Business Etiquette Lesson 024 - The continental and American Table Manners

陈豪在北京的ABC美国公司工作，他在公司餐厅里遇到了美国同事Amy.

（Office ambience）

C：Hi, Amy. 我有几个问题想请教你。

A：Of course, what about?

C: Table manners. 具体说，我想知道用刀叉有哪些讲究。

A: So you are having trouble figuring out the correct way to eat Western style?

C：没错。每次出去吃饭，我都会犯怵，总要等别人先动手，然后跟着学，可总是不得要领。

A：Well, for one thing, there are only two correct styles of eating that the Americans use, but some people eat however it suits them.

C：既然美国人都那么随便，那我怎么用刀叉，是不是也就无所谓了呢？

A: 你要是想成功，还是应该注意饭桌上的规矩，because how you handle getting food to your mouth is a big part of your professional image.

C: 你说得也对，那到底该怎么使用刀叉呢？

A：The two correct styles of eating are the American and the Continental style.

C：一种是美国式，一种是大陆式。你就地给我演示一下行吗。等我去借几把刀叉来。

A：Better yet, let’s go to the New York Grill after work and practice in an authentic American restaurant.

C：好主意，那咱们下班见。

******

C：Amy，先教我美式吧。

A：With the American style, you hold the fork in your left hand and the knife in your right hand to cut your meat or vegetables.

C：左手拿叉……右手拿刀切……

A：Then you place the knife on the top of your plate with the blade facing in. Next you transfer the fork to your right hand.

C：等等，切完了把刀放在盘子上，刀刃儿冲里，然后再把叉子从左手换到右手上。

A：Now with the fork in your right hand, you take the food to your mouth with the fork tines up.

C：Tines是什么？

A：Times是叉子的尖。

C：噢，就是吃的时候叉子的尖儿要冲上。那大陆式的用法呢？

A：切食物的方法是一样的。The difference is that you keep the fork in your left hand to take the food to your mouth but with the tines down.

C：所以说唯一的区别是，叉子不换到右手上，一直是左手拿叉，吃的时候叉子的尖儿冲下。What do I do with my knife?

A：You can continue to hold it in your right hand since you aren’t switching the fork over. Just keep it close to your plate.

C：如果想放下，是不是也要刀刃冲内，放在盘子上呢？

A：没错。Food is cut the same way for both American and Continental styles, fork in the left hand and knife in the right hand.

C：我记住了，谢谢你Amy.