Different countries, different customs: This is especially true for business meals abroad. The rules for this can vary greatly from country to country. If you don’t think about culture or traditions, you can quickly make a mistake at a business dinner and make a negative impression on your potential business partner. For example, in Japan, if you start eating first without asking, it will be difficult to make a deal later. After all, this fatal gesture is about respect. Only the guest of honor or the oldest person at the table may begin the meal. If you’re lucky, one of the two options might even apply to you. Then you can dismiss this as an educational gap. Or you can familiarize yourself with the customs of the respective country before you go abroad.
Germany=punctuality, France=delays allowed
How different the ideas are about what constitutes good manners at business meals is already clear in our neighbor France. For the Germans it would be absurd if a business partner were even five minutes late. In France, people would react with astonishment if a business lunch started on time. In most cases, anyone who meets French people will have to wait a while. But you shouldn’t take offense at them.
The rules apply to all dinner parties
Apart from that, there are of course certain rules that apply in each of these countries. Charles MacPherson has worked as a long-time butler and has already published his second book. In “The Pocket Butler: A Compact Guide to Modern Manners, Business Etiquette and Everyday Entertaining” he summarizes ten points on how to behave when eating in company and what you should definitely avoid. MacPherson has many years of experience as a butler – serving prominent families around the world for 26 years.