[KBC]

Well in Deutschland my sister had to put her ware on top of the plate to signify that she was finished,otherwise the family would keep pouring on the grub..

[Alty]

Well in Deutschland my sister had to put her ware on top of the plate to signify that she was finished,otherwise the family would keep pouring on the grub..

Yup, it was that way at our house too.

Sehr gut Ken. Sehr gut. :)

[JoeCanada76]

For me you burp really really loud to show your appreciation of a great meal. The louder the burp the better the meal.

Just teasing, well not in canada anyway.

At home yes, lol..

Okay I am a freakn pig.

Honestly Andrea, I have been to a few really expensive and fancy places and I never heard of either of them before. The thing that signifies a well enjoyed meal is nothing left on the plate and yes the silverware left on top of the plate to signify that your finished.

[dontknownuthin]

I think you're both wrong - I've looked for something on this and can't find any reference to face up/face down flatware.

What I did consistently find was:
- Place your used flatware on your plate when you are done. Whether it's on the right or left does not appear to matter at all. As Americans and Europeans use forks and knives differently (American's switch hands to cut, Europeans typically do not), it's probably a matter of locality.
- Never put your napkin on your plate, whether paper or cloth.
- Do not move your plate (to the edge or center of the table for example) to signal you are done.
- If you are serving whether in your home or as a job, never scrape contents of one plate to another plate at the table and never stack the plates as you remove them. Take them off individually and remove them to the kitchen that way.

As a practical matter, the way flatware is designed, it's less likely to slide of the cleared plate and make a mess and a lot of noise if it's face up (as you would stack it in a drawer) so I would put it on the plate in that way, enjoyable meal or not.
And it shouldn't matter whether you are at a fine dining restaurant or Burger King - etiquette is meant to be used all the time - it's about courtesy - making things pleasant for one another, not about being fancy.

[cmorcat]

What if it's good silverware and you you need one more knife and fork to complete your 12 place setting at home?

[Alty]

What if it's good silverware and you you need one more knife and fork to complete your 12 place setting at home?

LMAO! I like this idea. Sadly the silverware, if I remember correctly, wasn't that great. I also hate actual silverware, what a pain in the behind to clean. I prefer plastic. One use, no cleanup. :)

[dontknownuthin]

I was taught that you place the knife on the plate, blade facing in, and the fork tines pointing up. You don't "vote" on the quality of the meal with how you place your cutlery - that's kind of ridiculous. If you're in a restaurant and displeased with the meal, you let your server know with words when there's still an opportunity for them to make it right. If you like the meal, you let your server, matitre D or the restaurant owner/manager know that you enjoyed it and tip 20%. If you're someone's guest, you pretend the meal was fabulous even if it was so aweful you're stopping at Burger King on the way home.

The main reason for placing the cutlery this way is that if you place a fork tines down or a spoon bowl down or a knife blade out, you are creating a hazzard. If the knife slips it is less likely to hurt the person carrying the plate if the blade is facing away from their hand. A spoon or fork are far more likely to slide off the plate if they are upside down - they are designed to lay nicely on a table tines or bowl up, and will do the same on the plate. If you put them upside down they will be unstable and slide around or off the plate.