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Etiquette dinner shows right way to dine
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
By Revanath Nandamuri
Student Life Reporter
Table manners have always played an important part in making a favorable impression, and in today’s business world it has become very important to be able to project your knowledge and experience through the visible signals of the state of your manners when dining in a formal or business situation.
“After we graduate, we end up getting a job, and that job is most likely going to put us in a situation where we’ll have to dine with other people,” said Karthik Varry ,a computer science major.
“It’s important to have an opportunity to learn the proper etiquette that will help you in your professional life”, said Mary Carolyne , Associate Director of Alumni Association.
Beth Reutter, Program Coordinator- Hospitality Management, Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition, at UIUC talked to UIS Students, Faculty and Staff during a three-course meal about various business dining etiquette techniques.
Among the tips were: how to balance food while shaking hands and name tag placement. Beth said she learned to place a name tag on the right side. Since most people shake with their right hand, the eye naturally follows the hand they are shaking up to the face.
Among the biggest mistakes people make at business dinners is ordering the wrong types of food, which can be a set-up for disaster.
“They order things they should not be ordering because they don’t know how to eat them. You never order spaghetti for example because it is too messy. They just lack a general knowledge about how to eat a business dinner,” Reutter said.
Another key tip to remember is to never to order alcohol, even if the boss does, especially if the meal is also an interview or a business meal.
When eating during a business dinner, Beth offers a few key tips if a class is unavailable. First of all, take your napkin off the table after the host. Next, use silverware from the outside in. Finally if you have any problems with the meal, quietly bring it to the waiter’s attention.
Some other tips include: break your bread into bite-size pieces and butter each piece individually, gently stir your soup to cool it instead of blowing on it, spoon your soup away from you, if you have a bone on your mouth discreetly remove it with your thumb and index finger and place on the edge of plate.
Ashley Bernath, an business major, said the dinner was an opportunity to learn etiquette before sitting down for the real thing.
“I want to make a good impression on a future employer or a future client, so this will be a good experience for me.”
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