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07/20/2001 Archived Entry: "Forks"

I was reading an interesting discussion about the archetypical 'Ugly American' on the Internet today when someone made the startling observation (at least, it was startling to me) that Americans only use the fork in their left hand while cutting something. I couldn't believe it! At all the places I've stayed in America (approximately two, but I did have the privelege of witnessing many dozens or hundreds of people eat) I never remembered seeing this. But apparently it is true among a sizeable number of Americans, according to this article (excerpts follow):

The Zig Zag Method

By American custom, which was brought about partly by the late introduction of the fork into the culture, all three utensils are intended for use primarily with the right hand, which is the more capable hand for most people. This leads to some complicated maneuvering when foods, such as meat, require the use of knife and fork to obtain a bite of manageable size. When this is the case, the fork is held in the left hand, turned so that the tines point downward, the better to hold the meat in place while the right hand operates the knife. After a bite-sized piece has been cut, the diner sets the knife down on the plate and transfers the fork to the right hand, so that it can be used to carry the newly cut morsel to the mouth. Emily Post calls this the "zig-zag" style.

European Style

The European, or "Continental," style of using knife and fork is somewhat more efficient, and its practice is also common in the United States, where left-handed children are no longer forced to learn to wield a fork with their right hands. According to this method, the fork is held continuously in the left hand and used for eating. When food must be cut, the fork is used exactly as in the American style, except that once the bite has been separated from the whole, it is conveyed directly to the mouth on the downward-facing fork. Regardless of which style is used to operate fork and knife, it is important never to cut more than one or two bites at one time.