. I think for most women this shouldn't be a problem, but for some men, it could be a HUGE problem . Also, I have to say for the ladies, try not to wear something so slutty that you'll have all the slimy uncles in the restaurant salivating over your half-exposed bosoms. As for the guys, just be more aware of your self-hygiene and try to look more presentable. Just take a good look in the mirror and sniff your armpits...that'll be a good start. I know some men who treat their washing machines like their closets: After washing their clothes, they just pull out random clean shirts and pants from the washer and put them on. Ever heard of ironing? What's that?
- Know your tableware: Again, this only applies if you dine in a restaurant where you'll likely to bump into Michelle Yeoh or Siti Nurhaliza. In most table set-ups, the sharp cutleries, aka your forks, are placed on the left side of your plate. The biggest fork is for your main meal, while the smallest is for your desserts or salad. Meanwhile, on your right side you'll often find your dinner knife placed along with the spoons. You should be able to distinguish between the soup spoon and tea spoon, the former has a rounder shape to it, and the latter will be the smallest spoon on your table. Sometimes, you'll also find a smaller knife that is used for cutting bread and spreading butter or jam.
The way these cutleries are placed and arranged depend on the way your foods are served. So you'll find the salad fork and soup spoon placed the farthest from your plate, as these are served first. So just work your way in, or towards the plate. If you're right-handed, like most people are, you hold the fork in your left hand and the knife in your right hand. And oh, before I forget, you place that napkin on your lap when you're eating, and on the table to your left side or on your chair when you have to excuse yourself from the table. You place it on your plate when you're done eating.
- What's on the menu?: It is also a good idea to ask the waitperson/chef on the house specials or hot favourites, especially if you don't knowwhat to eat. When you come across a dish you're not familiar with, always ask for clarification. This is often the case when you're dining in a country-specific restaurants, like an Italian or Jordanian restaurant, and you don't understand the language. It beats blindly ordering a dish only to regret it later when it turns out to be something you don't like. Those waitpersons, they are not there just to bring your foods or clear your tables, but they serve as your food guides as well. So feel free to fully utilise them! After all, that's what you pay service tax for. That dish in those lovely-sounding French words may sound tempting when read off the menu, but without knowing what they actually mean, it could turn out to be a glass of plain water with ice. And by all means, do not resort to using sign language or body gestures to convey what you want, because they're not retarded. Not everyone knows that you want chicken wings when you flap your arms and squawks...
- Compliment the chefs : .....if the foods are really good. On the other hand, if the foods are bad, just eat quietly and then blog about it..hahahaha..
- To tip or not to tip....: If you enjoy the great service they provide, or if you like the friendly, smiling, and ever-patient face of the waitperson, do leave a tip for them. Or if they're really gorgeous, tip them too. Bottom line: There're a lot of reasons why you should tip, but only one reason why you shouldn't. And how much to tip? Well, there's no proper tipping range, but I'll say anything between RM 1 and RM 5 is reasonable. Also, did you know that the proper to say thank you to the waitperson when he/she is serving your food or refilling your drink is to place one of your hands next to the plate or glass, and gently tap the table twice using your index and middle fingers?
(To be continued.....)
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