Different cultures and their quirks/food/customs/drink 5

[ziggi]

This is a continuation of a post on a hijacked thread, which was primarily about booze (the post not the thread), but then evolved, but then I forgot where it went, so I'm making a new one.

For those of you who wonder why this is in the self-improvement section. The next time you end up in Poland overpaying a restaurant meal by $80 b/c you gave the waitress $100 for a $20 meal and said thank you, you'll be glad you read this post.

To start us off, when in Poland and at a restaurant, first off pay in cash (credit scams are rife) and secondly don't say anything to the waitress/waiter when paying, saying "Thank you" denotes that you want the waitress/waiter to keep the change.
Also Croatians tend to stare right into your eyes when talking to you, that may creep out the introverts out there....pretty much most engineers ;-) .

 

[ivymike]

And it's dead easy to spot Europeans in American restaurants.

hmmm... i always finish mine... and then my wife's. It's how I keep my girlish figure.

 

[sms]

Americans expect the food to arrive fast no matter what kind of establishment it is. I have endured the 4 hour meal in France or Italy many times, but was not happy about it. If we in the US spend an hour at the table it was a long meal.

I was recently traveling in Malaysia and was suprised when my young Malaysian colleague was practically desperate for McDonalds after a week of business dinners. I suppose recent grads from Uni are the same all over the world. I then visited the food court at the mall in central KL and found it packed with people of all ages, but while McDonalds and KFC were there, most of the shops were Chinese food.

Oh, an when traveling to countries where food contamination is common, watch out for anything served cold, or uncooked. The sickest I have ever been in my life was after having a salad in a five star restaurant in Mexico City.

-The future's so bright I gotta wear shades!

 

[Beggar]

The sterilization of the chopsticks with tea is expected in more informal restaurants, in formal ones, the tea is really to be drunk;

The 'sterilization' ritual was done by my hosts at every restaurant, even the very, very nice ones.

--------------------
How much do YOU owe?

http://www.brillig.com/debt_clock/

--------------------

 

[Beggar]

Another ritual in China:

At most of the nicer restaurants, the manager or owner would come to my table to greet me and then join me in a shot of rice wine or chug a glass of beer.

--------------------
How much do YOU owe?

http://www.brillig.com/debt_clock/

--------------------

 

[corus]

I know that the portuguese believe that the british only eat food with their fork, almost like a shovel. And I always thought americans ate like that. I blame tv.

corus

 

[epoisses]

Re McDonalds, I think the French and the Americans are very much alike in the sense that they both blame their kids because they love the Happy Meals... (ours do too!).
The only difference is that French McD's serve beer.

McD is the only place in France (Italy, Spain, etc) where you get your food fast (this is not even true for certain French McD's...). This is because eating is considered to be a way to spend your evening, not something you do before you spend your evening.

The biggest mistake for any businessman in a Mediterranean country is to discuss business during lunch or dinner.

 

[Quantum50]

Epoisses: Is that considered a social faux pas or what? Does that include just your work in general or business specifics, networking, etc.?

I'm finding this thread fascinating, guys! Please keep it up. I really should get out more. :-(

 

[KENAT]

In Scotland, just about anything can be battered and deep fried.

Haggis, Pizza, Candy Bars.......

Different parts of the country or even different pubs in the same area can have different customs in the UK. Get it wrong enough in the wrong pub and you'll have the pleasure of experienceing the national Health service first hand.

Once got told off for not taking my empty vessels back to the bar, which is odd because usually it's something I did anyway.

 

[epoisses]

It's not so much a faux pas as it is simply considered boring. Food is a moment to enjoy and not to be spoiled by talking about boring subjects like work. If you have become a bit familiar with the other people around the table, they will remark after 2 minutes: come on, guys, we are talking about work - and somebody will attack a more interesting subject, the food itself, for instance. The French have a way of talking about food as if every Frenchmen is a culinary expert and an experienced chef, which makes most Americans feel uneasy. A large part of this is bluff of course

 

[sms]

The other problem with Americans in France is that we tend to shy away from some of the stuff that is normal fare for them. Snails, brains, kidneys, liver, etc are not unusual. At a fancy place near Marseille I once spent 30 minutes searching a menu in with my limited understanding of French for something, anything, that was not organ meat. I finally found a steak that I thought would work, but missed the fact that it came with duck liver. The chunk of liver on top of my steak was much bigger and much thicker than the steak itself, must have been a huge duck, or else multiple ducks gave their life for it. Should have asked, but was too proud to do so...

My favorite story is of being in Korea. We went to the plant cafeteria and lunch that day was fishhead soup with rice. A clear fish broth, rice in the bottom of the bowl and fish heads floating and a little kim chi to liven it up. I did the best I could, but about half way through lunch my host asked "Steve-a-san, you no like fish head soup?" I made the excuse that I wasn't feeling well and carried on, but that was a long lunch.





-The future's so bright I gotta wear shades!

 

[Twoballcane]

Just curious, did anybody go to a country where they had to eat with their hands? If so, was this a business meal? I know many westerners are not comfortable eating with their hands. For example countries like India and the Philippines.

Tobalcane
"If you avoid failure, you also avoid success."

 

[Jabberwocky]

For Japanese:

NEVER stick your chopsticks down into your food like a pincushion, very bad luck. It's also more polite to flip your chopsticks around when taking food from a communal bowl. Burping, gas, even sneezing are all very bad form - but I'm pretty sure you're expected to slurp your tea.

