The tableware used to eat French food mainly includes knives, forks and spoons, each of which is divided into several categories according to different uses.
There are four kinds of knives, one is used to cut meat, fish and steak, and the other is used to butter bread. The knife for cutting meat and steak is sharper, while the knife for cutting butter is the dullest. It will be embarrassing to cut steak by mistake.
There are four kinds of forks, including ordinary forks, harpoons and dessert forks. There is also a snail fork specially designed for eating snails, which is very unique and exquisite and unique to French tableware.
When eating dessert, a spoon is generally used, which is rectangular in shape, which is different from the big round spoon when drinking soup. There is also a coffee spoon for stirring when drinking coffee, which is very short and exquisite.
Matching knives and forks are placed on the left and right sides of the plate in turn, and the left-handed fork and right-handed knife are used from outside to inside. After eating each dish, put the knife and fork side by side or cross on the dish and wait for the waiter to take it away.
No matter how comfortable the stool is, sit up straight, not near the edge of the table, not too far away from the table or lean back. You can lean forward slightly when eating, and keep your arms close to your body to avoid hitting the fence. Never put your elbow on the table.
When you eat steak, you should cut it into pieces, not chop it up and fork it one at a time.
Try a bite of meat and a sip of wine. The right wine will add to the delicacy of meat. In France, some restaurants even calculate the capacity of wine glasses and the weight of meat to ensure the perfect match between meat and wine.
When drinking soup, gently scoop it from the inside out with a spoon and send it to your mouth. Don't lift the bowl, don't bend it too much, just lower your head a little. If you are worried that the soup will overflow from the spoon, you may wish to scoop only seven points full, so that you will not spill it, and you will not be embarrassed to drink it and the soup will drip from the bottom of the spoon. Of course, even the best soup must not make a hissing sound.
When wiping your hands and mouth after a meal, don't wipe hard with a napkin, just gently print off the oil stains on your mouth or fingers with a corner of the napkin.
When eating lobster, the owner can tear it with his hand when he signals, otherwise he can cut the meat with a knife and fork and cut it into small pieces to eat. When eating lobster, use a seafood knife and fork. At the same time, it is equipped with a pair of pliers, which can be used to crush the pliers and hard shell of lobster when necessary and pick out the lobster meat inside. Choose the right wine to match lobster: The best wine to match lobster is the dry white produced in Loire and some dry white produced in Bordeaux. Eating lobster does not follow the traditional collocation method of "seafood with white wine", because lobster is a food eaten by nobles on important occasions, so as long as it is matched with the same grand wine. Other seafood, as long as it is simply paired with white wine.
When you meet side dishes such as beans or rice, you can hold the fork in your left hand, put it flat on the plate with the fork tip facing up, and then gently stir the beans or rice on the fork with a knife. If you need seasoning but you can't reach it, you can ask the other person to pass it to you. Never stand up and lean forward to get it.
When you are invited to dinner, you may be more interested in the people who eat at the same table and the conversation at the table than the food. Therefore, when eating, you should make as little noise and movements as possible.
As soon as the hostess picks up the napkin, you can also pick up the napkin and put it on your lap. Sometimes there is a bun wrapped in a napkin; In that case, bring it here and put it on a small plate next to it.
If the napkin is big, double it on your knees; If it's small, open it all. Never pin your napkin on your collar or vest, and don't rub it with your hands. You can wipe off oil stains or dirt on your mouth or fingers with a corner of your napkin. Never use it to clean knives, forks or plates.
Dinner usually starts with soup. The biggest spoon in front of your seat is the spoon, next to the plate on your right. Don't use the spoon in the middle of the table by mistake, because it may be used to get vegetables and jam.
Guests are not allowed to eat any food until the hostess picks up the spoon or fork. The hostess usually starts after each guest gets the food. She won't treat you to dinner first, as China is used to. When she picks up a spoon or fork, it means that everyone can do it.
If there is fish, it is usually served after the soup. There may be a fork for eating fish on the table, or it may be similar to a fork for eating meat, usually smaller. In short, the harpoon is placed on the outside of the meat fork on the side away from the plate.
Usually, the bones of the fish have been removed before they are served on the table. If the fish you eat still has thorns, you can hold a bread roll or a piece of bread in your left hand and poke the thorns with a knife in your right hand.
If there is a thorn in your mouth, take it out with your fingers quietly and as unnoticed as possible, and put it on the edge of the plate, not on the table or thrown underground.
For the French, it is the most common thing to spend three to four hours enjoying dinner. So in French restaurants, time is not an issue.