# Appropriateness of using chopsticks in an Asian restaurant **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 10, 2012, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appropriateness-of-using-chopsticks-in-an-asian-restaurant/631029 "2012-08-10T01:19:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appropriateness-of-using-chopsticks-in-an-asian-restaurant/631029/81 "2012-08-10T15:54:21Z")
> [@Bozuit](#): > > I get what you mean. I find the idea that chopsticks are more effective for eating _anything_ somewhat strange. Personally I think forks are objectively better, but there’s no way to really be sure. Actually there is. Ask any one of the people in this thread who’s proficient with chopsticks. Forks are not objectively better. It depends on the food. One big example: Have you ever eaten a meal where you had bitesized pieces and needed to dip them in a sauce? It could be something as silly as Panda Express’s Mandarin chicken, where the sauce is sometimes served on the side, or a prime rib served au jus. Anything, really. Have you tried to spear a piece with a fork, then dip it in the sauce only to have the piece fall into the sauce? Especially with thicker sauces, sometimes the ability of the fork to hold the food does not match the sauce’s ability, and you have to spend minutes digging in the sauce bowl until you give up and pluck the food out with your fingers, making a mess. That simply doesn’t happen with chopsticks. > [@AnalogSignal](#): > > In Thailand, they give you a fork and spoon with your meal. No chopsticks and no knife. > > I think the chopsticks question is driven more by a notion of authenticity rather than appropriateness. However, someone eating with chopsticks in a Thai restaurant, where quite possibly the food is prepared by a Chinese cook and server by a Chinese waiter, is pretty far away from an authentic experience. Huh. I didn’t know that. Granted, I’m totally willing to believe low-price Thai restaurants in Phoenix are not exactly authentic, but the Thai food I’ve had is usually prepared similarly to Japanese and Chinese food in bite-size pieces, and when I’ve asked for a pair of chopsticks they’ve always been provided without comment. ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appropriateness-of-using-chopsticks-in-an-asian-restaurant/631029/82 "2012-08-10T15:59:34Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > They’re perfect for scrabbled eggs, for instance. As opposed to, say, boggled eggs? ---
**Author:** ![cher3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/da6949/32.png) [@cher3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cher3)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 3:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appropriateness-of-using-chopsticks-in-an-asian-restaurant/631029/83 "2012-08-10T15:59:40Z")
I usually use them at Chinese restaurants and almost always at Japanese restaurants. Chopsticks are great for salad. This seems like a good place to ask about Thai etiquette. How are you supposed to use the big spoon? Is it just a serving implement or are you supposed to eat with it, too. I gather that Thais don’t typically use chopsticks, although I have seen (non-Asians) ask for them in Thai restaurants. ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appropriateness-of-using-chopsticks-in-an-asian-restaurant/631029/84 "2012-08-10T16:04:59Z")
WRT chopsticks: I find the rough-hewn, blunt-ended and wider (Chinese?) ones so much easier to use than the skinny (Japanese?), pointy-ended and lacquered ones. The skinny ones are too…slippery. ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appropriateness-of-using-chopsticks-in-an-asian-restaurant/631029/85 "2012-08-10T16:16:16Z")
The first time I ever ate with chopsticks was at a Thai restaurant–that’s simply what they gave me. I’ll use chopsticks if they’re offered, or if my date is using them, otherwise I stick with the fork. (“Stick _what_ with the fork, Biffy?”) ---
**Author:** ![Tapiotar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3be4f8/32.png) [@Tapiotar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapiotar)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appropriateness-of-using-chopsticks-in-an-asian-restaurant/631029/86 "2012-08-10T16:17:19Z")
Does anyone else hear a Sheldon voice when they read the OP’s comments? I use chopsticks in Chinese and Japanese restaurants because they are more suited to the food and because they are fun to use. I eat sushi with my fingers, however. I often use chopsticks at home, because I tend to eat too fast, and using chopsticks makes me a tad more aware and slows me down. They are highly efficient, a deceptively and elegantly simple technology when used for the appropriate food. I also use forks, sppons, and knives when they are appropriate. ---
**Author:** ![ministryman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f6c823/32.png) [@ministryman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ministryman)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appropriateness-of-using-chopsticks-in-an-asian-restaurant/631029/87 "2012-08-10T16:30:05Z")
> [@greenslime1951](#): > > Assuming you’re a foreign devil and therefore don’t usually use chopsticks, how do you feel about their use in an Asian restaurant? > > 1. I do so because it’s fun > 2. I do so because it’s appropriate > 3. I don’t do so because it’s easier to use a fork > 4. I eat everything with my hands–even soup > 5. Other > > I was on a last date with a woman I knew from work and she asked me why I was using a fork, rather than chopsticks, to eat my Dragon Laxative Pork or whatever, and I answered, “For the same reason I didn’t drive here in an oxcart.” She didn’t understand what I meant until I gently explained to her that the fork was higher and better technology than chopsticks, so why wouldn’t I use it? As I said, it was a last date. I am a foreign devil, but I use chopsticks at all Asian restaurants. I will even go so far as to give the server a “WTF” look if I am handed a fork. I use them so well that I get compliments from the server and other Asians in the place. I am not surprised it was a last date; the very tone of your post conveys an elitist, jingoistic, snobbery. Those “technologically inferior” utensils (which REPLACED the fork) were created by people rich in culture. ---
