The document provides etiquette guidelines for dining situations. It discusses pre-dining etiquette such as confirming reservations. It then covers etiquette at the table including how to sit properly, hold utensils, order food, pass items, and finish a meal. The document also discusses etiquette for different courses such as soup, salad, main dishes and dessert. It concludes with some basic manners and solutions to potential dining dilemmas.

1. DINING
ETIQUETTE
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Lauren Charles-Stewart

2. WHAT IS ETIQUETTE?
 Set of rules or customs which
control accepted behaviour in
particular social groups or
social situations.
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3. PRE DINING ETIQUETTE
 As the host - a day or two prior, confirm with your guests
and re-confirm with the restaurant.
 Be sure to arrive on time.
 Call ahead if you know you will be late.
 Take care of all details ahead of time.
 Wait 15 minutes before checking on guests.
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4. GETTING SEATED
 When escorted to a table by a maître’d, allow guest(s) to
walk behind the person.
 When finding a table on your own, the host takes the
lead.
 Greet your guests upon their arrival and make the
appropriate introductions.
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5. GETTING SEATED
 Extend the best seat to your client or to the most
important guest.
 Seat yourself with your back facing the door or the main
part of the room.
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7. ACCESSORIES
 Put all items under the table or beside your chair
 Brief case / purse
 Accessories (keys, cell phone and all personal belongings)
 Cellular phones and pagers should be turned off or on
silent mode.
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8. POSTURE & BODY LANGUAGE
 Sit upright with your feet flat on the floor.
 Positioning of wrists and elbows
 Make appropriate eye contact
 Eat quietly with your mouth closed
 Do not to talk with your mouth full
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9. NAPKINS
 Once seated, wait for your host to place the napkin on
his/her lap.
 Gently unfold and place your napkin on your lap after
everyone is seated.
 Do not “snap” napkin open.
 Never tuck your napkin into your belt, shirt or collar.
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 Fold a large napkin in half with its crease toward you.

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12. NAPKINS
 When excusing yourself from the table place the napkin
on your chair
 Leave the napkin on your lap until everyone at the table
has finished dining.
 When a meal is completed, place your used napkin to the
right/left of your plate.
 Do not use your napkin to wipe your face, neck, chin, etc.
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18. TYPES OF MENUS
 Table d’ hote
 the meal will usually include salad, breads, vegetables and
meat, beverages and many times dessert.
 A la carte
 each item is ordered separately.
 Prix fixe
 there is one price for the multi-course meal. Traditionally, you
may choose menu items within a course, but you may not
choose courses (the price includes all courses). 18

19. TABLE SETTING
 Solids on your left: F-O-O-D
 Forks
 Butter plate / butter spreader
 Napkin (may also be on your plate)
 Liquids on your right: D-R-I-N-K
 Glassware / Teacup
 Knives
 Spoons
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20. BREAD DRINK 20

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22. DINING STYLES
 Continental/European Style:
 Knife in right hand, fork in left hand.
 Eat food with fork still in left hand.
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25. DINING STYLES
 American Style:
 Knife in right hand, fork in left hand holding food.
 Place knife on edge of plate with blades facing in after
a few bite-sized pieces of food are cut.
 Eat food by switching fork to right hand (unless left
handed).
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30. TABLE SETTING
 Start at the outside and work your way inward
 If two forks are on the left, the outside fork would generally
be a salad fork, and the inside fork would be the main/dinner
fork.
 A dessert fork and/or spoon may be horizontally placed
above the place setting.
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32.  Hold the knife in your right hand.
 Place your index finger on the handle and a
UTENSILS
little of the blade, if necessary.
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33.  Hold the fork with your left hand, tines facing
down. 33

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39. UTENSILS
 Unused utensils that appear soiled should not be wiped on
your napkin.
 Politely ask the wait staff for a clean one.
 Used utensils should not touch the table top.
 Do not wave your utensils around while you are talking.
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43. RESTING UTENSILS
 Knife and fork are crossed on the plate with the fork over
the knife and the prongs pointing down.
 Knife should be in the 10:20 position, the fork prongs
should be at two o'clock, and the handle at eight o'clock,
forming an inverted V.
 It is also correct to form the inverted V without crossing
fork over knife.
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44. RESTING POSITION
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45. GLASSWARE & STEMWARE
 A red wine glass has a shorter stem with a bulbous
bowl.
 White wine glasses have longer slender stems.
 Champagne flutes are tall and narrow.
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46. GLASSWARE & STEMWARE
 When your guest orders a non-alcoholic beverage,
the proper etiquette is for you to order something
similar; ordering wine or hard liquor is inappropriate.
 If you decide not to drink any alcohol, you may want
to let the wait person pour your wine and then not
drink it or just take one or two sips.
 Do not put your hand on top of your glass to signal
that you do not want any wine.
 Do not turn your glass upside-down and avoid saying
that you do not drink. 46

47. ORDERING
 Wait for the host to order, unless he/she directs you
to go first.
 Do not order the most expensive item on the menu.
 Stay away from messy, hard to eat foods.
 Do not order alcohol unless your host does. Never
order more than one drink.
 If there are items on the menu that you are uncertain 47
about, politely ask your server any questions you
may have.

