Sorry for the late reply. Real life has kind of been interfering with internet time!
Sorry. I didn't think I had so much to say about this.
Don't feel sorry. I'm really glad, actually, that you shared your thoughts and experiences on this, because it's very fascinating and this is EXACTLY the kind of discussions I totally love having.
And you make really great observations on some of the contrast in cultures of eating. I'd love to see you make a whole post about it!
The spoon + fork thing probably comes out of American culture's tendency to teach kids that spoons are just for soups, ice cream, and certain desserts. Though, in really ultra-proper etiquette (the kind where there are three forks, two spoons, etc), one is expected to use both the fork and spoon when twirling pasta around a fork.
As for ordering for yourself, I had the opposite experience. I had never ordered a family style meal anywhere in my life until I was 22 and it really confused me. I didn't understand what to do and I actually got a little huffy when they brought the food out and everyone else (who had ordered family style) was plowing into what I had ordered. They had to explain to me that it was for all of us to share and that we each took a bit from each other's orders.
Before then, when we went to restaurants, we each got our own dish and ate it by ourselves. Of course, we sampled one another's, but nobody shared. Some of the restaurants we went to frequently when I was a kid actually had signs that said "EXTRA CHARGED FOR SHARING", and as a little kid I used to get worried that if the waiter saw me taking food from my mom's plate, they would think we were sharing and charge us more and I would get in trouble.
Somewhere in all these discussions is either a big post or a book that should be written on the differences (and similarities) between the way these two cultures eat and act at the dinner table. I'm finding it fascinating.
Re: eating from your culture
Sorry. I didn't think I had so much to say about this.
Don't feel sorry. I'm really glad, actually, that you shared your thoughts and experiences on this, because it's very fascinating and this is EXACTLY the kind of discussions I totally love having.
And you make really great observations on some of the contrast in cultures of eating. I'd love to see you make a whole post about it!
The spoon + fork thing probably comes out of American culture's tendency to teach kids that spoons are just for soups, ice cream, and certain desserts. Though, in really ultra-proper etiquette (the kind where there are three forks, two spoons, etc), one is expected to use both the fork and spoon when twirling pasta around a fork.
As for ordering for yourself, I had the opposite experience. I had never ordered a family style meal anywhere in my life until I was 22 and it really confused me. I didn't understand what to do and I actually got a little huffy when they brought the food out and everyone else (who had ordered family style) was plowing into what I had ordered. They had to explain to me that it was for all of us to share and that we each took a bit from each other's orders.
Before then, when we went to restaurants, we each got our own dish and ate it by ourselves. Of course, we sampled one another's, but nobody shared. Some of the restaurants we went to frequently when I was a kid actually had signs that said "EXTRA CHARGED FOR SHARING", and as a little kid I used to get worried that if the waiter saw me taking food from my mom's plate, they would think we were sharing and charge us more and I would get in trouble.
Somewhere in all these discussions is either a big post or a book that should be written on the differences (and similarities) between the way these two cultures eat and act at the dinner table. I'm finding it fascinating.