Last night I had a great Lobster dinner with my family. My sis and her kids are in town, so we decided to go to a local hot spot and get their Monday night special… LOBSTER. It’s a friendly atmosphere. Kids welcome. Indoor and outdoor seating. Hoppin’ bar. Free popcorn while you wait. And crowded - super crowded for a Monday night. Maybe it was the lobster draw…?
As we were enjoying our dinner (and the fact that the kiddos had a separate table), I looked over and observed another guest. Without being judgmental (ok, maybe a bit since manners has been on my mind) I turned to my husband and said, “I’ve got my next blog post.” The woman at the table next to us was sitting ‘criss cross apple sauce’. At the table. While eating dinner. As you can imagine, that means her shoes were on the floor. So, barefoot, criss cross, eating “lobstah”… the inspiration for this post.
Here are some additional reminders / things to think about when eating out:
No shirt, no shoes, no service. Funny enough, my nephew was bare chested as we arrived at the restaurant since my sister was meeting us there with his outfit. We made sure he waited by the car until we could deliver his clothing. It’s not just a policy most places, but wearing a shirt and shoes is just the right thing to do when eating out. (side note, my boys are not permitted to be bare chested at our dinning table either).
In / Out. Don’t forget to let people out before entering. It just makes things easier and makes sense. And while you’re at it, open the door for the person exiting and step out of the way so they can actually depart. For more examples, see this blog post.
Follow the lead of the host. As our MANNERS CLASS goes over, there is etiquette along the lines of where people sit, who orders first, deferring to requests and the like. For instance, while not mandatory, the intention was to enjoy Lobsters. By no means did we have to order Lobster, but consider it. Our host was excited to bring us there because she had previously enjoyed this meal - with the potatoes, not rice.
Just a few tips and a lot more to come… Enjoy dinner out and keep your feet on the ground :-)