After eating: You can put the knife and fork on the same side of the plate in parallel. At this time, even if you still have something on your plate, the waiter will understand that you have finished your meal and will take the plate away at the right time. The spoon is placed horizontally in the soup plate with the spoon center up, which also means that the soup tableware can be taken away.

Haven't finished eating: the plate is empty. If you want to continue eating, open the knife and fork in a triangle shape, then the waiter won't take your plate away.

Add food: the plate is empty, but you still want to eat. Open the knife and fork in a figure of eight, and the waiter will add food to you.

Extended data:

It's shaped like a figure of eight during the meal. If you have a short rest in the middle of the meal, you can divide the knife and fork into plates. The knife head and the fork tip are opposite to each other in a "I" shape or a "I" shape, and the knife and fork are facing yourself, indicating that you still want to continue eating.

If you are talking, you can hold a knife and fork without putting it down, but if you need to gesture, you should put it down and never wave it in the air. It should be noted that at no time should one end of a knife and fork be placed on the plate and the other end on the table. It is especially important to note that the blade side must face itself.

There are two ways to place the fork after the meal: after the meal, the lower face of the fork is upward, and the blade side of the knife is inward close to the fork and placed on the plate in parallel. The following placement methods are divided into English style and French style, but the most commonly used one is French style. Try to put the handle in the plate, so as to avoid falling off due to touching, and it is easier for the waiter to clean up.

At the banquet, a pair of knives and forks are used for each dish, and the knives and forks placed in front of you are taken from the outside in turn. Knife and fork are used up, and serving is over. When you need to talk or have a rest halfway, you should put your knife and fork on both sides of the plate in a figure of eight. On the other hand, the knife and fork handles are placed side by side on the plate, which means that the dish has been used well and the waiter will remove the plate.

For appetizers or desserts, if it is a dish that can be eaten directly with a fork, there is no need to deliberately use a knife. At family dinners or casual dinners with friends, soft dishes such as salad or egg-wrapped rice can also be eaten with only forks. But using a knife and fork at a formal banquet can give people a more elegant and neat feeling.

Reference link: Baidu Encyclopedia-Knife and fork