Nov 082012
Growing up, I was always taught that unless you are using a second piece of cutlery (always a knife for me) your left hand should be placed gently in your lap. Ahh, the British trickle down remnants of growing up in the Commonwealth… But as soon as I lived abroad, I realized that other Western cultures do not subscribe to this style. Most European cultures will have both hands visible at all times. Take note the next time you have the opportunity. Who is right? Both are.
Since a good portion of my life is spent straddling both sides of the Atlantic, I now lean into the Euro way of hand placement at a table. Obviously no elbows.
One Response to “Etiquette Commentaries #6 — Lap or Table?”
Leave a Reply
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
Yes Catherine, I am glad that you are stating that both ways are right. Since I also travel a lot across the ocean I got used to both ways depending on where I am. And when you consider that there are millions of people in the world not using cutlery at all but sticks or even just hands shows us that there is never just one way of doing it. “Tolerance” is the key word and respecting other cultures and habits.