Etiquette expert William Hanson took to social media to explain that there’s something restaurants often do wrong when setting the table – and it’s unacceptable in his eyes
Have you ever wondered why some restaurants lay out cutlery differently to others?
Well, etiquette expert William Hanson, known for his no-nonsense attitude and ‘proper’ way of doing day-to-day things such as eating chips, reckons that’s because some places simply do it incorrectly. And he explained the correct way to do it in a recent TikTok video.
Captioning his video: “There’s nothing quite like napkins to get me riled up,” he explained why napkins annoy him so much – and why cutlery should never be placed on them.
He said “some restaurants set the table incorrectly” – pointing to the table he was sitting at and showing how the restaurant had placed the “cutlery on top of a napkin”.
This is wrong because “the first thing you need to do is place the napkin on your lap”, and if you want to do that “you have to move the cutlery”. He said having to do that was “tiresome”.
He added: “Some people say ‘Well I don’t want my cutlery on the dirty table’.” But he then asked: “If the table’s that dirty what are you doing eating there in the first place?”
In the comments, someone suggested the restaurant may have placed the napkin there strategically, writing: “Isn’t it because you’re outside? Perhaps to stop it blowing away?”
Someone else sarcastically penned: “Yes, very tiresome. I remember one time someone put cutlery on my napkin and it took me 30 minutes fumbling around trying to get my napkin. Then my food was cold.”
Another pointed out: “The table is dirty. Anywhere. Every table.” Another TikTok user echoed that sentiment, writing: “Uhhh yeah I don’t care how clean the table appears to be, I’m not using cutlery that’s touched it.”
A final commenter jokily asked: “If the napkin goes on your lap, does that mean it’s okay to pick up any food that drops onto it and eat it?”
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