Talk:Table manners

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MansourJE (talk) 06:25, 4 April 2015 (UTC)[reply]

Islamic eating manners[edit]

In Islamic eating manners used by Iranian culture, has been recommended to chew the food from 40 to 70 times and drink in some gulps. Eating together is recommended too. Saying GOD's name at the beginning or if you forget during eating is needed. read more on the link: 

 http://www.inter-islam.org/Actions/manners.htm

MansourJE (talk) 10:55 April 2015 (UTC)

Bit of a sparse article this[edit]

It seems to me we should have a lot less instruction here (surely the rules are never and have never been this consistent, changing every few generations) and a lot more about the history and psychology of manners. I came here to read up on how such things as social rules are invented and enforced and what defense, if any, has been devised to justify an act that would otherwise be unthinkable in civilized cultures.— Preceding unsigned comment added by 75.72.206.153 (talk • contribs) 30 November 2015‎

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Licking utensils[edit]

There is insufficient information on licking of utensils, and how this is viewed between different cultures. I know that licking chop sticks is frowned upon in Asia, but what about forks / sporks elsewhere? -RoyBoy 14:40, 14 September 2016 (UTC)[reply]

Significant problems with the current state of the article[edit]

This article currently suffers from the following significant issues:

  • It reads too much like a how-to-guide to table manners, which goes against Wikipedia policy.
  • With regard to the U.S. and other western cultures, It wrongly implies that the rules it describes are universally accepted, when in fact they are not. There is organization that spells out proper table manners but rather their are various "experts" who state what has traditionally been generally excepted as proper table manners, but that does not mean that the majority of Westerners or even just American agree with all these rules. The article needs to make it clear who is describing these rules (i.e. According to Miss manners... or The Dummies Guide to Table Manners states...).
  • With regard to Western Europe and the U.S., the article needs to be more clear on the fact that not every family, group, or individual shares the same view on what are proper table manners one should follow these days. As such, for example, few Americans actually follow all the rules listed in this article and even with the rules they do follow, they may only do so in certain situation or around certain people. For example, they may have different rules for what's good table manners at a restaurant or at a formal dinner, then they would at home or when casually dinning with friends and/or relatives. This should be mentioned in the article.
  • Again with regard to Western Europe and the U.S., it would be useful to list rules of table manners that are most commonly adhered to the majority of Westerners or specifically Americans, such eating non-finger foods with proper eating utensils, not eating with your mouth open, not talking with your mouth full, etc.
  • In Southern European countries it can be seen as rude to eat too fast, rather than eating slowly. Moreover, in some situations it may be that the host is expected to serve the guests with food and/or drinks in their first serve. Also, it is generally rude or even offensive to ask for salt and pepper, whether or not you have tasted the food. The only exception might be the cooking of beef, that you may want to ask to be more cooked if you think it's not cooked enough. Diners tend to conform to the dish that is served if it is not posing major issues (religious practices, health-related issues, or others). While cutting the food, the index finger is supposed to be placed along the knife to stabilize it, and not near the other three fingers on the side. You are also expected to drink alcoholic drinks slowly and in moderation. White wine glasses are held by the foot to avoid warming, while red wine glasses are generally grabbed by the bulb. Cutlery is used from the outside to the inside, depending on the dishes served (first dish/main dish) and dessert cutlery is taken from the front/top of the plate. In general you should wipe your mouth before drinking to avoid unsightly marking of the glasses or contamination of the drink. In general you should not make gestures while using cutlery, and you should put the cutlery down on the side of plate when talking. When you eat something from a cup/bowl (soup, dessert) after finishing you should lay the spoon on the dish under the cup/bowl not inside the cup. Scratching the plates with the cutlery, cutting all the food before starting to eat (except for small children), cutting big chunks of food, bashing the cutlery on the plates are all considered rude. In very informal settings bread can be used as a complement for putting food on the fork, but not at regular restaurants. Food stuck between the teeth should be removed in private when people are not watching. When someone passes food or drinks you always thank it, even you if asked it politely, not doing it is also considered rude. Anything that you need to remove from the mouth (fish bones, small bones), should be removed discretely and placed on the plate, with fork if you're eating with fork or hand if you're using your hands to eat.

— Preceding unsigned comment added by 89.152.13.33 (talk) 21:23, 25 August 2023 (UTC)[reply]

  • The same suggestion above could probably be applied to the sections on India, China, and Korea too, though I don't know just how much the majority of people in hose countries follow the same firm set of table manners rules vs some traditional rules being seen as outdated and unnecessary and often ignored in informal situations if followed ever. I imagine their is the variance in those countries too from family to family, though I am not in any position to speak definitively that. Maybe someone better versed in those cultures could improve those sections along the lines of the suggestions I listed above.

--50.152.139.176 (talk) 22:46, 28 May 2017 (UTC)[reply]


Yes I agree, can we please stop using pop culture / trend writers as sources for our culture? Surely many of us know these articles are pure fiction / entertainment, no? 135.23.247.237 (talk) 18:53, 2 January 2020 (UTC)[reply]

External links modified (January 2018)[edit]

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Emily's Post Articles Just Make Shit Up[edit]

The Emily's Post citations are exclusively things that are made up, or things that don't apply to North America specifically. I can go and publish my own articles to contradict those ... but really they're pure fiction, I don't know why they're acceptable. It'd be appalling to me and my family if people stuck eaten food onto their forks and removed it from their mouths. It seems like a joke that's actually published on the page here. All of the shocking things for "North American culture" come from Emily's post. It's safe to say she made it up. Remove them all. 135.23.247.237 (talk) 18:51, 2 January 2020 (UTC)[reply]

Complete revision?[edit]

To begin with: I am a wikipedia amateur. So apologies in advance if I am out of order writing this.

After looking at the article, I think that it should be completely rewritten, starting from scratch. First of all there should be a definition of table manners as described in the article. What is the purpose of table manners? Does the way food is eaten (with chop sticks, knife and fork, fingers) influence the way food is prepared? Then, short descriptions of table manners per continent maybe? These could link to more detailed articles on table manners in each continent. They should focus on history, national (maybe also regional) differences, but they should not be describing the table manners themselves. Maybe that information is for Wikihow.

I also think that this should be a collaboration with many people. It is a very interesting subject, and I will gladly contribute a small part within my expertise (medieval and early modern European table manners, Dutch table manners). Cmuusers (talk) 15:54, 6 October 2021 (UTC)[reply]

Spain[edit]

When I last checked Spain was considered a western European country.

Keep your elbows on the table in formal dining situations, it is considered that you have something to hide if you do not

I'm not Spanish, but even I know this one! 90.242.174.149 (talk) 22:24, 14 February 2023 (UTC)[reply]

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