The rules explained in etiquette books are often based on right-handed people, who may get lost in etiquette. So this time, I will introduce left-handed table manners of Japanese food, Western food, Chinese food, and left-handed techniques that you should pay attention to.
Left-handed manners, Japanese manners
How to eat using cutlery and how to handle tableware, which is taught in etiquette textbooks, are often written on the premise of right-handed people. In the olden days, in Japan, left-handed people had a tendency to be “badly behaved” and “not properly disciplined by their parents.” However, recently, based on the idea that it may lead to discrimination against left-handed people, left-handed people are less likely to be regarded as a violation of etiquette even in high-class restaurants, formal venues, and tea ceremonies.
Serving for right-handed people, However, Japanese food is served for right-handed people. It is common to put a rice bowl on the left side, a bowl of soup on the right side, and a plate with main meat and fish in the back. The staple food rice is placed on the left side because of the idea that the left side is superior to the right side, which was introduced from China as “upper left.” If you have more side dishes, Japanese food Ichiju Sansai to put a bowl with side dishes in the back on the left and a bowl with side dishes in the middle. If you are left-handed, you can use chopsticks with your left hand. However, try to eat the food for right-handed people. Even if you have chopsticks, first take them with your right hand and then pick them up with your left hand to eat. When placing chopsticks, switch from the left hand to the right hand and place the chopsticks on the chopstick rest so that the handle of the chopsticks is on the right side. It is considered a violation of etiquette to arrange the servings upside down because it is a case of an offering.
Manners for serving Japanese food And when serving Japanese food, it is a rule that is easy for right-handed people to do. For example, when arranging sashimi on top of each other, it is a rule of Japanese cuisine to flow from the upper left to the lower right. And even in the case of fish with a tail, it is often placed with the head on the left. In the case of fillets, arrange them so that the large ones are on the left side.
Left-handed manners, Western food manners
In Western cuisine, such as French and Italian, it is considered table manners to eat with a knife in your right hand and a fork in your left hand. This is considered etiquette because it is a handedness that is easy to use and has a knife that cuts food. Therefore, if you are a left-handed person, you can hold the fork in your right hand and the knife in your left hand. It is not considered a violation of etiquette for left-handed people to eat with a knife in the left hand of their dominant hand. Instead, it is considered NG as a manner to squeeze tableware and cutlery or spill food by holding a knife with the unfamiliar right hand and holding a fork with the left hand.
However, as with Japanese food, cutlery, and tableware such as table knives, forks and spoons are set for right-handed people. It is a violation of etiquette to rearrange them arbitrarily because they are left-handed and challenging to use. Only change when using cutlery. If you have a left-handed person, the table setting may be reversed only for the left-handed person’s seat when you book a restaurant.
However, right-handed people are the mainstream of table manners, and some people feel that left-handed people violate styles. Also, by changing the table set, you may mistake the glasses and cutlery with the people on both sides. From this, it seems that people are usually left-handed but who are right-handed at meals that require table manners.
Left-handed manners, Chinese food manners
Even in the case of Chinese food, which has the idea of ”upper left” that the left is superior, right-handed people are the mainstream. It is said that it is etiquette to hold chopsticks in the right hand and a ranger in the left hand. In Chinese food, it is a violation of etiquette to lift a bowl and eat it, so it is wise to put it on a lotus, drain it, and then use chopsticks to bring the food to your mouth. However, when drinking soup, it is good to put chopsticks on it, change the astragalus to your right hand, and then scoop the soup with astragalus.
Chinese food does not have complicated manners. In rural areas, it’s more important to enjoy eating than table manners. If you are left-handed, you can eat with only chopsticks upside down. Let’s not move the serving. For example, in the case of a set meal such as Chinese food, Ichiju Sansai, the serving is the same as Japanese food, but the table manners are to place the chopsticks vertically with the handle on the right side. If you want to eat a large plate separately, place the plate in the center and the seasoning container in the back on the left. Place a cup to put a drink in the back on the right. When turning the round table, turn it clockwise.
Left-handed manners, Manners to be careful with the left hand
Right-handed people aren’t the only ones who eat table manners. For example, when shaking hands at a dinner party, entertainment, or a meeting, it is common to hold each other’s right hands. The handshake of the left hand is said to have meanings such as “hostility,” “separation,” and “insult” to the other party, and it is said that it is unlucky, so even if the other party is left-handed, put out the right hand. I want to shake hands.
In the case of Hinduism Also, in Hinduism, the left hand is referred to as the “unclean hand.” It is NG to touch the other person with your left hand, touch tableware and cutlery, and eat food and drink, so please be careful.
In Japan, where there are many right-handed people, left-handed people often find it inconvenient. However, left-handed people are recognized as one of their personalities in modern times. If you are left-handed, please refer to the manners introduced.
