Formal dinner parties or formal occasions at the restaurants require you to put up your best dining etiquettes. And the etiquettes we are going to discuss here in this article are about the use of dining utensils – knife and fork. Many people are unsure about the right usage of this particular dining utensil, as in what to do with the knife and fork while talking or where to keep them at the end of the meal, and so on. We are going to discuss the American style of using knife and fork.
Hold the fork in your left hand while cutting
In American style, the fork has a pen-like hold in your hand. The handle rests between your thumb and forefinger, your thumb and middle finger holds the base of the fork, while your index finger rests on top.
Only when cutting, place the knife in your right hand.
While cutting, the knife comes in your right hand and the style of holding it remains the same as it is for the fork mentioned above.
Make a cut
Put the tines down on the food you need to cut, now gently cut through the food with the knife. Hold the fork closer to you than to the knife. Only cut one or two bites at a time and proceed to the next step.
Now change hands
After cutting the bites, put your knife down on the edge of the plate. The placing of the knife on the edge should be – blade at 12 o’clock and handle at 3 o’clock. Now you are supposed to change the hand to hold fork, i.e. transfer the fork from your left hand to the right hand. Turn your hand so that the tines curve upwards and finally, take a bite.
Apart from cutting, eat with your fork in your right hand, tines facing upward
With this American style, always keep your fork in your right hand if the dish you are having requires only eating and not cutting. Tines can face downward if you are taking a bite, but they will return upward for the majority of times. Do not worry, as this level of formal behavior is required when the person dining next to you is a great influential personality or so. Otherwise, you need not to be over conscious regarding the placement of your fork and a knife.
Summary
Follow these dining etiquettes and be confident about your eating style. If you master the use of utensils, you will be confident and this will make the people dining with you comfortable.
