The highest level of waiters' professionalism is considered to be their ability to be invisible and not disturb guests. But how do you communicate during a dinner in a restaurant? How do you make it clear to the staff that you want something, like something or dislike something? Calling for a waiter every time is inconvenient and can attract unwanted attention from the staff and other guests. In fact, there is a system of signs that can be given by placing the dishes on the plate.

OBOZREVATEL figured out what signs exist. And how to use them to make communication with restaurant staff easy and pleasant for everyone.

Pause in the meal

Let's say you need to leave the table, but you don't want your plate to be taken away. Let the waiter know that you're taking a break, not finishing your meal. To do this, place your fork and knife so that they are facing away from each other with their handles and heads converging at the edge of the plate, forming an acute angle, like the letter "L". If there is a lot of food on the plate, you can place the knife and fork with their heads on the edge of the plate so that they are facing each other.

You can take the plate away

If you are finished with a dish and want to let the waiter know, place the knife and fork completely on the plate. They should be laid down so that the ends of the handles meet and they are at a slight angle to each other.

You don't like the food

To politely indicate that you did not like the food or the service, place your fork and knife on the plate in an "L" shape. The fork should be on the right and the knife on the left, with the blade inserted between the tines of the fork. After that, the waiter or manager will probably come to you to find out what went wrong and whether the establishment can somehow atone for its fault.

You really liked the dish

When you have finished eating, place the knife and fork on the plate so that they are parallel to the edge of the table. The working ends of the cutlery should be facing in different directions. This will be interpreted as a thank you to the staff. Ideally, such a gesture should be supported by a generous tip.

You have finished your meal

In a good restaurant, waiters should know when to bring the check even without a special request from the guest. To do this, you can simply place the fork and knife on the plate perpendicular to the edge of the table with the heads facing the same direction. In this case, the waiter should come over to you, take the crockery and bring the check.

However, do not hesitate to contact the staff directly. After all, hints and body language are important and are indeed an element of etiquette, but nothing works better than directly spoken words.

Earlier, OBOZREVATEL told how to leave a tip in a hotel.

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