# Are you still doing the "cut'n'switch" while eating? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 5, 2015, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-still-doing-the-cutnswitch-while-eating/736748 "2015-11-05T19:05:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**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:** [November 7, 2015, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-still-doing-the-cutnswitch-while-eating/736748/101 "2015-11-07T15:15:57Z")
Applying labels like civilized or proper or uncouth is really silly. The real issue is that the American switching style was developed when Americans were using the knife and the _spoon_ as the two primary utensils for eating. The European way was developed for the knife and fork. So that’s why it uses the knife and fork more efficiently. ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2015, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-still-doing-the-cutnswitch-while-eating/736748/102 "2015-11-07T18:03:36Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > In the civilized world, the knife is not just for cutting, but also used as a stop for food that is sometimes difficult to scoop off a plate. A lot of Americans just use a finger, so couth is in the eye of the beholder. True. Also, I don’t always hold a knife. That’s my drinking hand. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2015, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-still-doing-the-cutnswitch-while-eating/736748/103 "2015-11-07T21:30:02Z")
I switch, but only once. I don’t see the point in not taking advantage of the fact that it’s faster to cut it all at once. It’s easier to cut like that if you used your dominant hand. Then, since I don’t have my knife, it’s easier to switch my fork back to my dominant hand. You can do it between bites, if you want. ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2015, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-still-doing-the-cutnswitch-while-eating/736748/104 "2015-11-07T22:22:57Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > I switch, but only once. I don’t see the point in not taking advantage of the fact that it’s faster to cut it all at once. . Ok I don’t want to be mean but I can guarantee most people who see you do that will think you’re a wierdo. It would look like you are imitating how you’re mommy cut it up for you. Also your food will get cold quicker that way if you want a practical reason. ---
**Author:** ![Bad\_News\_Baboon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/5fc32e/32.png) [@Bad\_News\_Baboon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bad_News_Baboon)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2015, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-still-doing-the-cutnswitch-while-eating/736748/105 "2015-11-08T00:26:30Z")
> [@Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](#): > > Uncouth to always be holding your knife, as though you’re rushing through your meal. This is it exactly. As for using fingers to push food? That would have made my mom implode. I don’t understand this urgency and need for efficiently seeming to be implied by many here. I can hear my mom: why not just tuck a napkin in bib-style and use a funnel? Sit a spell, enjoy the food and company. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2015, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-still-doing-the-cutnswitch-while-eating/736748/106 "2015-11-08T00:38:09Z")
I don’t switch but it has nothing to do with effeciency. I’m not doing calligraphy, I am moving a fork 2 feet from my plate to mouth. I don’t need to switch to my dominate hand for God’s sake. Do you “switchers” set your table with all the utensils on the same side of the plate? ---
**Author:** ![Bad\_News\_Baboon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/5fc32e/32.png) [@Bad\_News\_Baboon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bad_News_Baboon)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2015, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-still-doing-the-cutnswitch-while-eating/736748/107 "2015-11-08T00:38:14Z")
> [@Peremensoe](#): > > Uncouth to _not_ juggle utensils back and forth? Yes, because it isn’t a juggle at all. You cut, set down knife, gently, and switch. There’s no hurry. ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2015, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-still-doing-the-cutnswitch-while-eating/736748/108 "2015-11-08T00:44:57Z")
> [@Bad\_News\_Baboon](#): > > Yes, because it isn’t a juggle at all. You cut, set down knife, gently, and switch. There’s no hurry. Indeed, no hurry. But any repeated passage of objects between hands is a “juggle.” > [@Bad\_News\_Baboon](#): > > I don’t understand this urgency and need for efficiently seeming to be implied by many here. It’s not about efficiency. It’s about grace. ---
**Author:** ![octopus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/octopus/32/3716_2.png) [@octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/octopus)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2015, 1:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-still-doing-the-cutnswitch-while-eating/736748/109 "2015-11-08T01:05:22Z")
Those videos are incredibly ritualistic for the simple act of sticking food in mouth. It’s pretty silly in my opinion. I’m not saying use the napkin and funnel method but most people adopt a very useful compromise between the two extremes. ---
**Author:** ![Bad\_News\_Baboon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/5fc32e/32.png) [@Bad\_News\_Baboon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bad_News_Baboon)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2015, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-still-doing-the-cutnswitch-while-eating/736748/110 "2015-11-08T01:06:15Z")
> [@Peremensoe](#): > > Indeed, no hurry. But any repeated passage of objects between hands is a “juggle.” > > It’s not about efficiency. It’s about grace. We’ll just have to agree to disagree. Holding your knife the entire time appears, to me, barbaric and not graceful. ---
**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:** [November 8, 2015, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-still-doing-the-cutnswitch-while-eating/736748/111 "2015-11-08T01:25:41Z")
> [@Bad\_News\_Baboon](#): > > We’ll just have to agree to disagree. Holding your knife the entire time appears, to me, barbaric and not graceful. And to me, there’s nothing graceful about switching a utensil from one hand to another. Ultimately, these things are largely arbitrary, and the only way to really view them clearly is to give ingrained prejudices. ---
