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| Sunday, 13 October 2002 |
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| News Business Features Editorial
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Mind your table culture and social etiquette Business Style by J.A.A.S. Ranasinghe It is true that we are no longer living in the cutlery culture, but even in today's dot.com culture, table manners and etiquette remain an important aspect of our behavioral and social standards. With the globalisation of trade and the advent of foreign investors and multinationals, it has now become a common practice to have luncheon meetings, dinners and cocktails in star class hotels as part of the business strategy and observance of table manners and rituals at these social gatherings has become of paramount importance. Many multinational and leading private sector companies have recourse to entertaining short-listed prospective applicants and host them for lunch or dinner with a view to assessing their mannerisms and social development before the final selection is made. This opportunity is an ideal occasion for the employer to not only informally judge the attitudes, cultural background and the identity of the applicants, but also the ability of the applicants to handle unforeseen situations in a social setting. It is not uncommon to entertain the whole family when senior managerial positions are filled and this forum enables the CEOs to identify the compatibility of a particular applicant's cultural background in the light of the corporate culture of the company. Hence, knowing how to conduct oneself at the dining table could either make or break a productive deal. The ill-fated 'Titanic' is a case in point where it advocated the need of observing table manners and etiquette, even hundred years ago. Jack Dawson (Leonardo DiCaprio), who was travelling in the lower deck, was invited to dine with the first class passengers for rescuing Rose (Kate Winslet). Dressed in a borrowed tuxedo, he was able to move with the upper class of the society only for a few minutes. Baffled by the expensive range of cutlery, Dawson passed a caviar by taking a bite of his bread-roll to the amazement of others. Table etiquette dictates that the roll should be broken into bite-sized pieces. Table manners and etiquette is a very extensive and comprehensive subject. It varies from country to country, society to society, menu to menu, culture to culture and occasion to occasion. The manners and etiquette you are expected to fall in line with a European meal is different from the table manners of a Japanese meal or for that matter, partaking of a Chinese meal. Some could be unfamiliar with the art of using fork, spoon, knife and what is more, the acrobatics of chopstick and noodles. The usage of an armoury of tools and techniques should be understood and the clinking of beverage-filled glasses calls for three cheers. A dinner party more often than not can be mistaken for a mini war on the battle field of the table with the clanging of metal. Dining etiquette encompasses the type of crockery and cutlery to be used for different courses, the different wines (red, rose and white) to be ordered for different dishes, the shandy (beverages) to be mixed with different liquor and liqueur, the manner and the issues about which one should converse with the rest of the guests, the glassware to be used for the various types of liquor and a series of other behavioral norms to be complied with at the dining table. It also says how one should attire oneself, the posture, the tidiness and cleanliness, the fine art of greeting, the manner of introduction, what one should do with one's serviette, the manner in which crockery for different menus should be handled, how you should eat-drink soup, pastry items, bread and much more. In essence, there are a number of table manners and etiquette so deeply engrained in different cultures. Look out for this column every week and do business with style. |
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