I think there's also something about only passing food bowls with both hands, not just one.

It was very strange for me in Europe (France in particular) that we received our food from the waiter and were promptly ignored for the next 2 hours. In the US this is completely shoddy service, but over there I think they assume you're taking your time.

Oh yeah, sushi is actually finger food!

 

[Beggar]

Another Chinese custom:

You offer and receive your credit card by holding it with both hands. The same is done with business cards but you also offer a slight bow and nod of the head.

This is the same in Japan, isn't it?

In Holland (all of Europe?), you don't receive your restaurant bill until you specifically ask for it, even if you're just sitting there by yourself with empty dishes.

In China, for the pig's feet, ribs, and other meats that are to be eaten by hand, they provide you with a plastic glove to wear.

Also, napkins are often not provided by the restaurant. When they are provided, they're usually a little package of tissue that are pretty ineffective.

--------------------
How much do YOU owe?

http://www.brillig.com/debt_clock/

--------------------

 

[ivymike]

Just curious, did anybody go to a country where they had to eat with their hands?

I've eaten with my hands in all three of the Ethiopian restaurants that I've been to in the US. I just assumed that was the custom over there.

 

[SomptingGuy]

It was very strange for me in Europe (France in particular) that we received our food from the waiter and were promptly ignored for the next 2 hours. In the US this is completely shoddy service, but over there I think they assume you're taking your time.

In the US they want your table for the next customer - nothing to do with good service, just revenue.

 

[GregLocock]

In Australia the rule of thumb is that a restaurant or bistro is making money if it can get 1.5 covers per seat per shift.

Not many of our local places manage that.





Cheers

Greg Locock

Please see FAQ731-376 for tips on how to make the best use of Eng-Tips.

 

[MedicineEng]

In Mediterranean countries, if you order fish (for instance grilled fish), expect that the fish comes with fishbones (for instance seabass, sardines). I noticed that Central/North Europeans (eventually also happens with Americans) are not at ease with this and in fact spoil most of the fish because they are used to boneless fillet.

The funnier moments in terms of cross cultural experiences really happen at the table.
And regarding business at the table in Mediterranean countries, in fact you can discuss it, but only after football (soccer), politics, drinks, family, trips, jokes, food and several bottles of wine (roughly, between the 3rd and 4th hour of the meal).

 

[mog69]

"Just curious, did anybody go to a country where they had to eat with their hands?"

It is very common to eat with fingers in India. The food is usually served in larger dishes to the table from which each person serves to their own plate. The secret is to serve relatively small amounts of the sauce / dall / etc sufficient to mix with the rice and make rice balls. If you serve a full portion of the curry it's like trying to eat rice soup with your fingers - very messy! Just keep adding small amounts of the curry as you need it to moisten the rice. Don't forget to use the naan to soak up excess liquid and it's acceptable to place small amounts of rice / curry onto a chipati and roll it up like a fajita. (Just watch out you fold up the bottom to seal it or else you get curry squirting into your lap when you bite the top!) ALso be prepared for the curry to stain the ends of your fingers brown like you're a 40-a-day man / woman !

mog69

 

[swearingen]

New Orleans, and most of South Louisiana, has the attitude of meals as a destination. I assume this is of French influence. Some anecdotes:

- My wife worked at a restaurant in South Louisiana when she was 17. An experienced waitress from New York went to work there and complained because she said she could turn 3 to 4 tables in New York for each table there.

- When my wife and I went to Washington D.C. and ate in a downtown bistro, the waitress kept hovering over us, apparently trying to hurry us along. We noticed that all of the other tables had turned several times before we were ready to go.

- I belonged to a Miata car club and we would go on drives as a club. Some visitors in their Miata from Connecticut (north east U.S.) were in town and looked us up to see if they could join a drive. We had one scheduled for that weekend and they asked where we were going. We told them the restaurant, and they asked, "and then where are we going?" They were very surprised to find that the restaurant WAS the destination.

- I went to several primary and secondary schools in Scotland and England and my wife still teases me about way I wield my knife and fork. Like SomptingGuy said, the table manners are drilled incessantly...

 

[ziggi]

I've had the English way of holding knives and forks drilled into me as well, and the 'no elbows on the table' rule still holds in my parent's home. My mother absolutely cannot complete dinner without the obligatory "high tea", although I'm pretty sure that she cheats a bit, there's no tiny sandwiches, it's mostly sweets and strong black tea.

Nearly all European restaurants I've been in don't expect you to leave very soon and usually asking the waitress for the cheque is the only way to go. Us Canadians are similar to Americans in that we consider a one hour meal to be too long, although I still enjoy a long meal if there is a large group of people. If alcohol is being served during the meal, forget about a short meal.

Polish customs dictate that some sort of alcohol will be served with dinner, usually alot of it and it's almost mandatory if you're an important guest. I'm not sure about business meetings though, I think they're very similar to other European and American customs.

I do like that the French McDonalds serves beer, I wish they would do that over here in Canada...those pansies...in actual fact serving beer at a burger joint is good business practice, people always want a beer with their burger...at least I do, and you can charge a bit more for it.....on second thought, McDonald's burger are less than edible so I would imagine their beer would be too.