There are three easy steps to master American Style Dining.
When cutting food “American style,” the fork is held in the left hand, and the knife in the right hand. The utensils are held as if they look like extensions of your pointer finger on each hand. Avoid gripping and stabbing your food. With your fork, poke the piece that will end up in your mouth. Now taking your knife just behind your fork, gently push down, then back and forth to cut your food – try to avoid looking like a lumberjack.
Before placing food in your mouth, the knife is placed to ‘rest’ on the dinner plate (diagonally across the top portion of the plate) and the fork is transferred to the right hand and you place your left hand in your lap. The left hand is not to be seen again until it is needed to perform its duty as mentioned in step #1.
The food that is positioned on the fork is chauffeured by the right hand into the mouth. Eat and repeat…. Cutting one bite at a time.
American Style is often referred to as “zigzag” style since the fork is constantly changing from the left hand to the right.
What is Continental Style Dining?
To master this style, you’ll start by cutting the same way as you do in American Style, but the transferring of the food to the mouth is were it gets tricky.
Some basic rules to remember for Continental Style Dining: The fork (tines down) is held in the left hand (for eating) and the knife in the right (for cutting). They are used together – in tandem. One does not work without the assistance of the other. The knife also acts as a “support” system to assist placing small items of food safely on the fork (instead of a sneaky finger). Continental Style, both hands remain above the table at all times, holding the fork and knife in your left and right hands, resting your wrists on the edge of the table. You only lay your silverware down in its resting position when you need to take a drink, tend to your bread, or when another duty is required of your hands.
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