This presentation provides etiquette guidelines for business dining. It covers proper napkin, cutlery, and drinking etiquette. It also discusses managing foods like soup, salad, bread and difficult-to-eat items. Finally, it identifies 10 common dining faux pas to avoid, such as putting your napkin on before others are seated or talking with food in your mouth. The overall goal is to make others feel at ease and build rapport through demonstrating proper dining etiquette.

1. Dining Etiquette
PowerPoint™ Presentation
Developed by Kay Stephan
Certified Etiquette Trainer
Prepared exclusively for
At Ease Inc .*
©2001 At Ease Inc. Protected by the United States Copyright Laws.
It is illegal to duplicate this material.

2. Agenda
• The purpose of business
etiquette
• The napkin
• Iced tea
• American dining & European
dining
• Salad, rolls, & difficult-to-eat
foods
• 10 common dining faux pas

3. Purpose of Business
Etiquette
To make others feel at
ease
and
To build rapport.

4. Proper Starting
Solids on
Position Liquids
your left on
your
right

5. Using Napkins
• Place your • Place your napkin
napkin on lap on left side of
after every-one plate when
has been seated. temporarily leaving
• Fold your napkin table.
in half with • Leave napkin in lap
crease toward until everyone is
finished.
you.
• Use your napkin
• Place napkin to
as necessary. right of plate at
end of meal.

6. Iced Tea
• Don’t chew
ice!
• Cup hand
around lemon
wedge.
• Use moderate
amount of
sweetener.

7. Managing Bread and
Rolls
• Butter
wrappers
• Do’s &
Don’ts
• Crumbs
• Mopping up
• Last roll

8. Managing Soup
• Soup spoon
provided or to
right of
teaspoon.
• Hold spoon with
thumb across the
top of the handle.

9. Managing Soup (cont.)
• NOT with handle
in palm of your
hand.
• Take soup spoon
AWAY from you
rather than toward
you.
• Sip from the side
of the spoon, not
front.

10. Managing Soup (cont.)
• Placing crackers:
– in soup when home alone with
blinds closed
– oyster crackers placed in
chowder
– other crackers should be eaten
with soup-- not in soup

11. Managing Soup (cont.)
• Bowl may be tipped if it
contains a handle. (Tip bowl
away from you.)
• Rest soup spoon in cup or
bowl.
• Soup spoon finish position to
right on service plate. If there
is no service plate, spoon
should remain in cup with

12. Salad
• Passing the dressing
• Cutting the lettuce
• Cutting cherry tomatoes
• Eating olives with pits
• Using salt & pepper

13. Passing Food
(If it is in front of you)
• Offer to the left. • Pass salt and
pepper
together.
• Pass to the
right. (Counter
clockwise)

14. Difficult-To-Eat Foods
• Spaghetti and other pastas
• Corn on the cob
• Peas and other hyperactive
food
• Chicken with bones
• Ribs
• Shellfish

15. Proper Starting
Position

16. American Style of
Dining
• Place fork in your left hand--
tines down and handle hidden--
and knife in your right hand.
(right-handed)
• Cut one piece of food at a time.
• Lay knife across top of plate--
serrated edge facing you.
• Transfer fork to right hand to
actually eat.

17. American Style Of
Eating

18. American Style
Resting Position

19. American Style
Finished Position

20. European Style of
Dining
• Follow Step One of American
Style.
• Leave your knife and fork in
same position as Step One.
• Take bite with fork in left hand
and place food in mouth with
tines face down.

21. European Style of
Dining

22. European Style
Resting Position

23. European Style
Finished Position

24. 10 Common Dining
Faux Pas
• Napkin on lap before everyone
is seated.
• Blowing or stirring soup.
• Eating ice cubes.
• Eating before everyone is
served.
• Breaking dinner roll in half
rather than tearing a bite-size
piece.

25. Faux Pas (cont.)
• Talking with food in your
mouth.
• Chewing with mouth open.
• Eating a larger than bite-size
piece of food.
• Blowing your nose at table.
• Pushing your plate away.
• Stacking dishes.

26. Style and grace
will boost your
competitive edge.
Know the
guidelines!

27. Any Questions?