Throughout the world, there are a number of different meals, dining etiquette rules, and cultural food practices that greatly differ from those practiced in the United States. Some of these are strange, some are fascinating, but all are entirely unique to their culture.
High Tea
High tea is commonly known throughout the United States by name, but the practices involved in high tea usually elude those on the western side of the Atlantic. High tea refers to a dinnertime meal that is served between 5 and 7 PM and is associated with working class families. High tea consists of three courses: a hot meal (usually meat and a vegetable or two), cakes or bread served with jam and butter, and then tea. The tea served is usually a Cornish cream tea. American tea houses like Clumzy Clover Teas & Treasures may serve high tea in this traditional way, or they might have their own interpretation of it!
Token Flipping
Brazil is known for its steakhouses, but some of the practices that occur at the steakhouses seem to go over many Americans' heads. When dining at a Brazilian steakhouse, you will be given tokens that are colored red on one side and green on the other. If your token is flipped with the green side up, your server will continue to serve you steak. It's important to flip your token to the red side when you are done eating unless you wish to continuously order slabs of meat.
A Fork Is Not For Your Mouth
In Thailand, it is considered to be incredibly bad taste to put food on a fork and then up to your mouth. You should only use a fork to move food on the plate onto your spoon. Many meals served in the Isan region forego this rule altogether: all of the sticky foods served in this area should be eaten directly with the hands.
Cup Shaking
Bedouins in the Middle East love their coffee, and they have some cultural practices that go along with drinking that might typically elude an American foodie. When you hand your coffee cup back to a server, they will simply bring you another cup. Asking for the never-ending cup of coffee to end requires that you tilt the cup two to four times before handing it back to your server.
There are more food practices, dining rules, and types of meals than there are countries in the world. Before dining in a restaurant that serves regional ethnic foods, it is best to familiarize yourself with the type of food you'll be eating and how you should go about eating it.
