DEAR MISS MANNERS: This concerns the passing of a disliked food item to a partner in a public setting. We all seem to agree that dining etiquette in one’s private home differs from that in a public setting, be it at a restaurant or dinner at another’s home.
I happen to dislike raw tomato slices or wedges, most often used in salads. I agree with the comedian George Carlin, who described them as something that is “not done yet.” This is not an allergy, but simply a dislike of both the texture and flavor.
At home, I can easily avoid them altogether. When dining at a restaurant, I often will simply pass them to my spouse, who happens to love them.
However, when seated beside or across from one’s spouse as a guest at a dinner party, is it best to push them aside, leaving them on my own plate, and thus wasting them? Or is it ever acceptable to pass them to my spouse, who may be drooling at the sight of them, abandoned there on my salad plate, and thus not waste the food?
GENTLE READER: “Oh, honey, you have to taste these tomatoes!” And then hand over one or two for your spouse to “try.” More than that, and Miss Manners feels certain the other guests will start to catch on that they have their own tomatoes.
(Please send your questions to Miss Manners at her website, www.missmanners.com; to her email, [email protected]; or through postal mail to Miss Manners, Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.)
COPYRIGHT 2023 JUDITH MARTIN
DISTRIBUTED BY ANDREWS MCMEEL SYNDICATION
1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106; 816-581-7500
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