PTK Southern Dining Etiquette Workshop

Skye Scott, assistant editor

 Eight students sat with eyes fixed on Diane Carr as she stood at the head of the table. In front of each student was a perfect plate setting, containing dishes these students would come across at some point in their professional careers.

Almost all eight students were members of Piedmont Virginia Community College’s (PVCC) Phi Theta Kappa Honors Society (PTK). They gathered in the Pace Boardroom on PVCC’s main campus on Saturday, Feb. 11.

Carr, the director of the Southern School of Etiquette, had sent an invitation out to these students over a week earlier, inviting them to join her in a dining etiquette workshop.

The workshop focused around correct manners and etiquette for an interview lunch or dinner. Carr started by listing off some important things to bring to the interview, mainly a resume and a list of ten questions to ask the interviewer.

After this, she introduced etiquette by saying that being respectful of other people, acceptable behavior, good manners, protocol, and decorum are what make etiquette.

After this, Carr discussed what someone should wear to an interview. She said, “Don’t dress for the place, dress for the occasion.” Stating that even if the interview was being held at TGIFridays, the interviewee should still look clean and professional. She also said to arrive uncluttered, with no big brief case or purse, and with phones off or on vibrate.

From here, Ms. Carr explained how to tell when the meal had started from when the host places their napkin onto their lap, and the correct manners that followed.

There are many precise utensil placements to make sure one is sending the correct message to their host and servers. One of these is the signal that one is done eating. This is signaled by placing the knife and fork at either 3:15 or 6:30 on the plate, with the tip hanging over the plate by one inch to insure it will not fall when the server picks the plate up. She also discussed the differences between silverware, and how to tell what would be served first by the placement of the forks.

Carr ended the workshop by telling the students to always send thank you notes to their interviewer within two days of the interview. She said that these should be physical letters sent to their work address, thanking them for the meal and saying something about how the interviewee would be great for the job.

The following Saturday, Feb. 18, Alec Traaseth and Lindsey Woodyard headed into Farmington Country Club. They were dressed in their professional best, with smiles and excitement on their faces.

They headed to the Pine Room, where Carr and Andre Luck, PVCC’s career services manager, were waiting for them. A few students had already arrived and stood to greet Traaseth and Woodyard with a handshake. The students took a seat to wait on their remaining peers. They were gathering to put their new skills to practical use.

After seven students had arrived, Carr decided to begin. She first reintroduced herself and then introduced Luck. Then she went back over some of the basic etiquette the students had learned the week before.

Once the review session was over, Carr told the students that they would now roleplay as if they were at a networking event. Carr and Luck would be the interviewers, and they told the students to pretend that they were applying for a job at the Southern School of Etiquette.

Once all  the students had a chance to speak with Luck, it was time to take a seat. The servers had set the table to perfection. Each student sat down and waited for Carr to give the signal to begin.

When she placed her napkin onto her lap, all of the students followed her lead. Soon after, a server brought in the first course. It was a tomato bisque soup. After the soup, they ate a cobb salad, and for dessert they had a strawberry shortcake parfait.

Throughout the meal, the students practiced proper business conversation with each other, as well as with Carr and Luck. All role playing aside, they discussed how etiquette could benefit their aspirations in life.

At the end of the meal, Luck asked the students to share their thoughts on the etiquette workshop. All of the students agreed that it was very helpful, and that they had learned a lot from this wonderful opportunity.