48. PASSING & ADDING
 Food is passed from left to right.
 Pass the salt, pepper, butter and sauces to the right.
 If you need to stretch across the table or rise to reach
items, ask for them.
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49. PASSING & ADDING
 Donot serve yourself “community” food (e.g. salt,
pepper, dressing, etc.) until you have offered it to
someone else first.
 Always pass the salt and pepper as a pair.
 Snagging a roll out of the breadbasket or taking a
shake of salt when it is enroute to someone else is a
no-no.
 No one else other than the original requester should
sprinkle their food when they have the shakers in their
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possession.

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52. BREAD
 The person closest to the basket or plate offers it to
the person on his left, helps himself, and passes to the
person on his right.
 Ifthe person closest to the bread plate/basket does
not take it, it is appropriate to ask for the basket. As
soon as you get it, do the same as above.
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55. BREAD
 Placethe roll on the small plate to your left. If there is
no butter plate, then place it on the edge of your
dinner plate.
 Pullapart the roll into two or more pieces (do not cut
with a knife).
 Butter each piece of bread as you eat it.
 Leave your butter knife on the butter plate when not in
use. 55

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59. SOUP
 Soupspoons are usually too large to fit completely in your
mouth, therefore, sip from the side of the spoon.
 Hold your spoon the way you would hold a pencil,
between the index and middle fingers with your thumb up.
 Dip the spoon into the soup, until it is about two-thirds full
to avoid spilling.
 Spoon your soup away from you toward the center or top
of the bowl.
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60. SOUP
 If soup is too hot, wait for it to cool before eating.
 You may gently stir it or spoon from the edge of the
bowl first.
 Do not blow on it.
 When resting, place the spoon in the bowl.
 When finishing, tip the bowl away from yourself
to spoon the remainder of the soup.
 When finished, place the spoon on the right side
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of the underplate.

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64. SALAD
 Use the salad fork.
 If you are served large pieces or a whole wedge of lettuce,
cut one bite at a time, using the knife provided.
 Do not slice and dice, or toss the entire salad.
 If the salad is considered the main course, use the entrée
fork.
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67. FINISHING
 Napkin - casually place your napkin either to the left or to
the right of you place setting.
 Close your utensils by placing them in the “closed”
position – 10:20.
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70. DESSERT COURSE
 When the main course is finished, bring the dessert utensils
to the sides of the plate: the fork to the left and the spoon to
the right.
 Dessert that includes solids and creamy/liquid food may be
eaten with the fork in the left hand, prongs down, and the
spoon in the right.
 Eat with the spoon. The fork can serve as a pusher.
 If it is cake, pie or fruit, you may use only the fork.
 For ice cream or pudding, use only the spoon. 70

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76. SEQUENCE OF COURSES
 Appetizer
 Soup
 Salad
 Main course/Entree
 Dessert
 After dinner beverage
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77. Sorbet
SORBET
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78. TALKING BUSINESS
 Wait until the table has been cleared.
 Use a letter-sized note pad in a professional portfolio
 You can also use a small notepad
 Avoid using a loose pad that shows the leftover edges of
pages ripped out.
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81. PAYING THE BILL
 It is the responsibility of the host to reach for the bill.
 As a host, you might show up early and give your credit
card in advance to the maitre d’.
 Another option is to tell your server (when you are seated)
that the bill should be given to you at the end of the meal.
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82. PAYING THE BILL
 If when the bill arrives, you find that there is a mistake on
the charges, do not take out a calculator, or try to argue
about the bill with the server.
 Go to the head server’s station and resolve the problem
with the bill.
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84. BUFFET DINING
 Stand in line.
 Use serving utensils.
 Balance plate on the fingertips.
 Never take anything from a serving plate and stick it
directly into your mouth.
 Do not start eating from your plate while still in line.
 You can return several times so never fill your plate to
overflowing.
 Try to eat your courses in an acceptable order.
 Do not turn this into an "all you can eat" occasion.
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86. BASIC TABLE MANNERS
1. Do not put too much food into your mouth.
2. Do not talk with your mouth full.
3. Do not pile too much food on your plate.
4. Do not drink alcohol unless your host orders a drink
first.
5. Do not drink more than one or two drinks. It is always
acceptable to refuse.
6. Never chew with your mouth open or make loud noises
when you eat.
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87. BASIC TABLE MANNERS
7. When cutting food (meat, salad, etc.), cut enough for
two or three mouthfuls .
8. Taste your food first before adding salt.
9. Do not order one of the most expensive items on the
menu.
10. Do not offer to pay if you are an invited guest.
11. Do not ask for a “doggy bag”.
12. Never spit a piece of bad food or tough gristle into your
napkin.
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95. DINING DILEMMAS
 You find a bug in your food.
 Food gets stuck in your teeth.
 You spill you drink on yourself,
or the table.
 Your knife falls to the ground.
 You must blow your nose.
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96. THANK
YOU!!!
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