**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:** [November 8, 2015, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-still-doing-the-cutnswitch-while-eating/736748/112 "2015-11-08T01:34:40Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > And to me, there’s nothing graceful about switching a utensil from one hand to another. > > Ultimately, these things are largely arbitrary, and the only way to really view them clearly is to give ingrained prejudices. What I mean to say is that things like couthness and grace are arbitrary. The only reasonable basis for judgment is efficiency. Efficiency also helps keep things from going awry, like making messes. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2015, 5:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-still-doing-the-cutnswitch-while-eating/736748/113 "2015-11-08T05:37:54Z")
Whether or not others do it is something I probably won’t notice, but I do mostly tend to cut 'n switch. Oddly enough I don’t remember ever being taught to do so. I generally tend to eat quickly, so it’s a handy way of slowing myself down, which can be a bonus in any pleasant social dining situation. Nobody wants to sit in front of an empty plate for fifteen minutes while everyone else is still eating. ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2015, 9:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-still-doing-the-cutnswitch-while-eating/736748/114 "2015-11-08T09:05:36Z")
> [@Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](#): > > Uncouth to always be holding your knife, as though you’re rushing through your meal. Uncouth to be shoveling food in, tines up. Tis all in the eye of the beholder. As already stated, Brits regard the American way as positively barbaric. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2015, 10:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-still-doing-the-cutnswitch-while-eating/736748/115 "2015-11-08T10:52:39Z")
> [@SanVito](#): > > Uncouth to be shoveling food in, tines up. Tis all in the eye of the beholder. Even we Brits sometimes use forks with the tines up. Eating fish pie, for instance, or peas. But generally, it’s tines down. ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2015, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-still-doing-the-cutnswitch-while-eating/736748/116 "2015-11-08T13:27:29Z")
> [@SanVito](#): > > Uncouth to be shoveling food in… > [@Quartz](#): > > Even we Brits sometimes use forks with the tines up. Not to mention, spoons. ---
**Author:** ![Your\_Great\_Darsh\_Face](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/ac8455/32.png) [@Your\_Great\_Darsh\_Face](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Your_Great_Darsh_Face)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2015, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-still-doing-the-cutnswitch-while-eating/736748/117 "2015-11-08T13:44:58Z")
> [@Quartz](#): > > Even we Brits sometimes use forks with the tines up. Eating fish pie, for instance, or peas. But generally, it’s tines down. Yes, I blinked earlier at the implication that it’s at all difficult to turn the fork from pronated to supinated. As you and other Brits will know, the politer the society the fewer the occasions on which you should be scooping with the fork - but in normal circles no-one finds it all surprising or ill-bred to scoop peas. If one man’s meat is another man’s poison, then one man’s manners is another man’s barbarity. I’d find it hard to defend American manners whether you juggle forkful by forkful, which just looks silly to me, or cut everything into bite-sized morsels before starting, which seems a strange way to deal with an attractively-presented meal even if it didn’t run the risk of spoiling the food much less be peculiar behaviour for an adult. But it’s not worth getting hung up on. There is a widespread tendency to think that the manners we grew up with are the only proper manners, just like the only way for a church service to go is the way _we_ do it. The true test of manners, I suppose, is how well you conform to the ideals you were taught. You may have been brought up to eat only with your fingers, like about a third of the world. There’s still a world of difference between doing so neatly and cleanly, or making a pig of yourself; and the same, I suppose, may be true if you have a whole battery of cutlery that you use in strict rotation. Or alternatively you just shovel down whatever dire-tasting ahagaree the vile old khoontz has served up this time, and then slip out of the door for a few beers and a good bungle show before she starts throwing pots and pans at you. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2015, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-still-doing-the-cutnswitch-while-eating/736748/118 "2015-11-08T14:35:31Z")
> [@Omar\_Little](#): > > Left handed American. Fork in the left hand, knife in the right hand. Never switch. this > [@Asimovian](#): > > I’m left-handed and never switch. I don’t recall anyone ever remarking upon it. I eat out a decent amount and definitely see some people do the switch, but I’ve never thought of it as universal. also this. It never occurred to me to switch hands until i read somewhere that “Americans eat this way.” I’ve since noticed some people eating way, but it’s certainly not universal, ime. Maybe it’s regional. When I’m in Europe I am more likely to do the “tines down” thing. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2015, 7:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-still-doing-the-cutnswitch-while-eating/736748/119 "2015-11-09T07:51:08Z")
> [@CarnalK](#): > > Ok I don’t want to be mean but I can guarantee most people who see you do that will think you’re a wierdo. It would look like you are imitating how you’re mommy cut it up for you. > > Also your food will get cold quicker that way if you want a practical reason. And everyone thinks most of you guys are weirdos if you happen to go eat in what they consider the “wrong” way. Whether strangers think I’m a weirdo is low on the list of things I’m concerned about when I eat. I eat the way that works best for me and that isn’t impolite or messy. Plus, it’s utterly inconsequential. It affects absolutely no one. If tiny things like that are enough for you to label someone a “weirdo,” I don’t really care for your company. It’s like deciding you don’t want to be friends with someone due to which way they put in the toilet paper roll. I mean, I find the European way totally weird. So what? ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2015, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-still-doing-the-cutnswitch-while-eating/736748/120 "2015-11-09T13:57:09Z")
I won’t really think any disparaging thoughts about you or get particularly wrapped up in the strange way that you eat as long as you don’t get prescriptive about it and tell people this is how one is supposed to eat. If I overhear you doing this (including your young kids) attitudes will form. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-still-doing-the-cutnswitch-while-eating/736748.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-still-doing-the-cutnswitch-while-eating/736748.md?page=7)