Hospitality Assignment: Comparing Dining Practices in India and Others

This report provides an in-depth analysis of Indian dining etiquette, focusing on Mumbai, Chennai, and New Delhi. The report details staple foods, spice usage, and the common practice of eating with fingers. It examines the use of cutlery, dishware, and table settings, comparing these aspects to Western dining practices. The report highlights the importance of conversational etiquette during meals, emphasizing the need to swallow food before speaking. It also covers the significance of dishware color, shape, and size. Furthermore, the report outlines the steps involved in setting an Indian table, including the placement of plates, spoons, napkins, and condiments. The report discusses service styles, the foods served during special occasions, and the elements the author would add to their own dining practices. Finally, the report includes the etiquette the author learned from Indian culture and would incorporate into their own dining experiences, such as refraining from talking with food in the mouth and using hands instead of cutlery. The report cites several sources to support its claims, including books and articles on Indian food culture and etiquette.

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Authors Name/s per 1st Affiliation (Author)
Dept. name of the organization
Name of organization, acronyms acceptable
City, Country
mail address
Authors Name/s per 2nd Affiliation (Author)
Dept. name of the organization
Name of organization, acronyms acceptable
City, Country
e-mail address

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Part 1: Country
For this discussion I selected India, this is because India has a large assortment of dishes as well
as the high and liberal application of spices and herbs in their food. Some of the most staple food
in India includes the Basmati rice and Wheat. Indian foods are rich in spices and curries like
coriander, dried hot pepper, Cinnamon, cardamom and turmeric. Most Indians are vegetarians
but for individuals who are non-vegetarians eat chicken and lamb. Most of the Indian´s foods
are eaten with finger. Most of their breads are served with meals like oven-baked, leavened,
bhatoora and naan [1]. In this analysis, I specifically considered Mumbai city, Chennai and New
Delhi. The diagrams below illustrate some Indian cultures in regards to their meals;
Figure 1: Showing Indian cutleries

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Figure 2: Showing some common Indian foods
Figure 3: Showing an Indian family on the table
Part 2: Sources
The name of the This publication was The title of the article is Food etiquette in

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organization which
published this article is
culture wave global
done in the year
2018. Particular date
and month is not
included
India
The title of the article is
Food etiquette in India
This source is
obtained from an
internet source,
therefore, the page
number and the
volume is not
indicated
The URL of this publication is given
below;
https://www.culturewavesglobal.com/india-
etiquette-
The resource is about the food etiquette in India which basically gives rules on how to deal
with how, where and in which meals should one use a particular type of cutlery.
Contamination with saliva. These rules are very crucial in India, therefore the resource is more
credible as it helps in knowing the dos and the don´ts in Indian culture as far as meals are
concerned.
Part 3:
a. Conversation
In regards to table etiquette, Indians do not encourage one to talk when dinning and if one feels
he has to talk on an urgent basis, for example, respond to a question or ask a burning question

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then he or she needs to swallow the food in the mouth first [2]. This is very important as there
may be many people in the table who will not wish to look at the food in another person´s mouth.
The worst part is when one talks while the food is in his or her mouth since the food particles can
be spat to other people´s foods or their bodies.
b. Cutlery
The use of forks and spoons are common in Indian urban areas like Mumbai, New Delhi among
others where foods such as vegetables and curry should not be touched with hands. In case foods
like roti, naan and chapatti are served with the meal it is highly encouraged in India to use
spoons and forks on this food. But in the Southern part of India, it is seen as ill-mannered to
allow food stain outside ones ‘palm or finger [3].
c. Dishware
In India, the dishware is a so significant aspect of the meal. When selecting the dishware color,
shape and size are paramount factors to consider. A romantic colour is highly preferred the size
of the dish will depend on the amount of food to be served and the age of the one being served.
A younger person will be served on a smaller dish than an older person. The shape of the plates
to be used in India are coupled shaped plates and the Rim shaped plates [3]. Rim plates are
always preferred to be used for a well which collects the juices which flow from the food. While
for the coupled shaped plates lacks have rims, therefore, these plates accommodates food the
way it is cooked and served, if the food is with juices it will be eaten like that. In Indian, the
Coupe shaped plates are more common than the Rim shaped plates.
d. Settings

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To set an Indian table there must be a use of plates, spoons, napkins, Condiments, serving
spoons, serving dishes, table mats, water glasses and small bowls. The steps involved in setting
the table is given below;
Step 1:
Wiping the table to clean grime and crumbs
Step 2:
Setting a small bowl and plate for every seat at the right. The bowl basically holds pulse (eaten
before the rest of the meal).
Step 3
Putting a spoon on a napkin next to each plate, in Indian most people eat with figures but if there
are guest they may not prefer to eat with figures.
Step 4:
Filling the glass with room temperature water for every place setting. Indians don´t like water
Step 5
Laying table mats for every serving dish
Step 6
Transferring the food into the serving bowl, the space available will be assessed to help choose
the size of the plate which will perfectly fit the available space.
Step 7:

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The naan is arranged on a plate and covered with a lid or a cloth keep the naan warm. Then a
small plate of Lankas for the guests will be put which will be passed around the table.
e. Service
In India food is always self-service by using serve spoon but for children they can be served by
their mothers or fathers in some cases, wives serve their husbands or vice versa.
f. Occasions
In some occasions like Diwali very special foods are served, these foods are sweet and they are
not just eaten every time [4]. Such food includes the Ghulab Jamun, Kheer and shakarpale.
Diwali cuisine is a purely vegetarian occasion, some savoury foods include Samosas, Aloo,
Karanji and Pakoray.
Part 4 :
The three elements of dinning practice I would be interested in to add in my part dinner are
putting more traditional spices and curries in the food this helps as most of these have medicinal
values, I would also add the practice of being more vegetarian, this is significant as eating meat
is associated with several diseases [5]. The last practice I would add is drinking water at room
temperature, ice cold water is not good for the body as it does not promote the effective flow of
blood.
Part 5
The etiquette which I learnt from Indian and I would like to add to my party includes;
Do not talk with food in the mouth. Talking with food in the mouth can affect the other people in
the table.

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Refraining from cleaning your teeth at the table [7]. When this is done other people in the table
might see the food particles in your mouth which is not good at all.
Prefer to use hands as opposed to cutlery when eating. When one eats using fingers the food
will be digested faster than when they use spoons.

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References
[1] L. Fraser, The Book of Curries & Indian Foods, Mumbei: Penguin, 2011.
[2] C. T. Sen, Food Culture in India, New Delhi: Greenwood Publishing Group, 2014.
[3] R. Misra, Indian Foods: AAPI's Guide to Nutrition, Health and Diabetes, New Delhi: Allied
Publishers, 2011.
[4] B. Sheen, Food of India, Novida: Greenhaven Publishing LLC, 2006.
[5] M. M. Shea, Food of India, New Delhi: Gareth Stevens Publishing LLLP, 2014.
[6] C.-T. H. F. S. John Shi, Functional Foods of the East, Mumbei: CRC Press, 2010.
[7] L. M. Berzok, American Indian Food, Chicago: Greenwood Press, 2012.