4 Dining Etiquette Rules – How To Be Sociable At The Dinner Table?

Today’s session we are going to learn how to be sociable at the dinner table – 04 Dining Etiquette Rules. Meal times are vital for family bonding and for developing social skills. So whether you are dining with your family members or with your friends or with your peers it’s important to be great on your social skills. Have you noticed these days technology is taken over meal times?
Have you noticed people are always buried in their phones? Yes, they always have their heads buried in their phone. So what’s the point? You are wasting your time and energy. So which are the social skills that are important these days, well that’s what we are going to have a look at.

4 Dining Etiquette Rules – How To Be Sociable At The Dinner Table? – personality development

1 – Avoid things that are offensive

Okay, so let’s start with certain things that you need to avoid that can be offensive at the dinner table. SO the very first thing that you need to avoid is chewing the food with the mouth open. Yes, people tend to do that. Well, the moment they take a bite, they chew it with their mouth open. Would that be right? Do you think that comes out well? Definitely not, it’s quite offensive.

Imagine I am sitting with you at the dinner table, I take a bite of my food and then I chew it with my mouth open, would you like that? So if you are doing that, please avoid it. The second thing that you need to avoid is speaking with a mouth full. What’s the need? It’s not necessary that you need to talk or make a point when you are eating.

So if you have food in your mouth, please do not utter a single word. Finish your food and then go ahead and talk. It’s not necessary that you need to talk with your mouth full. So quit doing that. Let’s have a look at another thing that you need to quit doing. Stop reaching for food which is not close to you.

SO, for example, you are at the dinner table and it’s a huge dinner table with lots of food on the table and let’s say you want to refill your plate with some more rice but the bowl of rice is pretty away from you, it’s not close to you. So what are you going to do? Are you going to get out of your seat and try to reach for the bowl? Definitely not, that’s offensive.

Well, what you can do is, if it’s not close to you than the person sitting close to the bowl of rice please ask him or her to pass it on to you. Yes, that’s the right way and that shows good manners.

So do not reach out for food which is away from you just request someone to pass it on to you. Okay, then the last thing that you need to keep in mind is to avoid using a toothpick in front of people. Well, digging your teeth is a pretty private affair. DO not do it in front of people.

I have noticed people when they are walking out of the restaurant they are digging their teeth. Wow. that’s offensive! So if you do that, please quit doing that, just go to a washroom and then either rinse your mouth or use a toothpick, but do not use it front of people.

2 – Be courteous & let others speak before you

SO what’s the next thing that you need to do at the dinner table? Well, be courteous. When you are courteous and you let other speak, it shows your good manners. It shows how friendly you are and how concerned you are for other people. SO let’s say you are dining with your friends or with your family members, let’s be courteous.

Let’s ask them that how was their day and when they are saying something does not interrupt. Listen to them, acknowledge to what they are saying and then you can share your views.

Wouldn’t that be nice? That would also build your confidence in having a conversation or opening up for different conversations with different people. SO be courteous, be friendly and listen to what others have to say.

3 – Continue eating & listen

The next thing you need to keep in mind is to continue eating. Now, when I say continue eating doesn’t mean that your concentration should be only on food. Well yes, do not indulge in food completely but indulge yourself in the conversation as well.

SO while you are eating and the other people are having a conversation about random things, probably someone is having a chat about what’s happening around the world or someone is just talking about the weather these days or may be someone is just commenting about a recent movie that they watched, so even you can enter into that conversation by injecting a smile or maybe a laughter.

So yes, when you are eating do not just concentrate on eating and food but also try to listen what others are talking and indulge yourself into certain conversations as well.

4 – Essential sociable skills at the dinner table

And the last skill that I want you to consider when you are at the dining table is a compliment. So if someone has invited you over for dinner and the family member has cooked a great delicious meal for you then please compliment.

Now, if the food is really amazing to let that person know. tell them that ” Oh wow, the food is absolutely great”! or absolutely scrumptious. Certain positive words will definitely make a person feel good.

If you are at a restaurant and the food that is served to you, if it’s really good then talk about it that’s another way to crack a conversation with people. So the moment food comes at your table you can say that ” Hmm this tastes great” or ” the food is so good” .”.

This restaurant food is really nice” Okay. So try to use these positive words and let’s say that you don’t like the food.

So what other words are you going to use? Let’s imagine that you are dining with your co-workers or with your seniors and the food that is served to you is not that great, then are you going to use the negative words like eww the food is disgusting, the food is horrible, it’s so crappy, no you not going do that, that’s quite rude.

Yes, you can use negative words but words like – the food doesn’t taste good or you can say that the food is bit unpalatable these are the words that you can use if you do not like the food.

SO keep in mind that if you love the food then do compliment and if you don’t like it then yes you can complain a little bit. But do compliment the person who has cooked for you,

SO this brings me to the end of this session, hope you have really enjoyed it and the next time you are dining with your friends, family or your co-workers, you know how to behave, right! So use these tips and trust me you would come out as a great confident person at the dining table as well.