**Author:** ![JoseB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/joseb/32/1530_2.png) [@JoseB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JoseB)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appropriateness-of-using-chopsticks-in-an-asian-restaurant/631029/88 "2012-08-10T16:30:25Z")
I lived for 4 years in Tokyo, and got used to chopsticks very quickly. I have been using them ever since. As someone said earlier – VERY versatile tools. An extension of your fingers, and everything. And really useful for certain types of food. ---
**Author:** ![Airk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9de053/32.png) [@Airk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airk)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appropriateness-of-using-chopsticks-in-an-asian-restaurant/631029/89 "2012-08-10T16:52:28Z")
Another thread in which **greenslime1951** demonstrates all sorts of interesting things about his character. Sir, if I may ask, why is it you have such a fondness for creating these threads that are, essentially, you saying to people “talk to me about X, so I can heap scorn upon you for daring to contradict my narrowminded preconceived notions on the topic”? I frequently use chopsticks at home, depending on the food. I am a “foreign devil” if by that you mean “not chinese” though my wife is from Taiwain. At a restaurant, I generally use whatever is provided - if there are chopsticks on the table, I use them, if it’s a fork, I use that. The very idea that chopsticks are somehow ‘inferior’ to the fork just speaks of someone who is basically ignorant - try eating pho with a spoon and a fork sometime, instead of a spoon and chopsticks. But then, it’s also the sort of opinion one might expect from someone who makes ‘jokes’ like ‘Dragon Laxative Pork’. ---
**Author:** ![tim314](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim314/32/3468_2.png) [@tim314](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tim314)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appropriateness-of-using-chopsticks-in-an-asian-restaurant/631029/90 "2012-08-10T17:12:00Z")
I attempt to use chopsticks mostly for fun and because I’d like to get better at using them, but if I’m having trouble I switch to a fork. I don’t think there’s anything inappropriate about using a fork; the restaurant provides it because they suspect I might need or prefer it. I am somewhat more hesitant to attempt chopsticks if I’m out to dinner with friends who grew up using them, just because my clumsiness is a bit embarrassing. ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appropriateness-of-using-chopsticks-in-an-asian-restaurant/631029/91 "2012-08-10T17:16:57Z")
> [@Bosstone](#): > > Have you tried to spear a piece with a fork, then dip it in the sauce only to have the piece fall into the sauce? > [..] > That simply doesn’t happen with chopsticks. If you’re suggesting that no one has ever dropped a piece of food into a dish of sauce while using chopsticks, have I got news for you… ---
**Author:** ![Labrador\_Deceiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Labrador\_Deceiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labrador_Deceiver)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appropriateness-of-using-chopsticks-in-an-asian-restaurant/631029/92 "2012-08-10T17:29:32Z")
The OP sounds like a real piece of work, but his date also sounded like a damn idiot. What kind of asshole asks an American why he’s eating with a fork? ---
**Author:** ![sachertorte](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sachertorte/32/3727_2.png) [@sachertorte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sachertorte)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appropriateness-of-using-chopsticks-in-an-asian-restaurant/631029/93 "2012-08-10T17:40:37Z")
> [@Chipacabra](#): > > Also, chopsticks keep the cheetos powder off your fingers. I do that too! ---
**Author:** ![Max\_the\_Immortal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6de8d8/32.png) [@Max\_the\_Immortal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Max_the_Immortal)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appropriateness-of-using-chopsticks-in-an-asian-restaurant/631029/94 "2012-08-10T17:54:43Z")
> [@Labrador\_Deceiver](#): > > The OP sounds like a real piece of work, but his date also sounded like a damn idiot. What kind of asshole asks an American why he’s eating with a fork? I wonder how old the OP and his erstwhile date are. I suspect that proficiency with chopsticks is more common (and seen as less exotic) by younger Americans than older ones. “This is chopstick food. Why are you using a fork like some sort of old fogy?” ---
