Dining Etiquette
It is not uncommon for interviews to entail lunch, dinner, or a reception. While your behavior at such events is not likely to make or break your candidacy, it is important to display certain level of dining etiquette. Employers want to see you in social situation to see how you conduct yourself, particularly if the job you want requires a certain standard of conduct with clients and superiors.
Follow these general dining guidelines.
Utensil etiquette:
- As a rule of thumb, when you face a full battalion of knives, forks, and spoons, work from the outside in. In other words, use the flatware the furthest from the plate first. Exception: the salad fork is sometimes the closest to the plate. When in doubt: sip water or engage yourself in conversation until you see what other diners do.
- Used utensils must never touch the surface of the table or the tablecloth because they might make the cloth dirty. Even the clean handles of your fork and knife should not touch the table. At the end of a course, place your used utensil on a flat dish. Do not leave a fork or spoon in a bowl or cup where it might flip and assault your host.
- Between bites, your utensils should rest on the edge of our plate. Your knife rests on the back of your plate and your fork sits on the side of your plate. When you are finished, place your knife and fork so they lie horizontally across the center of the plate. The blade of your knife should face toward you.
Napkin rules:
- As soon as you are seated, put your napkin in your lap. Sometimes, at very formal restaurants, the waiter may do this for you.
- Treat your napkin very gently during the meal. Do not crumple it or wad it into a knot. When you use your napkin, gently dab at your lips. Your napkin should not get dirty in the dining process. It is meant to catch food from falling into your lap and it should gently dust the crumbs from your lips.
- When you are finished, place your napkin next to your plate. Do not refold it. Do not leave it on the chair.
Handling those awkward moments:
You bite into an olive and discover a pit. Your last bite of fish had a bone in it. You did not realize just how fatty the meat was. Now, you are not sure you can swallow the contents in your mouth.
No noise and no faces allowed - but you do not have to swallow the inedible. If you need to remove something from your mouth, shift into reverse. Carefully, and with your hand close to your mouth, drop the olive pit into the palm of your hand and put the pit on your plate. Remove the fish bone using two fingers like a pair of tweezers. Set the bone on the edge of your plate. If you think the sight of your chewed meat is going to make your fellow diners gag, bring your napkin to your lips and remove the meat.
Information for this page was based on content from JobWeb.