**Author:** ![boytyperanma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4491bb/32.png) [@boytyperanma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boytyperanma)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appropriateness-of-using-chopsticks-in-an-asian-restaurant/631029/95 "2012-08-10T18:27:45Z")
> [@Labrador\_Deceiver](#): > > The OP sounds like a real piece of work, but his date also sounded like a damn idiot. What kind of asshole asks an American why he’s eating with a fork? It seems many in this thread are capable of conversing the merits and flaws of chopsticks verse forks. I’d say most people could have a conversation on chopsticks vs forks. I think she was simply trying to start such a conversation. Of course the OP completely shut down that possibility by being an stupidly opinionated ogre. It’s also possible she asked in a condescending manner which would be almost as inappropriate as his response. I’m very good with chopsticks, I tend to use them at nicer Chinese and Japanese restaurants. For me my decision lies more in what other people with me are doing. I don’t want to appear to be a show off or to make someone feel inferior. Saying that a fork is automatically superior is insulting. Your implying that the Japanese of all people can’t adapt to newer technology. Most high end restaurants in Japan will have forks available on request. I’ve never seen a Japanese person make that request. Why wouldn’t they opt for the superior utensil? This is like saying badminton racket is superior to a tennis racket or vice versa. Each has merits using it within their sport and have flaws with using them outside their sport. Though this analogy fails in that most people couldn’t tell one from the other. ---
**Author:** ![Bosstone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/22d042/32.png) [@Bosstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosstone)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appropriateness-of-using-chopsticks-in-an-asian-restaurant/631029/96 "2012-08-10T18:37:54Z")
> [@hogarth](#): > > If you’re suggesting that no one has ever dropped a piece of food into a dish of sauce while using chopsticks, have I got news for you… Certainly not. I’m talking about potential. Chopsticks allow for a significant amount of dexterity that you can’t get from a fork. If a fork can’t hold a piece of food, there’s very little you can do to change the situation beyond dispensing with the fork entirely and using something else. Chopsticks can grip food in the most advantageous way and with exactly as much pressure as needed to hold it steady. It takes more effort to learn how to use chopsticks than a fork, certainly, but once you’re proficient with them they’re as dextrous as your own fingers while not actually getting your fingers all over the food. ---
**Author:** ![Minnie\_Luna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4bbf92/32.png) [@Minnie\_Luna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Minnie_Luna)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appropriateness-of-using-chopsticks-in-an-asian-restaurant/631029/97 "2012-08-10T18:49:29Z")
Prior to last fall I used chopsticks here and there when eating sushi or at Chinese restaurants, but I did not make it a priority to do so. I felt more comfortable using the fork for noodles and rice. Once I booked a trip to China, I figured I had to get good at using them or risk looking like a idiot (white devil) once there. I learned how to eat rice and noodles with them and haven’t really looked back and I use them for all Chinese/Japanese food. ---
**Author:** ![greenslime1951](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e9bcb4/32.png) [@greenslime1951](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/greenslime1951)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appropriateness-of-using-chopsticks-in-an-asian-restaurant/631029/98 "2012-08-10T19:40:07Z")
> [@Bozuit](#): > > I get what you mean. I find the idea that chopsticks are more effective for eating _anything_ somewhat strange. Personally I think forks are objectively better, but there’s no way to really be sure. > > As for the actual point of the thread, I know someone with a similar attitude. I find chopsticks fun and I normally use them in Chinese restaurants, but they’re not more _appropriate_. People like that are annoying. Wow, you’re the _only_ one who understood what I was objecting to–even thought I stated it explicitly in a later post–that my date implying that I was using the “wrong” utensil was annoying, aside from the fact that her implication that chopsticks were **better** as well was pretty stupid. There are no foods that chopsticks handle better than a fork, and some that chopsticks fail miserably at, like non-sticky rice. Even native users have to stick their faces in the rice bowl to avoid spilling it all. I don’t doubt that, thought hamstrung by those primitive utensils, native chopstick users have become highly adept. At their best, chopsticks are _almost_ as good as a knife and fork. ---
**Author:** ![greenslime1951](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e9bcb4/32.png) [@greenslime1951](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/greenslime1951)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appropriateness-of-using-chopsticks-in-an-asian-restaurant/631029/99 "2012-08-10T19:43:38Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > Poor girl, I hope she’ll be OK.☹ Well, two years later, she’s still looking for a boyfriend. Probably because every time she goes out to a restaurant with a guy, she tells him how to eat his meal. The worst incident was when she was on a picnic with a friend and he took apart an Oreo cookie and started licking off the frosting. They had to haul her away, screaming. ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2012, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appropriateness-of-using-chopsticks-in-an-asian-restaurant/631029/100 "2012-08-10T19:56:26Z")
I’m beginning to suspect that we’re not talking about a factual incident. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appropriateness-of-using-chopsticks-in-an-asian-restaurant/631029.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/appropriateness-of-using-chopsticks-in-an-asian-restaurant/631029.md?page=6)